Luis Cota Stats & Scouting Report

IP	408
ERA	5.36
WHIP	1.529
BB/9	4.015
SO/9	8.162

Full name Luis Alan Cota
Born 08/19/1985 in Hermosillo, Mexico
Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 200 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School South Mountain CC
Drafted in the 10th round (282nd overall) by the Kansas City Royals in 2003 (signed for $1,050,000).

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Six-foot-2, 180-poumd RHP Luis Cota generated a lot of late interest with a fastball clocked up to 96 mph.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Cota played mostly shortstop in high school and the Royals took a chance on his arm strength in the 10th round in 2003. The move paid off as he was named Arizona's junior college player of the year the following spring and signed as a draft-and-follow for $1.05 million, a record for a 10th-rounder. Cota has gone just 12-20, 5.52 as a pro and had a careerworst 7.09 ERA last year. While high Class A High Desert and the California League as a whole are extremely hitter-friendly, that can't be blamed for all of his struggles. His command is erratic and he leaves too many balls up in the zone. Cota does have strikeout stuff and just needs to learn how to harness it. He possesses one of the best arms in the system as his fastball touches 95 mph and he sits at 91-92 mph with ease. His slider came on as the season progressed but is still too erratic. It's a mid-80s breaker with slight downward bite when he stays on top of it. While the slider has more potential, he currently gets more out of his changeup because he keeps it down in the zone. Cota's ceiling is as high as any pitcher's in the system. Because the Royals have shifted their high Class A affiliate from High Desert to Wilmington, which favors pitchers, he'll likely repeat the level in 2007.
The younger brother of Diamondbacks first-base prospect Jesus Cota, Luis played mostly shortstop at Tucson's Sunnyside High. The Royals liked his arm strength enough to gamble a 10th-round choice on him in 2003, and he blossomed into the Arizona juco player of the year the next spring. Kansas City signed him as a draft-and-follow for $1.05 million, a record for a 10th-rounder. Cota tops out at an easy 93-95 mph and works at 91-92. His four-seam fastball features so much life that it gets mistaken for a two-seamer as its bores in on righthanders. His power slider sits in the mid-80s and should become a second plus pitch once he refines his command of it. His changeup can be inconsistent, but it improved during the season. Cota needs more consistency with his delivery. He gets underneath the ball too much, leaving his fastball straight and his slider flat. The mechanical correction also would give him better control, allowing him to get ahead of hitters and put them away easier. The Royals view Cota as a power arm with the potential for three plus pitches atop a rotation. He'll need to improve his command and feel as his mental toughness gets checked in the pitcher's wasteland of High Desert this year.
A native Panamanian, Cota was a strong-armed shortstop who also pitched at Tucson's Sunnyside High. The Royals spent a 10th-round choice on him in 2003 and watched him blossom in junior college before signing him as a draft-and-follow for $1.05 million--a record for a 10th-rounder. Cota throws his four-seam fastball at 92-96 mph range, and it has so much boring action that scouts mistook it for a two-seamer. He scrapped his curveball after signing to focus on his slider, and it now clocks in at 86-88 mph, giving him a second plus pitch. He's very athletic, allowing him to repeat a sound delivery and field his position. Cota struggled with his command in his pro debut, which may have been a result of being tired after working 93 innings in junior college. He needs to work down in the zone more often. He didn't start using a changeup until instructional league, but made good initial progress. With his stuff, Cota can become a frontline starter, though he's quite a ways from the majors. He'll begin his first full season in low Class A.

Minor League Top Prospects

Cota had the best pure fastball in the MWL, delivering 92-95 mph heat that bored in on righthanders. Though he's just 6 feet tall, he throws with little effort. "The thing about Cota is that he has that extra gear," a second AL scout said. "He can run it up to the mid-90s when he's in trouble. He can reach back and get a little more." Cota preferred playing shortstop to pitching when he was in high school, and his inexperience shows. He lacks feel and his delivery easily gets out of whack, which hurts his command and secondary pitches. He has a chance to develop a plus slider, though he gets under the pitch too often, and his changeup needs a lot of work.
The Royals drafted Cota in the 10th round in 2003, then signed him for $1.05 million (a record for his round) in May. His fastball soared up to 97 mph while he was winning Arizona juco player-of-the-year honors at South Mountain Community College. The native Panamanian wasn't at his best in the PL after logging 93 innings during the spring. His fastball sat at 92 mph and peaked at 94. He also struggled with his control. Cota's flaws were typical of a tired pitcher in his first pro season. He should take off after getting some rest and some more experience. His mechanics are clean, and his second-best pitch is a tight slider with good late movement.