Jesse Foppert Stats & Scouting Report

IP	122
ERA	5.016
WHIP	1.615
BB/9	6.049
SO/9	8.041

Full name Jesse William Foppert
Born 07/10/1980 in Reading, PA
Profile Ht.: 6'6" / Wt.: 220 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School San Francisco
Debut 04/14/2003
Drafted in the 2nd round (74th overall) by the San Francisco Giants in 2001 (signed for $520,000).

View Draft Report

A recruited walk-on as a first baseman, Foppert's draft status skyrocketed with his conversion to the mound. He didn't take to pitching until last summer, and he still plays first base and DH between starts. Scouts love his fresh arm and how effortlessly he throws and locates his 92 mph fastball. The 6-foot-5, 215-pound righthander has touched 94 mph, though his heater loses its movement at that speed. He gets better life on his two-seamer. His slider has the potential to be a plus pitch, and he shows the makings of a reliable changeup.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Foppert is from San Rafael, just a ferry ride away from Pac Bell Park. He's not far away in a baseball sense either. Undrafted as a high school infielder, he barely pitched in his first two years at the University of San Francisco. When his Shenandoah Valley League team needed pitchers in the summer of 2000, he was persuaded to get on the mound. To say it turned out to be a good move is an understatement. After a solid junior year pitching for the Dons, he went in the second round of the 2001 draft and led the short-season Northwest League in ERA during his pro debut. Foppert was even more dominant during his first full pro season in 2002. He reached Triple-A, where he was rated the Pacific Coast League's No. 1 prospect, and led the minors by averaging 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings. Foppert has a textbook delivery. Because he spent so little time on the mound as a teenager, he didn't have the chance to develop poor mechanics. He has a smooth motion, looking as if he's barely working, and the ball still jumps out of his hand. Foppert has a mid-90s fastball that was clocked as high as 99 mph at Double-A Shreveport in 2002. The fastball has so much life that he barely needed his other pitches in Double-A. His second-best pitch is a splitter that hitters can't lay off when it dives out of the strike zone. He made nice strides tightening up his slider last year. Foppert's mound presence and poise also left a positive impression. Given his background and athleticism, the Giants expect that he'll handle the bat well for a pitcher. Foppert is still developing a changeup and began working on a curveball in instructional league. He needs to tweak his command, as big leaguers might not chase his splitter as much as minor leaguers have. Throwing more strikes would allow him to reduce his high pitch counts, the main reason he averaged less than six innings a start last year. He faded in August under the wear of his first full season. Foppert probably won't win a spot on the Opening Day roster. The Giants don't have a clear opening and he could use more time at Triple-A Fresno. But if he picks up where he left off, he could force a promotion quickly. Easing him into the majors in a long relief role also could be a possibility.
After starting his college career as primarily a first baseman, Foppert emerged as a pitching prospect in the wood-bat Shenandoah Valley League in 2000, posting a 2.11 ERA and allowing just 44 hits in 64 innings. He led the Northwest League in ERA in his pro debut. Foppert has an athletic pitcher's body and a smooth, easy delivery right out of the textbook. Short-season Salem-Keizer manager Fred Stanley compared Foppert's smooth motion to Jim Palmer's. His no-effort mechanics produce pinpoint command, and the Giants expect him to be a workhorse. He has a low-90s fastball that touches 95 mph, a plus slider with late action, and a solid changeup and curveball. Foppert really just needs innings. He has yet to experience much failure on the mound and needs to pick up the nuances of the position, such as holding runners. The Giants say he has the aptitude to learn quickly. Foppert gives the Giants five righthanders among their top six prospects. He's on the fast track and should start 2002 at Class A San Jose.

Minor League Top Prospects

Pick your favorite manager in the Texas League and you can attribute this quote to him when asked about Foppert: "We couldn't do anything with him." In 11 starts with Shreveport, Foppert made sure he would be remembered with his exceptional mechanics and mound presence. And that's aside from his mid-90s fastball, above-average slider and improving changeup. Foppert, who converted from first baseman to pitcher in a summer college league in 2000, has moved through the Giants organization at light speed. He pitched well enough to get called up to Triple-A in June. His record for a dreadful Shreveport team was nothing special, but holding batters to a .199 average was. "Against us he didn't really have his breaking ball but he didn't even need it," Ireland said. "There's so much life to his fastball that we couldn't even hit it. He is just impossible to hit."
The question isn't how Foppert became the minors' best mound prospect two years after becoming a full-time pitcher. That answer is apparent to everyone who saw him pitch this year. But how did this guy last 74 picks in the 2000 draft? Foppert reached Triple-A 12 months after signing and led the minors with 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings in his first full season. He got whiffs with three pitches: a mid-90s fastball that can reach 97 mph, a quick slider that runs down and in on righthanders, and a splitter that hitters couldn't help but chase out of the strike zone. "He misses bats," an American League scout said. "Guys swing through his fastball and don't touch it." Extremely athletic, Foppert has smooth mechanics to go with outstanding mound presence. He sharpened his slider in Fresno but still can improve his secondary pitches, which also include a changeup. He'll also need to refine his command and get stronger after averaging less than six innings per start and fading in August.
Foppert went to college as a hitter but emerged as a pitching prospect in the summer of 2000 while in the wood-bat Shenandoah Valley League. He helped lead Harrisonburg to the league title, and did the same thing this summer with the Volcanoes. The league's ERA champion struck out a dozen in a six-inning start to initiate Salem-Keizer's sweep of Boise. He never was a full-time pitcher before, so Foppert has a fresh arm to go with his physical maturity. Managers loved his smooth, easy delivery and his ability to locate any of his offerings--fastball, splitter, slider and circle change--in or out of the strike zone. His fastball and slider are plus pitches. "He has a really good fastball that's in the low to mid-90s now, but you can project him up to 95," Salem-Keizer manager Fred Stanley said. "He gets a lot of late action. His delivery is like Jim Palmer's. It's just nice and easy."