Tanner Scott

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Baltimore Orioles #6 prospect in 2018
  A 2014 sixth-round pick who signed for an above-slot $600,000 bonus out of junior college, Scott showed himself to have one of the most electric (albeit wild) arms in the system. After two years as a reliever, Scott moved to the rotation at Double-A Bowie in 2017, typically working three innings per start. This allowed him to hone his delivery and develop his secondary pitches, both in games and in between-start bullpen side sessions. Scott shows well above-average velocity with his fastball, which he can sink and run at 97-100 mph with deception. His slider went from average to above-average at 86-90 mph with tight break. While his command improved with extra work on his mechanics, his violent delivery precludes pinpoint command. So far, the Orioles are just trying to get him to fringe-average control. That could still prove effective because he's difficult to square up, even over the plate. The Orioles haven't committed to using Scott as a starter long-term, but the initial plan is to keep Scott in a rotation spot for continued development in 2018. His changeup and control will need to improve for him to profile as even a back-end major league starter, but with his fastball-slider combination out of the bullpen, the Orioles see a possible future closer.
• 
  Ranked Baltimore Orioles #11 prospect in 2017
  Scott was one of the top arms in the Texas junior-college ranks in 2014 before the Orioles drafted and signed him for an above-slot $650,000 bonus. Club officials were delighted that he finished his second full season in 2016 at Double-A Bowie. He headed to the Arizona Fall League for the second straight year. Scott has the best fastball in the system and also features a slider. He is the rare lefty who reaches triple digits, which he touched just about every game. The Orioles envision a dominant, late-inning bullpen arm if he can harness his control. Pitching from the stretch, his fastball often sat 95-98 mph, and some scouts saw him touch 102. But Scott can't be effective with a career walk rate of 6.9 per nine innings. He must increase his rate of quality strikes, especially with his slider, which sits between 88-92 mph. He needs to stay behind his slider and not get off to the side to maintain the sharpness and depth. Scott needs work on fielding his position and holding runners. The Orioles hope simplifying Scott's delivery from the stretch will help him repeat his motion and throw more strikes. He could follow the lead of bullpen arms Mychal Givens and Donnie Hart and jump straight from the Eastern League to Baltimore in 2017.
• 
  Ranked Baltimore Orioles #11 prospect in 2016
  An Ohio prep product, Scott originally signed with Division II Notre Dame (Ohio), going 3-5, 5.55 before transferring. He was one of the best arms in the Texas juco ranks in 2014, pitching in the mid-90s and touching 97 mph. Scott signed for $650,000, well above than the bonus for that slot of $240,000. He now throws harder than he did in junior college, touching 100 mph in the Arizona Fall League and 101 during instructional league. His fastball, the best in the system, is most often between 94-98 mph with some armside run. He also throws a slider. Right now, Scott's slider is below-average, as is his command, but that premium velocity has garnered him attention. He pitches exclusively from the stretch, simplify- ing his delivery, and one scout said Scott could be effectively wild with even below-average command. He is just a two-pitch guy and scouts have seen him throw a sharp slider on the side but not have the same pitch quality in games. Scott's overall game needs more polish. For instance, he is below-average fielding and holding runners, but he's considered very coachable with solid makeup. Scott will possibly begin 2016 at high Class A Frederick. He could move quickly and that will mostly depend on the level of improvement he makes with his command and control. His ceiling is as a late-inning lefty reliever in the Jake McGee mold.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #184 prospect in 2014 draft
  Scott's older brother Tyler just signed with the Minnesota Vikings after a stellar career as a defensive lineman at Northwestern. Tanner, a strapping lad himself at 6-foot-2, 210 pounds (but about 50 pounds lighter than his brother), has emerged as one of the top arms in Texas' junior-college ranks after taking an odd route there. The Ohio native originally signed with Division II Notre Dame (Ohio), going 3-5, 5.55 last year before deciding to transfer to Howard (Texas) JC. Scott has shown premium fastball velocity from the left side, touching 97 mph and sitting in the mid-90s at times. The Texas Tech signee also throws a slider, but his delivery remains raw and his repertoire underdeveloped thanks to his lack of pitching experience. He struggled to throw strikes, with 45 walks and 76 strikeouts in 61 innings during the spring.

Minor League Top Prospects

• 
  Ranked Eastern League #14 prospect in 2017
  Though he made 24 starts this year and not a single relief appearance, Scott is going to be a reliever. He lasted into the fourth inning only once all season and by design typically went exactly three. The Orioles are working to develop Scott as a multi-inning relief ace by having him work as a starter to use all his pitches in a variety of situations. He works primarily with two pitches--a fastball that sits between 98-100 mph and a devastating sweeping slider. He has a changeup as well, but leans heavily on the first two pitches. Scott's command and control grade as below-average--he walked 46 hitters in 69 innings--but managers around the league noted his misses weren't often by much. He needs to throw more first-pitch strikes instead of having to battle back after ball one.

• July, 2018 Scouting Report
  Scott has seen his opportunities rise in a depleted Orioles bullpen that began without closer Zach Britton and lost Richard Bleier and Darren O’Day in June. The hard-throwing Scott has shown flashes of dominance, with his slider a legitimate swing-and-miss pitch when it’s on, but hasn’t done so with nearly enough consistency--that’s something that has plagued him throughout his career as his 4.8 walks per nine innings in the majors is actually the best walk rate of his career. Scott has the stuff to be the Orioles closer of the future and could even begin to get that experience this summer.
• December, 2017 Scouting Report
  Track Record: A sixth-round pick in 2014 who signed for an above-slot $600,000 bonus out of junior college, Scott showed himself to have one of the most electric (albeit wild) arms in the system. After two years as a reliever, Scott was put on a starter's schedule in 2017 to allow him to hone his delivery and develop his secondary pitches, both in games and in between-start bullpens. Scouting Report: Scott shows well-above-average velocity on his fastball, which he can sink and run at 97-100 mph with deception coming out of his hand. His slider went from average to above-average at 86-90 mph with tight break. While his command improved with the extra work on his mechanics, his violent delivery will produce more control than spot command. That could still prove effective as he's difficult to square up, even over the plate. The Future: The Orioles haven't committed to using Scott as a starter long-term, but the initial plan is to keep him in a five-man rotation for continued development in 2018. His changeup and control will need to improve for him to profile as even a back-end major league starter, but with his fastball-slider combination out of the bullpen, the Orioles see a possible future closer.
• December, 2016 Scouting Report
  Background: Scott showed one of the top arms in the Texas junior-college ranks in 2014 before the Orioles drafted him and signed him for an above-slot $650,000 bonus. Club officials were delighted that he finished his second full season in 2016 at Double-A Bowie. For the second year in a row Baltimore sent him to the Arizona Fall League to get more work. Scouting Report: Scott has the best fastball in the system and also features a slider. He is the rare lefty who reaches triple digits, which he touched just about every game. The Orioles envision a dominant, late-inning bullpen arm if he can harness his control. Pitching from the stretch, his fastball often sat 95-98 mph, and some scouts saw him touch 102. But Scott can't be effective with a career walk rate of 6.9 per nine innings. He must increase his rate of quality strikes, especially with his slider, which sits between 88-92 mph. He needs to stay behind his slider and not get off to the side to maintain the sharpness and depth. Scott definitely needs work on fielding his position and holding runners. The Future: The Orioles hope simplifying Scott's delivery from the stretch will help him repeat his motion and throw more strikes. He could follow the lead of Baltimore bullpen arms Mychal Givens and Donnie Hart and jump straight from the Eastern League to Baltimore in 2017.