Jordan Lyles Stats & Scouting Report

IP	5
ERA	0
WHIP	.8
BB/9	3.6
SO/9	5.4

Full name Jordan Horton Lyles
Born 10/19/1990 in Hartsville, SC
Profile Ht.: 6'5" / Wt.: 230 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School Hartsville
Debut 05/31/2011
Drafted in the C-A round (38th overall) by the Houston Astros in 2008 (signed for $930,000).

View Draft Report

Lyles leads the South Carolina high school ranks. Blessed with a clean and easy delivery, Lyles offers a fastball in the upper 80s and can break 90 mph on occasion. He also has room in his 6-foot-4 frame to add strength and velocity. Lyles also throws a curveball and changeup and can command all three pitches. A three-sport star in high school, Lyles is athletic on the mound. He is committed to South Carolina.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Lyles starred in three sports at Hartsville (S.C.) High. While he used his 6-foot-4 frame to start in basketball, Lyles stood out more in baseball and football. As a prep senior, he was an all-state wide receiver with had 81 catches for 1,568 yards and 23 touchdowns for 1,568 yards. His three-sport background kept him off the baseball showcase circuit, but he entered the spring of 2008 as the top prep prospect in Palmetto State and committed to South Carolina. Coached by 1994 Braves first-round pick Jacob Shumate at Hartsville, Lyles came out of basketball season throwing just 86-88 mph. Astros area scout J.D. Alleva and crosschecker Clarence Johns stayed on him all spring, and Lyles' velocity became more consistent as he got into baseball mode. He clinched Houston's interest with a strong workout at Minute Maid Park, where he hit 90 mph and commanded his fastball well. The Astros drafted him 38th overall and signed him for $930,000. Considered an overdraft at the time, Lyles has made Houston look smart. He has breezed through the minors and was the only teenager to play in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League in 2010. Lyles has mound presence and a knack for pitching that are beyond his years. He throws four average to plus pitches, and his athleticism, clean arm action and textbook delivery help him throw quality strikes with all of them. His fastball sits at 88-93 mph with average life. He commands it well down in the strike zone and to both sides of the plate. While his fastball grades out as a tick above-average thanks to his command, his slider and changeup are true plus pitches. Scouts prefer his changeup, which he throws with good arm speed and has some depth. At times, it's a 70 pitch on the 20-80 scouting scale. His changeup helped him neutralize lefthanders at Double-A Corpus Christi, though he was hit harder at Triple-A Round Rock. Lyles throws a low-80s slider with depth and also a cutter that reaches as high as 87 mph. He's able to pitch inside well with the fastball and cutter, which helps him saw off hitters and sets up his changeup on the outside corner. Lyles has great body control, allowing him to repeat his delivery and pound the strike zone. He has been durable as a pro, never missing a start and pitching a career-high 159 innings last year. He may gain a little more fastball velocity as he matures physically, but Lyles doesn't overpower hitters and won't be a power pitcher. He profiles as a No. 3 starter on a major league contender. Manager Brad Mills says Lyles is a leading candidate for the fifth spot in Houston's rotation, competing with journeyman Nelson Figueroa, freeagent signee Ryan Rowland- Smith and Rule 5 draft picks Aneury Rodriguez and Lance Pendleton. Lyles could use some time to solve Triple-A hitters, but he'll pitch in the big leagues in 2011, whether it's in April or later.
Few teams saw Lyles, South Carolina's top prep talent in 2008, as an early round pick. He excelled in a predraft workout for the Astros, who drafted him 38th overall and signed him for $930,000. He justified Houston's faith by finishing second in the South Atlantic League with 167 strikeouts last season. Lyles' fastball sits at 89-91 mph, touches 93-94 and has late life in the zone. He has a lot of confidence in his changeup, which has fade and heavy sink at its best and could be a plus offering down the road. He adds and subtracts from his curveball, throwing it in the mid-70s for an early count strike and burying it at 77-80 mph when he gets ahead. He has clean arm action and repeats his athletic, easy delivery. He hides the ball well behind his back shoulder, adding deception. He has advanced control for his age and keeps hitters off balance by working both sides of the plate. The development of Lyles' breaking balls will determine his ceiling. He didn't have a good one in high school, and his curve is still inconsistent, getting hammered when he leaves it up in the zone. He also added a slider late in the season. The Astros might move Lyles past Lancaster's launching pad and send him to Double-A. He has the repertoire and control to fit in the middle of a big league rotation, and each of his pitches has enough projection for him to become a potential frontline starter.
After his strong workout for club officials, the Astros pushed Lyles up their draft board, bucking consensus when they took him with the 38th overall pick in the 2008 draft. Lyles was not in BA's predraft Top 200, nor a top three rounds consideration for all but a handful of teams, even though he was the top prep prospect in South Carolina. He signed for $930,000 on the night of his high school graduation, spurning a University of South Carolina scholarship. He had also toyed with the idea of playing wide receiver for Steve Spurrier's Gamecocks. Lyles has a free and easy, classic delivery that the Astros say needs little tweaking. He shelved his cutter once in pro ball, and saw an immediate improvement in his fastball as it jumped from 86-88 mph in the spring to 90-95 all summer. He had good command of it even with the added velocity. His curveball has rotation and shape to it, and has shown a feel for a changeup. Consistency will be paramount as Lyles advances through the system. He has trouble repeating his secondary stuff, especially the curveball. It flattens out at times. He has a tendency to elevate his fastball, and that will get him knocked around higher up in the minors. Lyles projects to be a solid No. 3 starter at this point, with a shot to be a No. 2. The Astros have plenty of time to nurture him and will tag-team him with Ross Seaton at Lexington to open 2008.

Minor League Top Prospects

The only teenager to appear in the league a year ago, Lyles returned and was one of the few pitchers to perform well in the inhospitable PCL. He earned a promotion to Houston at the end of May, and while he won only two of his 15 starts for a 106-loss club, he showed the potential to become a mid-rotation starter. Lyles doesn't miss a lot of bats, but he compensates with advanced command. His high three-quarters arm slot helps him get good downward plane on his fastball, which ranges from 88-93 mph and typically sits at 89-90 with heavy sink. He has a pair of plus secondary pitches in his cutter/slider and changeup, and he'll also mix in a curveball.
Lyles jumped from low Class A to Corpus Christi as a 19-year-old, finishing fifth in the TL in ERA (3.19) and making the league's postseason all-star team. Houston rewarded him with a late-season promotion to Triple-A. Lyles pitches at 89-92 mph and touches 94, getting the most out of his fastball by spotting it in the strike zone. He has a lot of mound savvy and at least three other major league pitches: a cutter that can break bats, a big-breaking curveball and a changeup that could be a plus pitch. He also throws a slider. When Lyles has his command working and drives the ball down in the zone, he can handle any hitter. There are some concerns with his delivery and how his not-quite-overpowering stuff will play against major leaguers.
Lyles showed the stuff of a potential frontline starter this season. His fastball now sits at 89-91 mph and touches 93. Using a high three-quarters, clean and quick arm action and a repeatable delivery, he challenges hitters with his heater and finished second in the SAL with 167 strikeouts in 145 innings. "He's the first pitcher I saw say, 'Here you go, Melky Mesa,' and throw him four straight fastballs and strike him out," Tyson said. "After he struck him out and turned around, I saw a little grin on his face, which I like. He's a bulldog, a competitor." Lyles throws two different curveballs, a show-me pitch in the mid-70s and a sharper 77-80 mph bender. He might be better served scrapping the slower curveball, which he leaves up in the zone. He mixes in an average changeup and started throwing a slider halfway through the season.
Lyles was considered an overdraft when the Astros took him 38th overall, but he sure didn't pitch like it. Athleticism and a clean, easy delivery were among his strongest traits as an amateur, and Appy League observers concurred. His fastball sat at 88-92 mph, and though it doesn't feature much life, Lyles commands it well for a young hurler. His 6-foot-4, 185-pound frame leaves plenty of room to project more velocity. Though Lyles relies on his fastball, he already shows advanced feel for a changeup, getting good arm speed and separation on the pitch. His stumbling block could be the development of his low-70s curveball, which rates as below-average. He struggles to stay on top of his curve and to find a consistent release point.

Top 100 Rankings

Best Tools List

Rated Best Pitching Prospect in the Pacific Coast League in 2011
Rated Best Control in the Houston Astros in 2011
Rated Best Changeup in the Houston Astros in 2011
Rated Best Slider in the Houston Astros in 2011
Rated Best Changeup in the Houston Astros in 2010

Career Transactions

Oklahoma City Baseball Club activated RHP Jordan Lyles from the temporarily inactive list.
Oklahoma City Baseball Club placed RHP Jordan Lyles on the temporarily inactive list.
RHP Jordan Lyles assigned to Oklahoma City Baseball Club from ACL Dodgers.
RHP Jordan Lyles assigned to ACL Dodgers.
Los Angeles Dodgers signed free agent RHP Jordan Lyles to a minor league contract.
Kansas City Royals released RHP Jordan Lyles.
Kansas City Royals activated RHP Jordan Lyles from the restricted list.
Kansas City Royals placed RHP Jordan Lyles on the restricted list.
Kansas City Royals placed RHP Jordan Lyles on the temporarily inactive list.