Cleveland Guardians 2024 Prospect Scouting Report: #17 LHP Alex Clemmey
Can Clemmey throw enough strikes to reach his sky high, but high-risk ceiling?
Alex Clemmey Bio
Age (2024 season): 18
Acquired: 2023 MLB Draft (Round 2)
2023 Level: High
Height: 6’6
Weight: 205
Throws: Left
Alex Clemmey 2023 High School Stats
IP: 35.2
ERA: 0.59
K: 85
Alex Clemmey 2024 Scouting Grades
Fastball: 60
Curveball: 55
Changeup: 40
Command: 30
Overall: 40
Risk: Extreme
ETA: 2028
Build & Background
Strong, but long and lanky build. A lot of arms and legs. High waisted and broad shoulders. Projectable frame of a durable starting pitcher. Funky, nasty delivery. Drops down into his back hip deeply and bends his waist down with it. Hides the ball well with this movement. Long arm swing. Very quick arm through his delivery and the high 3/4 arm slot. Good arm timing. Lot of moving parts in delivery overall. Cold weather area arm (Rhode Island) without a ton of innings and development. Was Rhode Island’s Gatorade Player of the Year. Vanderbilt commit. Signed for $2.3M.
What Clemmey Does Well
Clemmey will carry 94-97 and hit 98, and he may be able to touch 100. He does it from a high 3/4 arm slot and a funk, deceptive delivery that has a lot of moving parts. His curve can get up to 16 inches of vertical break. It’s a nasty offering with real depth. Is also working on a slider. The velocity, size and deceptive drive his strengths right now. Does a great job getting into his backside and hiding the ball in his delivery as it stands. He’s got a lot of traits to dream on as a top of the rotation arm, or a very devastating late inning reliever. The size and long levers are things that will help with extension, which could help his fastball play up even more, and those are some things you can’t teach.
https://x.com/brian_recca/status/1659250133026865161?s=20
https://x.com/rapsodo/status/1678242663886102530?s=20
Where Clemmey Needs to Improve
While he has bat missing stuff, Clemmey has a lot of moving parts in his delivery. His torso tilt and long arm swing, plus his overall size forces him to work to repeat his delivery consistently. There is effort in the delivery and the long levers that aid his extension also make it hard to keep all the moving parts in sync. All of this has led to concerns about control as an amateur. He needs a clear third pitch right now, hopefully the changeup.
https://x.com/California_PG/status/1566991104670564354?s=20
Key Stats
In 2022, Clemmey pitched six innings for the Team USA 17U team and struck out seven while walking five.
Intangibles
Character wise, Clemmey checks a lot of boxes. He was a good student in high school, volunteered with the Special Olympics and with youth baseball camps.
Cleveland values character and high level amateur experience and likely valued Clemmey’s experience with the Team USA 17U team.
Future
Obviously, there’s a wide range of outcomes for Clemmey’s potential here. A big, lanky frame with a hard fastball and a devastating curve make you want to dream on Randy Johnson, Chris Sale, Andrew MIller or Josh Hader. There alone, you see a potential ace, or a potential ace reliever. Baseball history is also littered with arms and bodies like Clemmey that don’t throw enough strikes to make it to the majors. Ryan Anderson, Jesse Biddle, Andy Sisco - you get the idea. The good outcomes here are really good. A Chris Sale or Andrew Miller, or never makes it to the majors. Of course there is always room for the in-between, but if you were to ask what the highest likelihood of outcomes for Clemmey are, it’s probably these, ace/ace reliever, or a lot of untapped potential.
Given his age and inexperience pitching in a cold weather area, it would seem likely Clemmey ends up playing most of 2024 in the ACL rookie setting, and if all goes well, maybe he sees a handful of outings in Lynchburg.
Role
40 - Boom or bust frontline starter/ace reliever