Scouting Report

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Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 55 | Overall: 55

A high school player from the state of Oregon hasn't been taken in the top two rounds since the Cardinals took Carson Kelly in the second round of the 2012 Draft. Abel, who helped pitch his Jesuit High School to a state title, was named the state's Gatorade Player of the Year and then pitched well at a variety of summer showcase stops, should be the first Oregon prepster to go in the first round since Matt Smith back in 1994.

The 6-foot-5 right-hander shows flashes of three plus pitches, starting with a fastball that was regularly in the 93-95 mph range this summer, though he tired a bit near the end of his run. He throws it downhill with good life at the bottom of the zone and then can come back with a four-seamer up in the zone with riding action. His 82-86 mph slider is a very effective pitch, and he also has feel for a curveball with more over the top rotation to it. The two morph into each other at times, but there's enough differentiation to believe he could throw both in the future, along with a future plus changeup that he sells with good arm speed and features sink and dip at the end.

The Oregon State recruit generally throws strikes and he gets as high marks for his maturity and makeup as he does his stuff. He's only going to get stronger and throw harder as he physically matures, something he showed a glimpse of in one outing this spring before things got shut down, giving him the chance to be the first prep arm to come off the board in June.

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Scouting grades: Fastball: 65 | Curveball: 55 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 40 | Overall: 50

Coming from Oregon powerhouse Jesuit High School, Abel stood out enough on the summer showcase circuit in 2019 to offset what was largely a lost senior season in 2020 because of the pandemic. That helped him land in the middle of the first round that summer with the Phillies. He was limited by a shoulder issue in 2021 but has pitched his way to Triple-A over the past two full seasons, making a trip to the Futures Game in 2023. He’s shown off impressive stuff all along the way, albeit with some control issues.

The 6-foot-5 right-hander still offers plenty of projection to go along with his current stuff. He has the chance to have a very good four-pitch mix, starting with a fastball that averaged around 96 mph in 2023 and flirted with triple digits, missing a good amount of bats. He can throw two distinct breaking pitches -- an upper-70s curve and a harder slider that can flash plus. He can sell his upper-80s changeup well with good sink, giving him the chance to eventually have four at least above-average offerings.

While the stuff to be a frontline starter (11.1 K/9 in his career entering 2024) is not in question, his ability to land that stuff in the strike zone consistently is the one thing that could hold him back. That regressed in 2023, when he walked 5.2 per nine innings, limiting his chances to pitch deep into games. He’ll still be just 22 years old for the bulk of the 2024 season, so there’s time for him to refine that part of his game in order to knock on the big league door.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 65 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 50 | Overall: 55

In the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Abel was ranked as the top high school pitcher in the Draft class, based largely on his performance on the summer showcase circuit. He barely pitched at Oregon powerhouse Jesuit High School, but the Phillies had seen enough to take him in the middle of the first round that summer. A shoulder issue contributed to an inconsistent first full season in 2021, but he took a nice step forward in 2022, pitching his way from High-A to Double-A.

At 6-foot-5, Abel very much looks the part of a projectable right-handed starter. With a very quick arm, his fastball sits comfortably in the mid-90s and he’s able to crank it up into the upper 90s at times. His mid-80s slider flashes plus and can be a true out pitch. He has a distinctly slower curve, though it’s far behind his other offerings. His changeup will show glimpses of eventually being an above-average offspeed pitch with good sink that he sells well.

While Abel has displayed a growing ability to handle a workload and maintain his stuff in starts, he has had some struggles in the command and control department. He improved his strike-throwing in 2022 while maintaining an excellent strikeout rate. More refinement in that area should help him reach his ceiling as a big league starter who sits in the front half of a rotation. He might be a small step behind Andrew Painter, but Phillies fans can start dreaming about having the pair together in Philadelphia soon.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 65 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 55 | Overall: 55

Well known throughout his high school career in Oregon, Abel made a claim to being the best prep arm in the 2020 Draft class with a strong summer showcase showing the summer prior, even if he did tire out a bit at the end. The pandemic all but upended his senior year of high school, but the Phillies liked his combination of size, stuff and feel for pitching enough to take him No. 15 overall, making him the first high school hurler taken. His first full season was inconsistent and he missed time with a shoulder issue, though his stuff played well in Low-A when healthy.

The 6-foot-5 Abel still has an exciting four-pitch mix he continues to refine. His fastball sits in the mid-90s and he can reach back for more with tremendous arm speed. His mid-80s slider misses bats and has the chance to be a true plus out pitch in the future, and he can spin a solid curve as well, though that’s his fourth pitch. He throws his above-average sinking changeup with the same arm speed as his fastball, giving it outstanding deception.

Abel is athletic on the mound, though he struggled at times with strike-throwing consistency in 2021. He gets very high marks for his makeup and smarts on the mound, giving the Phillies confidence he’ll make the adjustments necessary to find the strike zone more frequently so he can truly showcase his impressive repertoire and reach his ceiling as a frontline starter.        

Scouting grades: Fastball 60 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 55 | Overall: 55

Many players have come out of the Pacific Northwest and gone on to be very good Major Leaguers. More often than not, they’ve been college players, and the high schoolers who have been drafted early have tended to be hitters. Before 2020, the last prep pitcher to be taken in the first round was Jeremy Bonderman in ‘01, so Abel broke a long streak when the Phillies took the big right-hander, who had put his name on the map as a first-rounder (No. 15 overall) with a solid performance on the summer showcase circuit. He then went on to impress during his time in instructional league play last fall.

Abel has the chance to have a solid four-pitch mix, all coming from an athletic 6-foot-5 frame and a super-fast arm. His fastball was up to 95 mph consistently the summer before the Draft, and he was up to 98 mph during instructional league with the Phillies. He can throw it downhill with life at the bottom of the zone, but he can also elevate his four-seamer with riding action to miss bats. Abel’s slider, which reaches 85-86 mph, flashes plus, and he can spin a curveball with more over-the-top action to it. He has good feel for a sinking changeup, thrown with excellent deception thanks to arm speed.

The combination of size and pure stuff, with more in the tank as he adds strength, makes Abel a very intriguing pitching prospect. He tends to throw strikes, something that will only improve as he continues to learn how to make adjustments on the mound. He was the first high school pitcher to be taken in the 2020 Draft, and the early returns from instructional league have shown why he was worthy of topping that list.

Scouting grades: Fastball 60 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 55 | Overall: 55

Prior to this June, the last high school player from Oregon taken in the top two rounds was Carson Kelly, selected by the Cardinals in the second round back in 2012. Abel had helped pitch his Jesuit High School team to a state title, was named the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year and then was one of the best prep pitchers on the summer showcase circuit to join Kelly. The top-rated high school pitcher in the class did Kelly a round better, getting taken by the Phillies at No. 15 overall and signing for a just above slot bonus of $4.075 million.

The 6-foot-5 right-hander shows flashes of three plus pitches, starting with a fastball that was regularly in the 93-95 mph range last summer, though he tired a bit near the end of his run. He throws it downhill with good life at the bottom of the zone and then can come back with a four-seamer up in the zone with riding action. His 82-86 mph slider is a very effective pitch, and he also has feel for a curveball with more over the top rotation to it. The two morph into each other at times, but there's enough differentiation to believe he could throw both in the future, along with a future plus changeup that he sells with good arm speed and features sink and dip at the end.

Abel generally throws strikes and he gets as high marks for his maturity and makeup as he does his stuff. He's only going to get stronger and throw harder as he physically matures, a big reason why he was the first prep arm in the 2020 class to come off the board.

Awards

MiLB.com Organization All-Star

Year	Team
2023

Futures Game Selection

Year	Team
2023

EAS Pitcher of the Week

Week	Team
09/04/2022

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	11/19/2024	Philadelphia Phillies selected the contract of RHP Mick Abel from Lehigh Valley IronPigs.
	09/26/2024	Lehigh Valley IronPigs activated RHP Mick Abel.
	09/18/2024	Lehigh Valley IronPigs transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	08/22/2024	Lehigh Valley IronPigs activated RHP Mick Abel.
	08/15/2024	Lehigh Valley IronPigs transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	08/08/2024	Lehigh Valley IronPigs activated RHP Mick Abel.
	07/31/2024	Lehigh Valley IronPigs transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	03/07/2024	Philadelphia Phillies Prospects activated RHP Mick Abel.
	01/18/2024	Philadelphia Phillies invited non-roster RHP Mick Abel to spring training.
	09/30/2023	Lehigh Valley IronPigs activated RHP Mick Abel.
	09/30/2023	Lehigh Valley IronPigs activated RHP Mick Abel.
	09/23/2023	Lehigh Valley IronPigs transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	09/22/2023	RHP Mick Abel assigned to Lehigh Valley IronPigs from Reading Fightin Phils.
	08/04/2023	Reading Fightin Phils activated RHP Mick Abel.
	08/04/2023	Reading Fightin Phils activated RHP Mick Abel.
	07/28/2023	Reading Fightin Phils transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	07/28/2023	Reading Fightin Phils transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	07/20/2023	Reading Fightin Phils activated RHP Mick Abel.
	07/20/2023	Reading Fightin Phils activated RHP Mick Abel.
	07/11/2023	Reading Fightin Phils transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	07/10/2023	Reading Fightin Phils transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	07/10/2023	Reading Fightin Phils activated RHP Mick Abel from the temporarily inactive list.
	07/07/2023	Reading Fightin Phils placed RHP Mick Abel on the temporarily inactive list.
	07/07/2023	National League Futures activated RHP Mick Abel.
	06/30/2023	Reading Fightin Phils transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	01/24/2023	RHP Mick Abel roster status changed by Philadelphia Phillies.
	01/24/2023	Philadelphia Phillies invited non-roster RHP Mick Abel to spring training.
	08/20/2022	RHP Mick Abel assigned to Reading Fightin Phils from Jersey Shore BlueClaws.
	08/20/2022	Reading Fightin Phils activated RHP Mick Abel.
	08/13/2022	Jersey Shore BlueClaws transferred RHP Mick Abel to the Development List.
	04/07/2022	RHP Mick Abel assigned to Jersey Shore BlueClaws.
	10/05/2021	Clearwater Threshers activated RHP Mick Abel.
	09/30/2021	RHP Mick Abel assigned to Phillies Organization.
	08/03/2021	Clearwater Threshers placed RHP Mick Abel on the 7-day injured list.
	05/03/2021	RHP Mick Abel assigned to Clearwater Threshers from GCL Phillies East.
	04/26/2021	Phillies Organization activated RHP Mick Abel. ABS test.
	04/26/2021	Phillies Organization activated RHP Mick Abel. ABS test.
	06/24/2020	Philadelphia Phillies signed RHP Mick Abel.
	06/24/2020	RHP Mick Abel assigned to GCL Phillies East.
	08/08/2019	RHP Mick Abel assigned to PG West.
	08/08/2019	RHP Mick Abel assigned to PG West.