Scouting Report

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

Built like a basketball shooting guard, Franco oozes physical projection as a 6-foot-3 right-handed hurler from the Dominican Republic. At just 16 years old, he has already been heralded for his poise on the mound.

Franco sits at 91-93 mph with his heater, which has solid tailing action and a propensity to induce ground balls. There is the potential for it to become a plus-plus offering as he matures and gains strength, as he already sports impressive arm speed. His changeup is a straight offering that parks at 85-87 mph but benefits from having an identical arm slot to that of his heater. A slurvy high-70s breaking pitch is his go-to offspeed weapon, as it moves planes early out of his hand. 

Peppering the strike zone at a young age bodes well for Franco’s projection as a starter moving forward. Praised for his ability to mix up his offerings, the next step will be creating significant velo separation in order to keep hitters off balance. Armed with an effortless release from an upright delivery, he’ll need to further engage his lower half as he enters pro ball.

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

The 2024 international class was much more heavy on bats than arms. In fact, only two pitchers featured among MLB Pipeline’s Top 50 international list this offseason, and the highest-ranked of the pair was Franco at No. 25. The Dominican Republic native signed with the Cardinals for $800,000 at the start of the signing window on Jan. 15, becoming the organization’s most high-profile addition of the period -- one in which it was down $500,000 in pool money after signing Willson Contreras in 2022. 

Having only turned 17 back in February, Franco is all about projection. He already stands 6-foot-3 and is expected to fill out as he heads toward and into his 20s. Even so, he already sits 91-93 mph with a tailing fastball that can help generate ground balls now, and considering his present arm speed, there’s a good chance he could be adding a few more ticks to that heater in time. He can sell his 85-87 mph changeup well out of his three-quarters arm slot, and he shows a high-70s slurve that he uses as his preferred offspeed weapon for now. 

The right-hander can pitch in the zone well from a fairly low-effort delivery at his current stage of development, though that deserves following if he does end up adding velocity. Creating better separation across his fastball and changeup will help too, but in general, he has the tools to be a potential Major League starting pitcher down the road. 

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	02/25/2024	RHP Branneli Franco assigned to DSL Cardinals.
	01/15/2024	St. Louis Cardinals signed free agent RHP Branneli Franco to a minor league contract.