Scouting Report

Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 60 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 50 | Overall: 45

Things didn’t start clicking for Middleton as a pitching prospect until he got to Southern Mississippi, as his velocity and stock rose together. He was a solid reliever, albeit with command issues, as a sophomore, but really shot up boards with a very successful move into the rotation as a junior in 2025. After ranking second among all NCAA Division I pitchers with a 0.85 WHIP, he became the highest-drafted pitcher in school history when the Rockies took him No. 45 overall in the second round and signed him for $2.07 million. After a long college season that saw him top 100 innings, the Rockies didn’t have Middleton do much after signing.

Middleton is an undersized right-hander who has the three-pitch mix to make a go as a starter. He can run his fastball up to 97 mph, sitting in the 93-95 mph range, and it can play above its velocity at times with his ability to both sink it or throw it with carry up in the zone. It gets a fair amount of miss and chase, but not nearly as much as his secondary offerings. His upper-80s slider has two-plane depth and is sometimes cutter-ish. Both that and his 86-88 mph tumbling and fading changeup miss a ton of bats both in and out of the zone. 

The six-foot Middleton isn’t the most physical hurler, but he’s athletic, repeats his delivery well and showed a vastly improved ability to find the zone compared to his time in the Southern Miss bullpen. The Rockies love that he pitches with a chip on his shoulder and is super-competitive, knowing that he’s going to hate whatever workload limitations they put on him during his first year of pro ball. 

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

As a Mississippi high schooler, Middleton didn't attract much scouting or recruiting attention as a 6-foot right-hander who sat in the upper 80s. He boosted his stuff and stock significantly in three years at Southern Mississippi, and after making a successful transition from the bullpen to the rotation this past spring, he ranked second in NCAA Division I with an 0.85 WHIP. He became the highest-drafted pitcher in school history, surpassing Brandon Parker (55th overall to the Mariners in 1997) by 10 spots when he landed with the Rockies in the second round.

Middleton works with a versatile 93-95 mph fastball that tops out at 97, showing the ability to run and sink it toward the knees or carry it up at the letters. He gets plenty of swings-and-misses in the zone, elicits lots of chases and makes it nearly impossible to lift his heater in the air. His slider is even harder to hit, combining upper-80s velocity with two-plane depth, and he'll morph it into a cutter at times.

Middleton will also flash a plus 86-88 mph changeup that tumbles and fades and gets in-zone misses and chases like his other offerings. He has an athletic delivery, moves down the mound well and cut his walk rate in half compared to last season. His lack of physicality is the only real knock against him as a long-term starter, though his improved strikes and stuff are stronger points in his favor.

Video scouting report »

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

As a Mississippi high schooler, Middleton didn't attract much scouting or recruiting attention as a 6-foot right-hander who sat in the upper 80s. He has boosted his stuff and stock significantly in three years at Southern Mississippi and continues to rise after making a successful transition from the bullpen to the rotation this spring. He ranked second in NCAA Division I with a 0.85 WHIP and should become the highest-drafted pitcher in school history, surpassing Brandon Parker (55th overall to the Mariners in 1997).

Middleton works with a versatile 93-95 mph fastball that tops out at 97, showing the ability to run and sink it toward the knees or carry it up at the letters. He gets plenty of swings and misses in the zone, elicits lots of chases and makes it nearly impossible to lift his heater in the air. His slider is even harder to hit, combining upper-80s velocity with two-plane depth, and he'll morph it into a cutter at times.

Middleton will also flash a plus 86-88 mph changeup that tumbles and fades and gets in-zone misses and chases like his other offerings. He has an athletic delivery, moves down the mound well and has cut his walk rate in half compared to last season. His lack of physicality is the only real knock against him as a long-term starter, though his improved strikes and stuff are stronger points in his favor.

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	03/05/2026	RHP JB Middleton assigned to Colorado Rockies Prospects.
	08/11/2025	RHP JB Middleton assigned to ACL Rockies.
	07/22/2025	Colorado Rockies signed RHP JB Middleton.
	06/03/2025	RHP JB Middleton assigned to College Workout.
	06/09/2023	Hyannis Harbor Hawks activated RHP JB Middleton.