Abel got good reviews from an article in the Athletic:
Stuff+ beats the other most powerful predictor, K-BB, in samples as small as the one Abel has so far in the bigs. Which is good, because with an 18 percent strikeout and a four percent walk rate, Abel would only grade about average. He doesnāt seem average, though. Each of his pitches has something going for it:
He sits 96 on the fastball, with an elite 2.5 inches of movement over expected given his low arm slot
He sits 87 on the slider, with more drop than average
He sits 82 on the curveball, with good two-plane movement
His 89 mph changeup gets 13 inches more drop than his four-seamer
The movements on his pitches on Baseball Savant are not bright red, but the fact that heās near average at all on vertical movement, with a low 29 degree arm slot, makes him funky to hitters. His fastball has the same approach angle, from almost the same arm slot, as the one thrown by Jacob deGrom.
Two breaking balls that rate well, two good fastballs with disparate shapes ā Abel has everything he needs from a stuff angle. Despite some comically low command grades, and inconsistent walk rates in the minors, so far this has been the best stretch of his career when it comes to placing the ball. Until his last start, when he told reporters that āfastball command in generalā was the problem. I think heāll figure it out.
