Heading into the 2020 MLB Draft, Los Angeles Dodgers vice president of amateur scouting Billy Gasparino highlighted the abundance of collegiate pitching that was available.
The Dodgers then went on to take a college pitcher with each of their first three picks. Included in that was drafting right-hander Landon Knack out of East Tennessee State University in the second round (No. 60 overall).
“We’re fired up. We just got a lot of velocity, a lot of pure stuff. It’s big, it’s right handed,” Gasparino said after the five-round draft concluded.
“It was a strength of the Draft, and we just took advantage of it. Knack and Beeter, these guys are mid-90s fastballs with breaking balls to go along with it. Knack is an outstanding strike thrower and Beeter had a good year his first time as a starting pitcher. We were ecstatic to get both guys.”
𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩
#ETSUTough | @LKnackers pic.twitter.com/sF4SLzTkB0
— ETSU Baseball (@ETSU_Baseball) June 12, 2020
Knack went 4-0 with a 1.08 ERA in four starts during what turned out to be a shortened senior year. Nevertheless, he had an impressive 51 to 1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, which led all of NCAA Division 1 baseball.
“The funny thing is he’s always been an elite strike thrower. He’s a former position player that started pitching and is just naturally gifted at throwing strikes,” Gasparino said. “We kind of identified that a little bit last year. As the fall started to unwind, Marty Lamb flagged him as a guy who made a jump in velocity and stuff.
“You have strikes, pitchability and stuff, and then all of a sudden he comes out in spring and the stuff not only improved, it improved by a large gap. He went from like a 90 mph guy to a 95 mph guy. Everything up-ticked. You match that with the natural strike throwing ability, and he had a great year.”
In two seasons with the Buccaneers, Knack went 13-4 with a 2.25 ERA and 145 strikeouts in 19 starts. He pitched two seasons at Walters State Community College prior to joining East Tennessee State University, going 13-1 with a 2.93 ERA in 19 games (16 starts).
Gasparino anticipates each of the four pitchers the Dodgers drafted to be developed as a starter.
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