Levi David, RHP
B/T: R/R Ht: 6’5 Wt: 225 LBS
Age: June 14, 1999 (22 years old)
Acquired: Mets 2021 9th round draft pick (Northwestern State)
2021 Stats: N/A
Levi David’s, the Mets’ Leviathan-sized 9th round pick, pitching repertoire: It’s loud. It bangs. It’s in-your-face.
It just needs a little guidance. He needs to figure out how to guide his nasty fastball-power hook combo into the strike zone with more consistency.
David struggled to throw strikes at times in college. He walked 46 batters in 61.0 innings last spring. He didn’t pitch after signing.
In his 2021 draft spring, David blew away Southland Conference hitters to the tune of a whopping 15.3 K/9 rate utilizing his mid 90’s fastball and mid 80’s curveball.
https://twitter.com/ftrstarsseries/status/1410915916456550403?t=PRQIFSnTOAh_yviP-yRNrA&s=19
The building blocks for a legitimate power bullpen arm are clear. David has touched 99 MPH at times and will look to sit closer to that as a pro. His frame is fairly maxed out, but perhaps the Mets can offer some of the newer velocity development training techniques that David may or may not have engaged with fully at Northwestern State.
The Mets and David will also have to find mechanical consistency, possibly by shortening his arm swing, which will allow his control to play up to an acceptable level.
If David can do that, the rest is done, as he is said to have one of the very best curveballs in his draft class. The hard offering usually takes 11-5 shape from his high 3/4 slot, and features plus depth and bite.
Mets take a guy with one of the better breakers in the class in Levi David, RHP from Northwestern State. Reliever profile but it’s a hammer curveball, plus-plus at times along with mid-upper 90’s velo at times. Bullpen but with big stuff. #PGDraft
— Brian Sakowski (@B_Sakowski_PG) July 12, 2021
Yes, it’s the Southland Conference, but those Division 1 batters went 5 for 98 with a ludicrous 72% strikeout rate against David’s curve.
With David, we see he has the tools. The next step for him is putting it all together. If he can harness his stuff and throw strikes, he has real upside.
