Red Sox 4th-round pick is high school pitcher with ton of upside

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You might want to remember the name Elmer Rodriguez Cruz.

The 17-year-old right-hander pitcher out of Leadership Christian Academy in Puerto Rico is the Red Sox' fourth-round selection in the Major League Baseball Draft.

Rodriguez -- whose college commitment is the University of Oregon -- has a lot to like already, possessing an athletic 6-foot-3 frame along with a 94 mph fastball.

The Perfect Game scouting report on the pitcher is as follows: “Elmer Rodriguez Cruz is a 2021 RHP with a 6-4 165 lb. frame from Trujillo Alto, PR who attends Leadership Christian Academy. Long and slender build with long arms and legs, extremely projectable physically. High leg lift delivery, gets back over his lower half and coils well, arm and body are on time and he creates big arm speed through release with plus extension. Fastball worked up to 94 mph with big life at times, not much effort to create plus velocity, works fastball to glove side most of the time, held his velocity very well out of the stretch. Curveball had sharp biting action and some depth, can see him shortening it up for a power slider in the future. Quality change up with late dive and good arm speed generated plenty of bad swings. Very high ceiling young pitching talent. Good student, signed with Oregon. Named to the World Showcase Top Prospect List.”

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