Jacob Allen “J. B.” Bukauskas is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball.
Rank History
Year Team Position Team Rank OFP
2021 ARI RHP 13 45
Grades Update: Dec 2020
OFP Role FB SL CH Cnt/Cmd
45 40 60 60 55 40/30
DEC 2020 REPORT
EVALUATOR: GEOFF PONTES
Age: 24 yr
Height: 6-0
Weight: 210 lbs
Hits/Throws: R/R
Acquired: 2017 1st, HOU
RuleV: On 40-Man
Physical Description: Shorter at 6-feet, but broad-shouldered muscular build. Athletic on the mound with good strength throughout his body but especially noticeable in his lower half.
Delivery & Mechanics: Violent operation that puts stress on Bukauskas’ arm and shoulder. Starts from a slight sidestep to a higher leg lift that kicks out a bit upon extension as he starts his drive, he drops and slings the ball from a low three-quarters delivery with a heavy crossfire finish. This leads to continued issues with strike-throwing as he’ll consistently lose his release point. His operation likely pushes him to a bullpen role long-term.
Fastball: Plus velocity sitting 94-97 MPH touching 98 mph at peak. The pitch gets heavy rise when elevated up in the zone and a run when located low, the amount of action on his fastball leads to serious bouts with his command where he’ll lose the zone entirely with the pitch. It does drive swings and misses in the zone and tends to generate ground ball contact when squared up. If Bukauskas spotted it 60% of the time the pitch would be a double plus. Even with below-average command of the pitch, Bukauskas has enough velocity and movement to generate positive results with the pitch consistently. Grade: 60
Slider: Well documented double-plus pitch during his amateur days, the slider has not always played that way professionally. It sits with elevated velocity in the 88-91 mph range. It features a tight spin with a vertical drop and drives swings and misses and groundballs in bunches. He’ll struggle to command it, much like all of his pitches leading to fewer strikes than you’d like to see from a plus or better pitch. Grade: 60
Changeup: Above average changeup with heavy run and tumble. Average separation with 7-8 mph of separation from the fastball on average. The pitch Bukauskas controls the best from his arsenal and the reason he has a legitimate shot to stick in the rotation. Generate swings and misses on the pitch. A legitimate third pitch that can be used as his go-to offering. Grade: 55
Overall: Bukauskas is the perfect example of how great stuff only takes you so far. His command profile limits his ability to project long-term in the rotation and leaves some doubt about his ultimate effectiveness in the pen. Sometimes, however, the stuff is too good to just dismiss. There’s legitimate bat missing ability and an ability to drive weak contact in his secondaries. That gives us some confidence that Bukauskas can be at the very minimum a lower leverage arm with upside for high leverage innings. He’s on the 40-man roster and a spot start or pen role seems likely for Bukauskas in 2021.
OFP: 45
Role: 40 – Spot Starter/Long Relief & Low Leverage Relief
Risk: Moderate