San Diego Padres Draft: Ian Bedell climbing draft boards and interview

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Ian Bedell is a pitcher that the San Diego Padres may consider taking, especially as he continues to rise up the draft boards.

Skipping your senior season in high school and jumping right into the bullpen at Mizzou would make anyone apprehensive. Ian Bedell has come a long way in just three years, and he’s now looking like a terrific draft choice for his future MLB team. San Diego Padres general manager AJ Preller will have a lot to think about if he’s still on the board in the third round.

Previously ranked as the 108th best prospect in this class by Baseball America, Bedell has climbed up to number 89 in MLB’s recent rankings of the Top 150. In his first season on campus, he made seven appearances out of the ‘pen. He struck out 13 batters in 11.2 innings while posting a 6.17 ERA and walking six as well.

He worked on some things in the Northwoods League the summer of 2018, making four appearances – including three starts – while striking out eight in 17.2 innings.

As a sophomore, Bedell looked like a different pitcher. He made 18 appearances – including one start – and collected five saves while striking out 36 batters in 40.1 innings. He reduced his walk rate from 4.6 BB/9 to 2.7 BB/9 and limited batters to a .193 average.

Bedell headed off to the Cape Cod League for the summer following his sophomore year, with a focus on transitioning into the starting rotation. He made six starts and struck out 36 batters in 30.2 innings while posting a 0.59 ERA. More importantly, he allowed just three walks.

Before the shutdown, Bedell made four starts for Mizzou and struck out 35 batters in 24.1 innings. He maintained his low walk rate – just four free passes – while posting a 3.70 ERA and limiting guys to a .211 average.

Here’s what BA has to say on his pitch arsenal:

His average fastball would touch 94-95 mph out of the pen, but this spring he sat 89-91, touching 92. His changeup may end up as an above-average pitch. He throws an average 81-84 mph spike curve that sometimes morphs into a sliderish pitch when he gets on the side of it.

At 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, Bedell has good size for a starting pitcher and will only get stronger as he physically matures. Based on his career statistics at Mizzou, he closely profiles somewhere between Luke Weaver and Chris Paddack.

Weaver 2019: 2.94 ERA, 7.7 H/9, 0.8 HR/9, 2.0 BB/9, 9.7 K/9

Paddack 2019: 3.33 ERA, 6.9 H/9, 1.5 HR/9, 2.0 BB/9, 9.8 K/9

Bedell Mizzou career: 2.95 ERA, 7.1 H/9, 0.9 HR/9, 2.6 BB/9, 9.9 K/9

Q: You played in two wood-bat leagues, the Northwoods League in summer 2018 and Cape Cod League during summer 2019. What goals did you set out for yourself each time, and, if anything, what were you trying to fix mechanically?

A: In the Northwoods League, I did not set a lot of goals for myself, and I believe that ended up hurting me that summer. My mindset going into that summer was to get as many innings as possible before going back to Missouri.

Growing up, I would always set goals for myself, and that summer was the first time that I did not set a couple of goals for myself. When I went to the Cape, I had a couple of goals in mind. I wanted to be an All-Star, I wanted to have less than eight walks, and I wanted to develop a starter routine.

During both summers, I did not try to change anything mechanically. I did learn new drills and certain cues to help me out, but it was not my intent to have a mechanical overhaul during the summer.

Q: What can you attribute to your success between your freshman and sophomore years where you went from a 6.17 ERA in 7 appearances out of the pen to a 1.56 ERA in 18 appearances, including one start?

A: I would contribute my success to a major improvement in my mental game, along with struggling from the previous season and summer. Coach Corral preaches the mental game to us players; we will undoubtedly hear it three-plus times a week.

I came in as a bright-eyed kid who wanted to learn everything. It wasn’t until the fall where I started to believe in myself that I already had the stuff to be dominant. When I look back on my first season, I don’t remember having a lot of confidence, but when I look at the fall, I can feel the confidence in just looking back at that time period.

I grew up a lot in those eight months and that helped me to overcome my struggles and have a very good sophomore season.

Q: You made four starts before the shutdown and saw a noticeable uptick in your K/9 – 12.9 this year compared to 8.5 combined over your first two years – how did you generate so many swings and misses?

A: This fall, I was completely focused on finding a solid breaking ball. During the summer, I had an okay breaking ball that would get some soft contact, but I needed a put-away pitch. When I went to talk to Corral about my next steps moving forward, he agreed that we need to develop the breaking ball further.

I stuck with my spike grip, but I changed the placement of my hand on the ball. I now throw it cross seams. Prior to the grip change, I threw it by holding a two-seam and simply just spiking my pointer finger. When we changed to holding across the seams, I started to get later and sharper break.

Throughout the fall, I increased my command with the breaking ball, and it turned into a weapon for me.

(Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) /

Q: What are you doing to stay in shape during this downtime, and have you had any conversations with any teams yet?

A: During this very weird time, I have been throwing four times a week and will occasionally throw a flat ground here and there. At my apartment, I have two 45-pound plates that I use, and I also have two 25-pound dumbbells.

My roommates and I try to get creative with lifts and movements to do with our very limited weight set. Since the end of this year’s college baseball season, I have talked to about half of the teams.

Q: Last year, you had a tremendous run of performing well against Tennessee, shutting down Vanderbilt on May 11, making your first start a week later, and tossing two shutout innings against Ole Miss in the SEC tourney. How did that month of success boost your overall confidence?

A: At the start of my sophomore season, I was not pitching up to my expectations. After our first Florida trip, I started to find my groove. I ended up not giving up a run in six straight SEC weeks. The Tennessee weekend was not my best performance, and it was not my worst, but that was a key outing for me.

After going six weeks without giving up a run, I started to think a little too highly of myself, and I got humbled that weekend. The following weeks after Tennessee were good to me. My first-ever start against Florida did not go how I thought it would go. However, that was also a learning experience for me. That outing showed me that I needed to find a routine in the summer if I wanted to be successful going forward.

At the SEC tournament, I thought I pitched well but again did not think it was my best performance. I threw two zeros up there to give the team a chance, but we fell a little short. That outing gave me a little extra confidence going into the summer.

Q: Do you see yourself as a starter at the next level, and will you develop another pitch at some point?

I do see myself as a starter at the next level. I believe that my stuff and command plays very well in the starting role. I have found a routine that has made me successful, and I firmly believe that a solid routine can set people apart.

In the future, I would like to learn a cutter or a slider. I have a lot of natural run to the ball, so having something that can move glove side would be very beneficial for me. However, I do not want it to look the same as my spike curveball. Before I learn another pitch, I need to master my fastball, change up, and spike curve first.

A special thank you to Ian (@BedellIan) for taking the time to speak with us. We wish you all the best with your professional career and the draft process.

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Ian Bedell is a pitcher that the San Diego Padres may consider taking, especially as he continues to rise up the draft boards.

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