Gabe Mosser: One of the Most Underrated Pitchers in the Padres’ Farm System
Credit: Journal Gazette
A late-round draft pick in 2018, Gabe Mosser is arguably the most underrated pitcher in the Padres’ farm system.
For the last several years, the consensus number one farm system in all of baseball has belonged to the San Diego Padres. With a metric ton full of talented players spread across each level, General Manager A.J. Preller built one of the deepest systems in recent memory.
San Diego’s stay at the top of the mountain is coming to an end; however, as the majority of those prospects are making their way to the major league team. With the likes of Chris Paddack, Luis Urias, Fernando Tatis Jr., and several other top prospects graduating, the Padres’ incredible farm system is now taking center stage at Petco Park.
The depth of this system is what makes it truly elite, especially in regards to pitchers. In MLB.com’s initial Top 100 prospects list of 2019, seven of the Padres league-leading 10 prospects were pitchers. Buried below all these top pitching prospects, however, is one player that is quietly putting himself on the prospect radar.
Meet Gabe Mosser, a 27th-round pick by the Padres in 2018 out of Division II Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania. The 22-year-old didn’t post the most impressive numbers in college, but his four-pitch mix and ability to throw all of them for strikes intrigued the Padres enough to select him with one of their late-round picks.
Shortly after being drafted, Mosser was optioned to the team’s short-season affiliate, the Tri-City Dust Devils. He was rather impressive in his professional debut, as Mosser posted a 2.37 ERA with 41 strikeouts and only seven walks over 30.1 innings pitched. This success earned him a promotion to Fort Wayne towards the end of the season, where he only pitched in three innings with the TinCaps.
His first full professional season started with the TinCaps and has been nothing short of impressive. In ten starts with Fort Wayne, Mosser has tossed 54 innings to the tune of a 3.50 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. His ERA might be selling him short a little, as one bad outing where he surrendered seven runs severely inflated that number. He’s consistently thrown strikes and filled up the zone, striking out 58 batters and only walking seven this year. Mosser does not generate a lot of consistent hard contact and has only given up three home runs in 2019 thus far.
Gabe Mosser is too filthy ?
He’s through 3️⃣ scoreless innings with 4️⃣ Ks! ? pic.twitter.com/wYsEuwEV6n
— Fort Wayne TinCaps (@TinCaps) June 4, 2019
Mosser’s four-pitch mix and his ability to throw them all for strikes are what intrigued the Padres in the first place. His fastball sits in the low-to-mid 90s, and he can consistently place it where he wants to. His age and above-average 6-foot-4 frame suggest that there might be more left in the tank as Mosser matures. Both his curveball and slider are thrown with the same grip and are very similar pitches, but his slider is thrown a tad bit harder than his curveball and is usually used to put away right-handed hitters. His curveball is usually thrown between 75-78 mph, while his slider ranges anywhere between 81-83 mph. A splitter thrown with gradual downward action and from near fastball arm speed is his fourth pitch.
Mosser’s makeup and poise on the mound are intriguing. After watching one of his starts against the Beloit Snappers in person, it was impressive to see how comfortable and relaxed he is out there. He doesn’t appear to be fazed by a tough situation, which is a positive sign from a pitcher that is still young and just starting his professional career.
Gabe Mosser gets Lester Madden this time with runners on second and third to end the inning. Madden had homered and doubled earlier in the game. TinCaps 6, Snappers 1 into the sixth inning. @EVT_News pic.twitter.com/vgmpOoRnRL
— Diego Solares (@PadreFanDeegs) May 10, 2019
Gabe Mosser might not be the most flashy or well-known name in the system, but he’s certainly one to keep an eye for. If he continues to pitch well with the TinCaps, a promotion to Lake Elsinore at the all-star break should not be out of the question.
Diego works at Prep Baseball Report as an Area Scout in Illinois and Missouri. He graduated this spring with a Bachelor Degree in Communications and played four years of college baseball, logging nearly 50 innings of work in a relief role. Diego hopes to work in an MLB front office one day and has been a Padres fan since he was six years old.