Former Coastal Carolina LHP Levi Huesman Announces he will Transfer to Vanderbilt

Though former Buttchugger Chase Burns chose the Deamon Deacons, Vanderbilt might have just landed one of the most naturally gifted pitching prospects in college baseball via the transfer portal. Yes, I know he went 1-4 with a 9.36 ERA in his freshman year with The Chanticleers, but Levi Huesman was one of the top rated players (according to Perfect Game, at least) to get through the MLB draft last year. Just as Burns chose Wake for their pitching lab, Huesman chose Vanderbilt because of Scott Brown and our pitching lab.

Here’s his MLB.com profile from the ‘22 Draft, in which they ranked him the #125 player in that class:

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 50 | Overall: 45

The Virginia high school ranks have been pretty fertile ground for Draft talent over the years, though the true stars have largely come in the batter’s box, with the likes of David Wright and Justin Upton. There hasn’t been a prep pitcher taken in the top five rounds since 2016, when the Orioles nabbed Brenan Hanifee in the fourth round. Huesman put himself in position to get off that schneid after a strong summer on the showcase circuit that was punctuated with an 18-strikeout exclamation point in Perfect Game’s WWBA World Championship last fall.

The lefty has solid arm strength with a fastball that he can run up to 95 mph but usually settles into the 90-92 mph range, a pitch with solid spin rates that features good running life. He backs it up with a very good slider that averages around 76 mph with high spin. It can flash plus at times, though it also can get slurvy as his outings go on. His changeup kills spin and has some fade to it, though it’s behind the other two pitches.

Huesman is athletic on the mound and repeats his delivery fairly well, which leads to a decent amount of strikes, though there is some concern about effort in his mechanics and the ability to maintain his stuff, leading some to think there’s reliever risk here. A team taking the Coastal Carolina recruit in the top five rounds will think the southpaw has every chance to be a member of a big league rotation.

The former Chanticleer was the #1 player in the state of Virginia, #5 ranked LHP in his graduating class, and #21 player overall. Players ranked that highly pretty much never make it past the 1st or 2nd round of the MLB draft. As a freshman with Coastal, Huesman struggled with control, and now has decided to bet on himself and Vanderbilt’s pitching lab to build back his stock for the ‘25 draft.

Here’s what Perfect Game had to say about him:

Levi Huesman is a 2022 LHP/ with a 5-11 185 lb. frame from Hanover, VA who attends Hanover HS. Medium frame with good athleticism and room to project long term. Primary left-handed pitcher who only pitched during the event. Throws exclusively from the stretch and releases from a three-quarters arm slot. Good intent behind release and gets lower half through nicely. Big crossfire front landing leg and slot help to generate a very uncomfortable at-bat. Fastball topped out at 93 mph with good life and the changeup was his go-to out pitch with late fading life and similar arm speed. Curveball has good shape and projects with strength. Great student. Verbal commitment to Coastal Carolina.

Again, Brownie will have to fix whatever ailed Huesman at Coastal, but if he does, we might have the gem of the ‘23 transfer portal in gangster pajamas.