"Payton Tolle, a towering lefty who started his first professional season in High-A Greenville a few months ago, tore through the minor league system and showed a burst of promise before his lack of command on his secondary pitches got the best of him. He's still not yet 23 and has a ton of potential in his 97 MPH fastball."
"But if, for some crazy reason, you don't trust a guy who analyzes pitch movement for 35% of his day, you can take my word, too. I wrote about Tolle this season first as a member of the Greenville Drive in my Minor Lines pieces, as he skyrocketed up to the Majors and kept delivering six-inning performances while giving up one - or no - runs."
"The fastball has 17 inches of vertical movement and 7 and a half feet of extension, which is among the most for any pitcher in baseball (the latter actually being in the 99th percentile.) When you can keep hitters off-balance with a pitch like that, everything else becomes easier, even when you miss. Take, for instance, this pitch that induced a fly out from Darnell Hernaiz:"
Payton Tolle is a 6'6", 250-pound left-handed prospect who reached the majors after just 18 starts across four minor-league levels. He features a power fastball that reached 97–98 mph with exceptional movement and extension, ranking among the best in baseball. Tolle's fastball can induce weak contact even when it crosses the plate where hitters expect the pitch. Command of his secondary offerings remains inconsistent and limited his effectiveness at times. At not yet 23 years old, he retains considerable upside if his off-speed control improves. The 2025 season served as an early evaluation of his long-term potential.
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