Milwaukee Brewers take right-hander Brannon Jordan in Round 9 of 2021 MLB Draft

With day two of the 2021 MLB Draft winding down, the Milwaukee Brewers made a pair of selections from the University of South Carolina to conclude their work for Monday. The first of those picks was junior right-hander Brannon Jordan in Round 9.

Jordan, who turns 23 in just a few days, spent the start of his collegiate career at Cowley County Community College in Kansas and was actually drafted by the Rays in Round 31 of the 2019 MLB Draft before transferring to South Carolina. He generated some interest before the shortened 5-round draft last year after posting a 1.71 ERA in 21.0 innings for the Gamecocks, but was ultimately passed over and returned to school for this season. His results backed up a bit as control issues surfaced, with Jordan ending the year with a 4.58 ERA in 72.2 innings pitched. He punched out 98 batters but also walked 48 for a 5.9 BB/9.

Jordan was rated as the #186 prospect ahead of the draft by Baseball America:

(186) RHP Brannon Jordan

BA Grade: 40 | Risk: High
Fastball: 50 | Curveball: 45 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 40 | Control: 45

Jordan was lights out for the Gamecocks in 2020...but his control backed up this spring and he managed just a 4.58 ERA over 15 starts and 72.2 innings. He still struck out batters at a decent clip (12.1 K/9), but his walk rate jumped from 3.9 BB/9 to 5.9 BB/9. Jordan has a four-pitch mix but primarily works off of his low-90s fastball and low-80s slider. The fastball has touched 95 mph at its peak and scouts like how it plays in the zone, while his slider flashes plus potential, but he doesn’t consistently hit on the pitch. When he throws a good one, it shows hard tilt in the 83-85 mph range and creates ugly swings from opposing batters from either side of the plate. Jordan also throws a slower curveball with more 12-to-6 shape and a seldomly used mid-80s changeup. The changeup has shown interesting tumbling life at times, but it’s tough for scouts to fully evaluate it with how often he’s thrown the pitch. Jordan was less consistent from start to start this season than scouts expected and there are starter/reliever questions given his strike throwing this year.

The slot value for pick #267 is $154,900.