This is one in a series of breakdowns of the top prospects available in the 2025 MLB Draft.
University of Tennessee left-hander Liam Doyle possesses the best fastball of anyone available in this year’s draft.
Doyle’s upper-90s fastball can touch triple digits and proved to be an extremely devastating pitch for opposing batters in college baseball this season.
The fastball is a big reason the 21-year-old had a breakout first season with the Volunteers. Doyle totaled 19 appearances with Tennessee this season and went 10-4 with a 3.20 ERA while striking out over 42% of the batters he faced. Doyle’s 164 strikeouts in 95.2 innings were second to only LSU’s Kade Anderson in Division I while he led with 15.4 strikeouts per nine innings.
Doyle started his college career at Coastal Carolina before then transferred to Mississippi last season and then joined Tennessee, where he became one of the top starters in college baseball.
In addition to his fastball, Doyle possesses a slider, splitter and cutter, giving him four legitimate offerings and pretty good control.
While Doyle’s fastball is the clear headliner of a pretty impressive four-pitch mix, there is a pretty substantial level of risk with the left-hander.
Doyle’s delivery is unorthodox and he’s been described as a max effort pitcher, so there is reliever risk. If Doyle ends up in the bullpen, however, he has all the makings to be a dominant high-leverage arm.
A potential back-end reliever is probably Doyle’s floor, but his ceiling is an effective starting pitcher if he proves he can handle the workload and stay healthy.
He could be anything from a top three pick to falling towards the back of the top 10. Neither would be a surprise.
“LIAM DOYLE’S A MAD MAN!”
The team that drafts Liam Doyle is getting one fiery dude 🔥
(📽️: @ESPN) pic.twitter.com/Z3THYS2boC
— MLB (@MLB) June 3, 2025