The Astros have developed pitching like no other team in baseball. Just a look at their rotation right now and you can see the work the scouts and coaches have put in. Pitchers like Cristian Javier, Ronel Blanco, and J.P. France were not big time prospects but they have been big time contributors.
In 2022, the Astros signed a pitcher as an undrafted free agent, Logan VanWey, following a 5th year in college which saw him start games for the first time at the NCAA level. Following the draft, VanWey pitched in two games in the rookie complex striking out 16 in 8 innings while allowing just one hit.
Fast forward a year and a half later, and that same pitcher is now in Triple-A and off to a hot start as a reliever in the Space Cowboys’ bullpen.
VanWey features a lengthy repertoire of pitches, which he talked about here. A Quick Look at Baseball Savant and this year he has thrown a 4-seam fastball, sinker, slider, cutter, and curveball. The sinker has been a work in progress since early last year.
“Last year, I added a sinker during spring training, and then halfway through the season I added a cutter. The sinker helped me get lots of weak contact with righty’s and throw my slider off of it too,” VanWey said.
The cutter however, has been a newer addition and one that he is still getting better with.
“The cutter was a pitch that, early on, really helped with lefty’s, and now also righty’s, I’ve become very comfortable with it,” VanWey added.
On top of the five pitches, including his two newer pitchers, he has seen a jump in velocity, hitting 96 MPH in his last outing of Sugar Land.
“My junior year, 2020, my velo ticked up to around 94-97 as a closer. I started in 2022, my 5th year, and had to tune it back a bit to go 100+ pitches every game,” VanWey said. “Last year in AA, I found my velocity again and eventually got back up to 94-96 and hit 97.7 in our last away series in Oklahoma before being promoted to AAA,” he added.
Purely just looking at the number of pitches, a J.P. France comp jumps out. They pitch different, and France uses a changeup a lot, but having a multitude of pitches to go with a bump in velocity should play well for the future for VanWey.
VanWey has moved quickly in the system. Last year he started the year in High-A, completely jumping Single-A, and posted a 3.71 ERA in 15 games before earning a promotion to Double-A. With the Hooks, he had a 3.90 ERA with 42 strikeouts in 30 innings. He finished the season pitching 1.1 innings in Triple-A.
“Being 23 (years old) when I signed, I knew I had to move up quick to catch up with my age group. And being UDFA, it’s either I can pitch or I can’t, move up or move on. I like the mentality of I have nothing to lose and everything to prove,” VanWey said.
“I didn’t go to a big high school, I didn’t have but a handful of offers out of high school, but each chance I was given, I’ve never taken for granted. I like pitching with a chip on my shoulder, knowing I’ve always been undervalued, and overlooked. The Astros saw something in me that no other team did, and for that reason I owe them everything that I have every time I step on the mound,” VanWey added.
Injuries are a hot topic right now, unfortunately, and with the amount of injuries for pitchers, teams have to be ready to bring guys up. Last year the Astros had contributions from J.P. France, Shawn Dubin, Joel Kuhnel, Matt Gage, Bennett Sousa, and Parker Mushinski, who all spent a lot of time in Triple-A.
This season, VanWey is off to a nice start tossing 4.2 scoreless innings with 5 strikeouts over 3 appearances. If he continues to pitch like this, with the addition of the sinker, the cutter and the increase in velocity, it won’t be a matter of “if”, but a matter of “when” he gets a chance to pitch in Minute Maid Park.
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