In the weeks leading up to Spring Training, the Yankees claimed LHP Brent Headrick off of waivers from the Minnesota Twins. A minor addition at the time, he was a 27-year-old starter with a massive 6’6 frame. This isn’t a very experienced pro pitcher either; Headrick has nearly 100 fewer innings at the Minor League level than Will Warren, and both arms have similarly short big-league stints.
The Yankees saw a raw southpaw who had projectable physical tools on the mound and pounced on the waiver wire, and it might end up being another steal for the organization on the bullpen market. A crafty left-hander who has had to get by without overpowering velocity, Headrick’s four-seamer was firmer than ever today, hitting 95 MPH and sitting around 94 MPH in his first Spring Training outing this year.
With three strikeouts in his inning of scoreless work, the Yankees definitely took notice of their new left-hander lighting up the radar gun in Tampa.
Brent Headrick Makes Strong First Impression in Debut With Yankees
With the Minnesota Twins, Brent Headrick was nothing more than just a depth starter they could call up to mop up some innings and fill out a roster spot. The left-hander was selected in the 9th round of the 2019 MLB Draft, immediately losing having his first full season of pro ball delayed a year due to COVID-19 getting the MiLB season canceled in 2020. It would result in a wave of prospects taking a little longer to develop, and injuries further ate into Headrick’s availability.
The lack of pro experience left the Twins with no choice but to place him on waivers to make room for veteran additions, and his lack of serious velocity made them comfortable with cutting ties for good. Brent Headrick’s fastball averaged just 92.2 MPH in his lone MLB outing last season, and in Triple-A his four-seamer sat at 91.4 MPH. Despite the low velocity, Headrick had strong pitch quality scores in Eno Sarris’ Stuff+ metric due to some unique pitch traits.
Brent Headrick releases the ball from a wider release point than most lefties with a lower arm angle, as his fastball gets a good amount of vertical ride and his slider has a good amount of vertical drop. His changeup is an underrated weapon as well thanks to how much drop and fade he gets on that pitch, and it’s why he has a career 104 Stuff+ with all of his pitches grading out as average or above average.
Stuff+ stabilizes quickly, so his career marks are reliable to look at despite only having 28.2 IP at the Major League level, and that makes any improvement to his fastball velocity enticing. Brent Headrick’s fastball has never been better than it was yesterday against the Tampa Bay Rays, averaging 93.9 MPH with 20″ of IVB on the day. Headrick’s previous single-game high in average FB velocity was 93.4 MPH, and in terms of IVB, it was 19.1″.
What makes Brent Headrick’s fastball even more devastating is the extension he gets on that pitch, which add on average around 0.5 MPH to his perceived fastball velocity. By sitting 93.9 MPH, Headrick’s fastball would have a 94.4 MPH perceived velocity by hitters on average, which with the amount of vertical ride he gets could result in an excellent offering.
When a fastball improves, so does the rest of a pitcher’s arsenal even if their shapes or velocity don’t change, as secondaries can have better synergy with a good fastball versus a more mediocre one. Headrick’s fastball having some more zip and ride makes his slider less of a crutch and more of a strikeout pitch set up by a heater. Against the Rays, his fastball was used to change eye levels and get either ahead in a count or back in it, setting up his signature slider.
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Brent Headrick was then able to attack with that breaking ball in the same location (regardless of handedness), allowing it to be extremely effective and not immediately exposed early in a count. Hitters have become excellent at recognizing a pitch the more they see it in a game, and instead of having to use his slider more than 50% of the time, Headrick will be able to balance his usage of heaters and sliders frequently.
That simple fastball-slider mix but with an above-average fastball to pair with an above-average slider is a game-changer, especially if his changeup can remain in the mix here. He didn’t throw it against the Rays, but if he gets that pitch involved again it could be even better with that improved fastball as well. The Yankees have done a great job improving changeups and splitters over the last year, so maybe Brent Headrick’s next step is honing his own.
The Yankees do a really good job identifying pro talent, and while only time will tell if Brent Headrick is the real deal or not, those fastball gains were worth noting as we move past the Spring Training opener.