WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- A pair of pitchers featuring the Majors’ best fastball spin rates took the mound Monday at FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. One was Justin Verlander, a perennial Cy Young Award contender. The other? Tyler Bashlor , a former 11th-round Draft pick who jumped from Double-A Binghamton to the Majors last summer.
By last season’s end, Verlander ranked fourth in MLB with an average spin rate of 2,618 RPMs on his four-seam fastballs, according to Statcast data. Bashlor was second at 2,651, just seven RPMs shy of Major League leader Carl Edwards Jr.
“Top of the list of anything is good,” Bashlor said, “no matter what it is.”
Until last year, Bashlor -- like many pitchers -- had little concept of spin rate. It’s something that has always come naturally, giving his fastball the illusion of rising. Bashlor enhanced that movement in 2018 with an increased commitment to pitching up in the zone, hoping to negate the effects of hitters seeking launch angle with their swings. Tack on the fact that Bashlor can reach 99 mph with his fastball, and the whole effect can be punishing on hitters. At Binghamton, Bashlor struck out 10 batters in his first 7 2/3 scoreless innings before making his big league debut in June.
“It helps,” Bashlor said. “Lets me get away with mistakes every now and then.”
Don’t mistake Bashlor, however, for a new-age pitcher fixated on analytics. He doesn’t consider himself much of a stats guy, though once Bashlor started hearing about his elite spin rate, he started doing everything he could to keep the skill sharp. During long toss sessions last year, Bashlor made a concerted effort to try to spin the ball, hoping to freeze that motion in his muscle memory. He also kept throwing from October through February, after hearing about pitchers like Max Scherzer who never really stop.
It allowed him to keep his arm in prime shape entering his first big league camp. Bashlor, who threw a scoreless inning Monday in the Mets’ 3-3 tie with the Astros, will spend the next month competing with Drew Smith, Paul Sewald and a host of others for a job in the Mets’ Opening Day bullpen.
“Confidence is high right now,” Bashlor said. “Last year going from Double-A to the big leagues was a big jump. I got humbled quite a bit up there. So I know what to look forward to and look for this year.”
Rookie moment
Conditions were not favorable for home runs on Monday, with a consistent wind blowing in from straightaway center field. Yet that wasn’t enough to thwart infield prospect David Thompson, who cracked a three-run homer to left off Astros reliever Kent Emanuel.
Borrowed from Minor League camp for the game, Thompson made the trip in part because fellow third baseman Jed Lowrie was nursing a left knee injury, and Todd Frazier was ramping up on a slower spring progression. Thompson spent part of last spring in big league camp, but appeared in only 25 regular-season games due to a hairline fracture in his left hand and a subsequent elbow surgery. That caused him to fall out of MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 Mets prospects, though the former fourth-round Draft pick remains close enough to the Majors to make an impact as soon as this year.
Whalen announces retirement
Former Mets draftee Rob Whalen announced his decision to retire on Monday at age 25, after dealing with depression and anxiety issues over the last two years.
"This might be a shock to some but I have ultimately decided to officially retire from professional baseball this morning," Whalen wrote in a statement on Twitter. "I've publicly shared my battle with depression/anxiety over the last two years, and in that time, I've been able to learn a lot about myself -- but most importantly I learned that I can have a fulfilling life outside of baseball. Despite having a lot of moments in my career that I'm not proud of, I've also been extremely blessed with some of the greatest memories of my life because of this game."
Whalen pitched three Major League seasons for the Braves and Mariners, notching his one career win in his big league debut on Aug. 3, 2016, for Atlanta. He pitched eight career games with a 5.75 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 36 innings. The right-hander was drafted by the Mets in the 12th round in the 2012 Draft before being traded to the Braves in July 2015. After pitching one season in Atlanta, Whalen was traded to Seattle in November 2016.
Up next
The Mets are in split-squad action on Tuesday. Right-hander Zack Wheeler faces the Tigers at 1:10 p.m. ET in Port St. Lucie, while righty Corey Oswalt travels to Lake Buena Vista to oppose the rival Braves at 1:05 p.m.