Getting to Know Jason Hursh

A lot has been written about 2013 Braves’ 1st round pick Jason Hursh… including on this site here, here, and here.  A bunch of other sites have scouted him, reviewed him, projected him, and otherwise tried to figure where in the baseball universe he might end up in the next 1-3 years.

When I had the privilege of speaking with Jason for a few minutes several days ago, I went in a different direction.  Admittedly, I asked him some fairly obnoxious questions, but I did want to learn more about him… and not just what I could have regurgitated from the myriad of other sources. In my observations, he reacted differently from the other players I spoke with:  little direct eye contact – preferring to look off toward the field, and seeming to be still not entirely comfortable with the notion that people actually want to talk with him – more like ‘shucks – this thing really shouldn’t be about me.’

But overall, my questions were going toward this:  does Jason Hursh have the makeup you would expect to see of a pitcher you want in the rotation of a major league club?

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Let’s start back a ways first.  Jason was born in Carrollton, Texas on a day that I has

better

remember:  my wife’s birthdate – in the same year I married her.  That makes him 23 years old next month.  His high school baseball consisted of both shortstop and pitching work at the nearby Trinity Christian Academy in Addison, TX – both suburban cities N/NW of Dallas.  He’s listed variously as 6’1″ to 6’3″ (I’d go with the “over”) and 200 lbs. (take the over on that, too – barely).  That solid build runs in the family:  his father Bruce played football at SMU.

In 2010, Jason went 11-2 with a 2.47 ERA/123 strikeouts at Trinity as the team’s MVP – which was no stranger to high school standout pitchers.  David Purcey was Toronto’s 1st round pick in 2004 and saw 111 games in the majors from 2008-2013 with four clubs.

In June of that 2010 draft, the Pittsburgh Pirates made Hursh their 6th round selection – 177th overall… right at his BaseballAmerica.com ranking of 173 from that Spring.  Ironically, the Pirates seventh round pick that year was a pitcher from nearby Colleyville, Teaxs named Austin Kubitza (153rd ranked by BaseballAmerica.com).  Austin’s brother Kyle Kubitza was a teammate of Jason’s this year on the Mississippi Braves squad.

Turns out that neither player signed with Pittsburgh that summer.  I asked Jason specifically about that decision process – reports are that the Pirates threw a million dollars at this high school kid, and he turned it down.

Jason related that it ultimately wasn’t that difficult a decision for him. Trinity Christian gave him a solid foundation, but he recognized that the competition level he faced wasn’t up to the level of the larger schools around.  He believed he had multiple things to learn in the process of becoming a better pitcher, and that a path via Oklahoma State would be a better option for him.

In reviewing that decision, I asked if he hadn’t effectively “bet on himself” that he could beat a 6th round selection.  I detected a hint of disappointment in his reaction that he hadn’t gone higher in that draft, but he agreed that he believed that it had worked out better for him by waiting.  The monetary difference was around $700K in his favor… but that was a small part of the equation.

The College Years

What happened in those intervening 3 seasons?  Quite a lot… 2011 saw him in 10 games, making 4 starts with the Cowboys.  However, he blew out his elbow and ended up red-shirting the 2012 season after Tommy John surgery.  When he came back in 2013, Oklahoma State worked him pretty hard:  106 innings.  Nonetheless, he was productive:  2.79, 6-5 record with 16 starts with a shutout mixed in.  The stat I like to look at is the 86K/28BB ratio, so he does tend toward control.

Since he has experience with this near-epidemic elbow injury, I asked Jason about his opinions on possible causes.  He indicated that he had been a year-round player (mostly pitching; some shortstop as suggested above) while growing up, though he seemed to downplay the ‘overuse’ argument that is being made by many these days.  “It wasn’t like I was breaking off curve balls at 12 years old,” as he put it.

I can’t discount his direct experience, though his path does fit the profile that is building:  that UCL injuries tend to correlate with year-round play in the teen years.  Don Sutton has related on multiple radio broadcasts that pitch types seem to have little to do with the effort exerted by the arm compared to the overall whip-like process of throwing pitches at 90 miles an hour.  Nonetheless, it was interesting to hear an opinion from someone intimately involved in the process.

Regardless of the cause, Jason’s recovery and comeback in 2013 provided ample evidence for the Braves to make him their #1 selection in 2013.  He was ranked 50th then, and drafted in the 31st position – effectively becoming the compensation pick for the loss of Michael Bourn after the 2013 season.

The Here and Now

Jason Hursh

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and the M-Braves bullpen watching coach

, SP

. Mandatory photo Credit: Alan Carpenter, TomahawkTake.com” width=”300″ height=”349″ /> Jason Hursh, J.R. Graham and the M-Braves bullpen watching coach Dennis Lewallyn, SP Greg Ross. Mandatory photo Credit: Alan Carpenter, TomahawkTake.com

Hursh, for his part, is seen as having a ‘power arm’ – with “heavy” fastballs staying down in the hitting zone in the mid-90’s.  And despite a very full season this year – 148 innings pitched (3.58 ERA/83K/43BB) – he declared himself to be “completely healthy” at the end of his 2014 campaign.

That’s good, for Jason is moving through the system at a very fast pace.  He went straight to low-A Rome after the draft, got a Spring invite to the major league camp this season, and then jumped to AA Mississippi… which puts him in a position to be in line for a major league rotation battle in 2015.

His timing is pretty good:  the Braves look to be looking for a lot of pitching help come next Spring.  At this point, the returning starters are Julio Teheran, Alex Wood, and Mike Minor.  Gavin Floyd, Ervin Santana, and Aaron Harang are all not likely to return.  Beyond them, there are the unproven quantities of David Hale and a several minor leaguers.

Among those who could battle for a spot:  Cody Martin, Williams Perez, Gus Schlosser, Yunesky Maya, and possibly Greg Ross.

It is possible that Brandon Beachy or Kris Medlen might be in the mix as well, but (a) there are no any guarantees whatsoever for either being healthy enough to start the season; and (b) there are obvious questions about whether Medlen will even be offered a contract (final arbitration year is coming up after a $5.8m deal in 2014).

So then the question:  is Hursh ready for the challenge?

Probably the worst question I asked might have had the most telling answer.  It was about his last outing of the year, which had occurred the night before I spoke with him.  It didn’t go well… 7 hits, 7 earned runs – though that included a ‘phantom’ home run that accounts later suggested should have been a ground rule double.  No matter.

But in his answer, he had the right frame of mind for a starting pitcher:  “some nights they just get you – sometimes you don’t really have it – just gotta go out and get ’em the next time.”  Indeed that was the case that he “didn’t have it” in 5 or 6 starts this year over 27 outings… but he’s also had some many more good days as well:  on August 6th, he shut down the Jacksonville Suns on 1 hit into the 6th inning – a team that is about to head to the league championship finals.

But whether it’s in early 2015 or a little bit later – it’s just a matter of time before Jason makes it to Atlanta… and sticks for a while.

So Jason:  I apologize for the questions… but you should probably get used to them, for they’ll soon be coming from a lot better reporters than this one.