The Cincinnati Reds have signed non-drafted free agent Vincent Timpanelli. If this article seems like there’s some deja vu happening on this website, it’s because there is. Earlier this week I wrote about this signing, but had all of the incorrect information. Well, sort of. Now it’s time to correct that.
During his four years of college, split between St. Thomas Aquinas (2017-2018) and Ramapo College (2019-2020), Vincent Timpanelli was a catcher. He didn’t play a lot at St. Thomas Aquinas, getting just 34 plate appearances and 44 plate appearances as a freshman and as a sophomore. Moving on to Ramapo College he saw a lot more playing time as a junior, and his numbers at the plate improved, too. He went out and hit .321 and posted a .383 on-base percentage to go with a .477 slugging percentage. Timpanelli also hit his first two home runs that season. His 2020 season got out to a nice start on opening day as he went 5-7 with two walks in a double header. That day would also be the only day that Ramapo College spent on the baseball field before the college baseball season came to an end.
So, with all of that information, where was the information incorrect? Well, I had written that the team had signed catcher Vincent Timpanelli. They didn’t. The Cincinnati Reds had signed PITCHER Vincent Timpanelli. It is the same person, but the guy who spent four years behind the plate was now a pitcher.
During the first three seasons of his career in college, Vincent Timpanelli didn’t pitch in any games. On March 8th of 2020, in the second game of the Ramapo vs St. Joseph’s double header, Timpanelli came into the game as a pitcher with one out in the 9th inning to make his first appearance on the mound in college. He faced two batters. He struck out both of them. Unknown to anyone at the time, that would be his first and last time pitching as a college athlete.
Without much pitching experience, the information is going to be rather limited. What I was able to find out is that his fastball is 95+ MPH. That’s always a good place to start.