The 2018 season came to an end early for Hunter Greene, and not in the way you wanted it to. In mid-to-late July he began feeling something in his pitching elbow, and ultimately he was shut down with a partial tear in his UCL. Rather than opt for Tommy John surgery, Greene decided to give rehab a shot first. Things seemed to be going as planned, and in October he said he was 100% and feeling great.
When spring training began he was throwing, and while he was a little behind the other pitchers, he was on target and working his way towards games. But in the final week of spring training he suffered a tear in his UCL – new damage to the ligament – according to Cincinnati Reds President of Baseball Operations. At this point Hunter Greene decided to undergo Tommy John surgery, which of course meant that he would miss the entire 2019 season.
Hunter Greene Scouting Report
Position: Right-handed pitcher | B/T: R/R
Height: 6′ 4″ | Weight: 215 lbs | Drafted: 1st Round, 2017
Before diving into the scouting report, let’s just be sure to note that all of this information was from 2018 when he was healthy.
Fastball | When it comes to velocity from starters, Hunter Greene is unmatched. Most days he sits at 98-100 MPH. He’s touched 102 MPH as a starter. In the 2018 Futures Game he topped out just over 103 MPH. The pitch can be a little bit straight, but it’s still an 80-grade offering.
Slider | When the slider is at the top of it’s game, it’s a plus offering. There’s some inconsistency at times, but even when it’s not at it’s best, it’s at least a Major League average pitch.
Change Up | The change up is his third offering, and he goes to it less frequently than the other two pitches. It’s also behind the other two offerings. With that said, it’s an average pitch and flashes itself as an above-average to plus pitch at times.
When he’s healthy and at the top of his game, he’s going to beat just about any hitter. The fastball and slider combination are deadly, and his change up – while not quite on par with two plus to plus-plus offerings, is plenty good enough. And the change up will likely get better with time, too.
The upside with Hunter Greene is nearly unmatched. You don’t have to dream too much to see him developing into an ace. But at the same time you have a pitcher who has now had two injuries to his elbow and is coming back from Tommy John surgery. When he next takes the mound in a game it will likely be the first time in nearly two years that he’s done so.
His rehab process appears to be going exactly as expected. He’s throwing on flat ground at this point and there haven’t been any set backs along the way. April will be the 1-year mark of his surgery, so don’t expect him to be back on the mound when the 2020 season begins. But if things go as planned, he should be pitching during the upcoming season.
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