Brent Honeywell, number 4 prospect in the Rays’ organization, threw for the first time in a while last week and Rays fans should all be super excited. Honeywell is a very talented pitcher who has overcome a lot of obstacles to get where he is today. He is my personal favorite pitching prospect and I can’t wait to see him back on the mound.
Quick Facts
- Hometown: Carnesville, Georgia
- Position: Pitcher
- Throws: Right
- Age: 24
- Team Drafted: Tampa Bay Rays
- Year Drafted: 2014
- Draft Pick: 72nd Overall
- Current Organization: Tampa Bay Rays
- MLB Pipeline Rank 2020: 68
A Little Background on Brent Honeywell
In 2017, Brent Honeywell was promoted to the Rays’ Triple-A affiliate, the Durham Bulls. He played in the All-Star Futures Game for the United States and won the MVP. He struck out four batters over two innings, and was the first pitcher in the history of the Futures Game to win the MVP award.
At the end of the 2017 season, the Rays promoted Honeywell to the 40-man roster. As exciting as it was, this is where the story takes a little bit of a downward turn. February of 2018, Honeywell was injured after a workout in spring training. He had a torn UCL and had to have season ending Tommy John surgery. In March 2019, after healing from the surgery, Honeywell suffered a fractured bone in his right elbow while throwing a bullpen session, ending his 2019 season.
Before his injuries, Honeywell was about ready to join the major league club, and probably would’ve held a spot in the starting rotation over the past two years.
Looking Ahead
Honeywell is now recovered from his second surgery and has recently started throwing again. I’ve been ready to watch Honeywell pitch for two years, so I am definitely rooting that this time works out in his favor. He recently said in an interview on MLB Network radio that he was hoping to be back on the mound by the end of February. Obviously this didn’t happen, but from what I’ve heard about him it seems like he is heading in the right direction.
Scouting Report and Strengths
For those unfamiliar with scouting grades, grades are based on a 20-80 scale and 50 is average (the higher the better). The grades themselves shown below for Brent Honeywell were taken from MLB.com.
Fastball: 60
Honeywell has an above average four-seam fastball with tail action (downward movement) that he mixes with 4 other pitches. His fastball tends to yield quite a few fly balls at times, but this is something Honeywell has been working on limiting.
Screwball: 65
Yes, you read that right. Honeywell is one of the only pitchers in baseball today who throws a screwball (which means hitters don’t see them too often). And not only does he throw a screwball, it’s also his best pitch. Honeywell’s screwball is a plus-pitch earning a scouting grade of 65 from MLB.com. Check it out below:
Fun fact: His dad, who was also a professional player, taught him how to throw a screwball when he was 13 years old. And, his dad learned from 1974 CY Young winner Mike Marshall.
Slider: 55 & Curveball: 45
Honeywell is able to throw both an average slider and a below average curveball. A lot of the time he throws a pitch somewhere in between the two, combining the two pitches’ movement. He typically uses either the slider, curveball, or combination pitch to set up his screwball.
Take a look at his curveball:
Changeup: 60
His above average changeup has similar fade to his screwball, but has slightly higher velocity. Some scouts really like the potential for his changeup because Honeywell is able to maintain his arm speed throughout. The same arm speed in addition to the similar fade to his screwball can be very deceptive to hitters.
Control: 60
Honeywell has above average control, which is extra impressive considering he throws 5 pitches. He has high strikeout rates, recording 11.4 strikeouts per 9 innings in 2017. He also only walked 2.3 batters per 9 innings the same year.
Overall: 55
Brent Honeywell throws 5 pitches, which is a lot. He throws them all well and has above average control. He is very confident and performs well under pressure. Honeywell also has no issue speaking his mind, which is something I’ve always liked about him.
He seems like a smart pitcher who knows what he is capable of and has high expectations for himself, the organization, and his teammates. I am confident that when he joins the major league club, he will be passionate about how the team is performing and won’t hold back how on he is feeling, both on the mound and in interviews. Like I said before, I could not be more excited for him to get back into it and start pitching in games again. Looking forward to watching him play for the Rays.
What do you think of Brent Honeywell?
Headshot in Image Source: MLB.com