Rich Storry-USA TODAY Sports

Cardinals Prospect Hence Dominates in First Start

Originally posted on The Forkball | By JM Kerska | Last updated 4/12/24

The St. Louis Cardinals’ top pitching prospect Tink Hence started off the 2024 season with a dominating performance. The young, right-handed pitcher has electric stuff, and it was on full display in his first start for Double-A Springfield.

Hence, tossed five innings of no hit baseball. He threw 67 pitches, 43 for strikes. Additionally, he had three strikeouts and allowed only one walk. The right-hander’s fastball sat consistently in the mid to high 90’s and his slider and change-up seem to have improved. It’s obvious he has put in a lot of work in the off-season and appears to have paid off.

Cardinals’ 2020 Draft Was Stellar

The Cardinals’ prospect Hence was selected with the team’s third pick in the draft. Some experts questioned the choice because of his size. At 6’1″ and 185 pounds, Hence is smaller than the typical pitcher but has an electric arm that the organization couldn’t pass up.

The Cardinals made some of their best picks in recent memory during the shortened 2020 draft. Many teams selected college players that were closer to major league ready. The Cardinals took somewhat of a risk choosing high school players with their first three selections. Their first pick was Jordan Walker. They used their second pick to select current starting shortstop, rookie Masyn Winn. Acquiring those two would have been enough to consider it a good draft, but with the addition of Hence and Alec Burleson, the 2020 draft has the potential to be one of their best drafts ever.

Hence Needs to Show Durability

The young righty has yet to throw over 100 innings in a season. The Cardinals organization has kept him on a strict protocol in regard to innings and pitch count. There’s no arguing that he has the stuff to be a good major league pitcher. The only real question is, does he have the stamina to take the ball every fifth day for an entire major league season?

At only twenty-one years of age, Hence still has room to grow. He will undoubtedly continue to rise in the prospect rankings. The young righty is on track to being an impact player for a club that is in desperate need of pitching. The future is bright for Hence, and he’s a player that fans should be excited about.

This article first appeared on The Forkball and was syndicated with permission.

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