Inside The Cubs

Chicago Cubs Prospect Wesneski Has the Stuff to be a Front-Line Starter

The Chicago Cubs newest minor league import, Hayden Wesneski, dazzled in relief on Tuesday night, making some history in his MLB debut.

Ben Silver

Chicago Cubs Prospect Wesneski Has the Stuff to be a Front-Line Starter
Chicago Cubs Prospect Wesneski Has the Stuff to be a Front-Line Starter /
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The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic wasn't easy for anyone, Hayden Wesneski perhaps felt it more than most. Drafted in the sixth-round out of Sam Houston State by the New York Yankees in 2019, the 21-year-old barely got a taste of professional ball before it was so unceremoniously stripped from nearly every minor leaguer.

Sporting a 4.76 ERA in 28 1/3 innings in Rookie Ball with a 5.00 K/BB rate, Wesneski must have felt like his stats weren't reflective of his talent. Itching to prove that he was better than his ERA stated, Wesneski had no outlet in 2020.

So he started talking to anyone who would listen, foremost, Chicago Cubs assistant pitching coach Daniel Moskos. At the time, Moskos was the pitching coach for the Yankees Single-A affiliate, and the duo quickly bonded at 2020 spring training.

The pair talked so much over the phone during that lost 2020 season that Moskos' wife began taking notice.

"Oh, my goodness. Is that Wesneski again?" Cameron Moskos would ask with mock annoyance that Moskos recalled in an interview with Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun Times.

So it was only natural when Wesneski was traded to Chicago at the 2022 trade deadline and reunited with his mentor. Of course, heavy expectations were now on the young pitcher's shoulders. 

Moved in a one-for-one swap with Scott Effross, a rookie reliever with six more years of team control, Wesneski was now assumed to one day fulfill a role as a Major League starter. 

Playing for the Cubs also meant an official reunion with Moskos, now also in the Majors.

"It was one of the things that was in the front of my mind, not in the back," Wesneski said of playing under Moskos upon joining the Cubs organization. "Because he’s really that good, in my opinion. And I was kind of upset when he left because I liked him so much."

It took only over a month upon moving to Chicago, but Wesneski was able to make his Big League debut with aplomb on Tuesday night.

Following starter Wade Miley out of the bullpen, Wesneski pitched in relief for five innings, closing out the game and earning the win on only 61 pitches. To say his performance was dominant would be an understatement.

Wesneski expertly mixed five pitches over the course of the night. Foremost he threw a sweeping curve/slider for over 40% of his offerings. Compared to the Major League average, it has little vertical movement but laterally it's one of the best in baseball.

Paired with that breaking ball is a two-seamer/sinker that breaks towards right-handed batters and tunnels with the curve/slider.

It's a nearly unhittable pitch when commanded on the inner half of the zone, especially again a weaker lineup like the Cincinnati Reds'.

Wesneski's tertiary pitches are a changeup, a four-seamer and slider/cutter. The four-seamer tops out at 96 mph, but it sits closer to 94 mph more regularly. According to MLB.com, it has topped out before at 98 mph.

Picking up eight strikeouts on the night on four different pitchers — four with the curve/slider, two with the four-seamer and one each with the slider/cutter and changeup — Wesneski displayed an impressive ability to throw his lesser offerings with confidence, a trait found in very few younger players.

Those eight strikeouts contributed to an MLB record, albeit one rather 'cherry-picked'. Wesneski became the first reliever to pitch five or more innings with as many strikeouts and as few hits in his MLB debut.

Of course, Moskos was a big part of getting Wesneski to where he is now. The Cubs newest talent said of him, in an article by Tim Stebbins of NBC Sports Chicago after the game, "He knows what he's doing. He's well rounded and when it comes to the pitching side, he's a great guy and he gets stuff done."

Wesneski is "pumped" to be back with the coach who helped get him to the Show.

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Ben Silver
BEN SILVER

Ben Silver is deputy editor for Inside the Cubs. A graduate of Boston University, Ben formerly covered the Philadelphia Phillies for PhilliesNation.com. Follow him on Twitter @BenHSilver.

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