Tampa Bay Rays Pitcher Regaining Top Prospect Form With Uptick in Velocity
Back in 2018, ahead of the MLB trade deadline, the Tampa Bay Rays fleeced the Pittsburgh Pirates when they acquired Tyler Glasnow, Austin Meadows and a player to be named later in exchange for Chris Archer.
The player to be named later turned out to be Shane Baz, who is the only one of the trio who remains with the franchise in 2025.
A highly touted prospect dating back to 2018 all the way through 2024, he made his MLB debut on Sept. 20, 2021. He retained rookie status through 2024, as injuries limited him to only six apperances in 2022 before missing the entire 2023 campaign.
Baz returned to the rotation on July 5, 2024, nearly two years after his last outing on July 10, 2022. He pitched six strong innings against the Texas Rangers, setting the tone for what would be a very successful return to the mound.
He would make 14 starts last year, throwing 79.1 innings with 69 strikeouts and a 3.06 ERA. That resulted in an impressive 131 ERA+ and he is taking things to another level in 2025 out of the gate.
A brutal spring training didn’t carry over in the regular season, as Baz fired six shutout innings against his former organziation, the Pirates, in his season debut. He allowed seven hits but didn’t issue a walk while striking out 10.
One major reason that he looked so dominant was that his velocity is beginning to tick back up the levels he was showing in the minor leagues when he was a highly touted prospect.
He has bumped his average velocity up to 97.1 mph, up from 95.6 mph. That 1.5 mph increase is amongst the best in baseball so far, according to Eno Sarris of The Athletic (subscription required).
97 mph is what Baz was tracking at during his debut in 2021, but what is really encouraging for his production is that his deadly breaking ball is working again.
“Now he’s at 97 mph again and throwing a curveball that looks like his original yakker — this is the pitcher we thought he was as a prospect,” Sarris wrote.
He made Pittsburgh’s lineup look foolish last week and it won’t be the last time that Baz uses his fastball/curveball combo to overpower opponents.
Turning only 26 years old in June, he is only scratching the surface of his potential. If he can remain healthy and on the mound, the Rays are going to have one of the sneaky best rotations in baseball.
There may not be household names, but Baz, Taj Bradley, Zach Littell, Ryan Pepiot and Drew Rasmussen are a very solid five-man group for Tampa Bay to rely on.
Recommended Articles
Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. Previously, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.