Ryan Jensen Stats & Scouting Report

IP	56.2
ERA	4.76
WHIP	1.69
BB/9	7.94
SO/9	12.86

Full name Ryan Austin Jensen
Born 11/23/1997 in Monterey Park, CA
Profile Ht.: 6'0" / Wt.: 190 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School Fresno State
Drafted in the 1st round (27th overall) by the Chicago Cubs in 2019 (signed for $2,000,000).

View Draft Report

Jensen started his career in the bullpen for Fresno State before transitioning to a starter’s role in 2018 with mixed results. His 2019 season has been much better, as Jensen became the Bulldogs’ Friday starter and helped lead the team to a Mountain West Conference championship with a 3.09 ERA over his first 84.1 innings. While Jensen stands at just 6 feet, 180 pounds, he has big-time stuff with a fastball that’s been as high as 98 mph. The pitch has plenty of life in the form of arm-side run and natural sink, and he pairs it with an impressive slider that scouts say flashes plus at times. He has also shown a changeup that has solid arm-side movement, but he’s primarily pitched off of his fastball/slider combination. Despite Jensen’s intriguing stuff, he hasn’t struck out as many batters as evaluators would expect. His 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings through his first 15 starts in 2019 is a career high, and he struck out 8.2 batters per nine innings during his first two seasons. This likely stems from Jensen’s control, which is scattered at times. Jensen struggles to spot his fastball due to the amount of movement on the pitch, and batters tend to see the ball well as Jensen has some length in the back of his arm stroke and throws from a standard three-quarter slot. Jensen should get a chance to start at the next level thanks to a viable third-pitch changeup, but some scouts believe he’d thrive in a bullpen role, where his fastball and slider could tick up and his fringe-average control wouldn’t be as much of an issue.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

Track Record: Jensen touched 98 mph and was the Mountain West Conference pitcher of the year as a junior at Fresno State, but the Cubs still went above industry consensus when they drafted him 27th overall in 2019. Concerns about Jensen’s control appeared well-founded at the start of his full-season debut with High-A South Bend in 2021, but he locked in his delivery and release point midway through the year. He posted a 2.28 ERA in his final 11 starts and rose to Double-A.

Scouting Report: Jensen is undersized, but he is a power pitcher with a pair of plus-plus fastballs that overwhelm hitters. His four-seamer averages 96 mph and rides above barrels and his two-seamer averages 95 mph and breaks bats with its late run and bore. Jensen’s mid-80s slider with lateral run is an above-average pitch and he introduced a vertical curveball last year that flashes average. His upper-80s changeup gets swings and misses in the strike zone but doesn’t get chase swings. Jensen has an effortful delivery with a long arm action that leads to inconsistent mechanics and bouts of below-average control. He’s a good athlete who took off when he found a consistent release point.

The Future: Jensen has the stuff to be a hard-throwing back-end starter if he maintains his delivery and release point. If not, his stuff should play in late relief.
Fastball: 70. Slider: 55. Changeup: 40. Control: 45.

TRACK RECORD: Jensen began as a reliever at Fresno State before transitioning to the rotation as a sophomore. He blossomed as a junior, winning Mountain West Conference pitcher of the year honors, and the Cubs drafted him 27th overall and signed him for $2 million. Jensen pitched a 2.25 ERA in his pro debut at short-season Eugene, but also struggled with his control with 14 walks and 19 strikeouts in 12 innings.

SCOUTING REPORT: Jensen is a tremendous athlete with loads of raw arm strength. His fastball is a plus-plus offering that ticked up to 95-100 mph based on data the Cubs received during the shutdown, and it plays up further with plus armside life. Jensen’s mid-80s slider continues to get sharper the more he throws it and projects to be an above-average pitch. Jensen rarely threw a changeup in college and is still in the early stages of developing one. He is relatively new to starting, so his control and feel to pitch are still developing. Some Cubs officials believe Jensen is athletic enough to become an average strike-thrower, but others are less bullish.

THE FUTURE: Jensen’s changeup and control will be key to watch in his first full season in 2021. If they stall, his fastball and slider combination will play in high-leverage relief.
TRACK RECORD: Jensen moved from the bullpen at Fresno State into the rotation in the middle of his sophomore year and saw mixed results. His stuff was plenty strong to thrive, but his scattershot command and control often counteracted his powerful pitch mix. Still, the Cubs were intrigued by Jensen's raw tools and what they could become when paired with pro coaching. They were so strongly convinced, in fact, that they used their first-round pick in 2019 on Jensen and signed him to a $2 million bonus. He made six starts in the short-season Northwest League before shutting it down after throwing a career-high 100 innings at Fresno State.

SCOUTING REPORT: The intrigue surrounding Jensen comes from his two-seam and four-seam fastballs. While plenty of pitchers have both of them in their repertoire, Jensen throws both pitches at the same velocity while keeping them as two distinct pitches. Both pitches average 96 mph, but the four-seamer features carrying life through the zone while the two-seamer shows power sink and armside run. He backs up the fastballs with a mid-80s slider with power break. His changeup is a distant fourth pitch and was seldom needed in college. The key will be honing Jensen's mechanics to make them more repeatable and helping him control the length of the movement on his pitches. He showed fatigue toward the end of the season, but area scout Gabe Zappin and West Coast crosschecker Shane Farrell noted that Jensen held his stuff throughout his outings despite a smaller than normal frame from a power pitcher.

THE FUTURE: After an offseason to recover, Jensen will likely move to one of the Cubs' Class A levels to begin 2020. His upside is as a high-end power arm in the rotation but he could be a power reliever as well and use his fastballs and slider to wipe out hitters.

Draft Prospects

Jensen started his career in the bullpen for Fresno State before transitioning to a starter's role in 2018 with mixed results. His 2019 season has been much better, as Jensen became the Bulldogs' Friday starter and helped lead the team to a Mountain West Conference championship with a 3.09 ERA over his first 84.1 innings. While Jensen stands at just 6 feet, 180 pounds, he has big-time stuff with a fastball that's been as high as 98 mph. The pitch has plenty of life in the form of arm-side run and natural sink, and he pairs it with an impressive slider that scouts say flashes plus at times. He has also shown a changeup that has solid arm-side movement, but he's primarily pitched off of his fastball/slider combination. Despite Jensen's intriguing stuff, he hasn't struck out as many batters as evaluators would expect. His 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings through his first 15 starts in 2019 is a career high, and he struck out 8.2 batters per nine innings during his first two seasons. This likely stems from Jensen's control, which is scattered at times. Jensen struggles to spot his fastball due to the amount of movement on the pitch, and batters tend to see the ball well as Jensen has some length in the back of his arm stroke and throws from a standard three-quarter slot. Jensen should get a chance to start at the next level thanks to a viable third-pitch changeup, but some scouts believe he'd thrive in a bullpen role, where his fastball and slider could tick up and his fringe-average control wouldn't be as much of an issue.

Scouting Reports

BA Grade: 45/High

Track Record: Jensen touched 98 mph and was the Mountain West Conference pitcher of the year as a junior at Fresno State, but the Cubs still went above industry consensus when they drafted him 27th overall in 2019. Concerns about Jensen&#39s control appeared well-founded at the start of his full-season debut with High-A South Bend in 2021, but he locked in his delivery and release point midway through the year. He posted a 2.28 ERA in his final 11 starts and rose to Double-A.

Scouting Report: Jensen is undersized, but he is a power pitcher with a pair of plus-plus fastballs that overwhelm hitters. His four-seamer averages 96 mph and rides above barrels and his two-seamer averages 95 mph and breaks bats with its late run and bore. Jensen&#39s mid-80s slider with lateral run is an above-average pitch and he introduced a vertical curveball last year that flashes average. His upper-80s changeup gets swings and misses in the strike zone but doesn&#39t get chase swings. Jensen has an effortful delivery with a long arm action that leads to inconsistent mechanics and bouts of below-average control. He&#39s a good athlete who took off when he found a consistent release point.

The Future: Jensen has the stuff to be a hard-throwing back-end starter if he maintains his delivery and release point. If not, his stuff should play in late relief.
Track Record: Jensen touched 98 mph and was the Mountain West Conference pitcher of the year as a junior at Fresno State, but the Cubs still went above industry consensus when they drafted him 27th overall in 2019. Concerns about Jensen’s control appeared well-founded at the start of his full-season debut with High-A South Bend in 2021, but he locked in his delivery and release point midway through the year. He posted a 2.28 ERA in his final 11 starts and rose to Double-A.

Scouting Report: Jensen is undersized, but he is a power pitcher with a pair of plus-plus fastballs that overwhelm hitters. His four-seamer averages 96 mph and rides above barrels and his two-seamer averages 95 mph and breaks bats with its late run and bore. Jensen’s mid-80s slider with lateral run is an above-average pitch and he introduced a vertical curveball last year that flashes average. His upper-80s changeup gets swings and misses in the strike zone but doesn’t get chase swings. Jensen has an effortful delivery with a long arm action that leads to inconsistent mechanics and bouts of below-average control. He’s a good athlete who took off when he found a consistent release point.

The Future: Jensen has the stuff to be a hard-throwing back-end starter if he maintains his delivery and release point. If not, his stuff should play in late relief.
Fastball: 70. Slider: 55. Changeup: 40. Control: 45.

TRACK RECORD: Jensen began as a reliever at Fresno State before transitioning to the rotation as a sophomore. He blossomed as a junior, winning Mountain West Conference pitcher of the year honors, and the Cubs drafted him 27th overall and signed him for $2 million. Jensen pitched a 2.25 ERA in his pro debut at short-season Eugene, but also struggled with his control with 14 walks and 19 strikeouts in 12 innings.

SCOUTING REPORT: Jensen is a tremendous athlete with loads of raw arm strength. His fastball is a plus-plus offering that ticked up to 95-100 mph based on data the Cubs received during the shutdown, and it plays up further with plus armside life. Jensen's mid-80s slider continues to get sharper the more he throws it and projects to be an above-average pitch. Jensen rarely threw a changeup in college and is still in the early stages of developing one. He is relatively new to starting, so his control and feel to pitch are still developing. Some Cubs officials believe Jensen is athletic enough to become an average strike-thrower, but others are less bullish.

THE FUTURE: Jensen's changeup and control will be key to watch in his first full season in 2021. If they stall, his fastball and slider combination will play in high-leverage relief.
Fastball: 70. Slider: 55. Changeup: 40. Control: 45.

TRACK RECORD: Jensen began as a reliever at Fresno State before transitioning to the rotation as a sophomore. He blossomed as a junior, winning Mountain West Conference pitcher of the year honors, and the Cubs drafted him 27th overall and signed him for $2 million. Jensen pitched a 2.25 ERA in his pro debut at short-season Eugene, but also struggled with his control with 14 walks and 19 strikeouts in 12 innings.

SCOUTING REPORT: Jensen is a tremendous athlete with loads of raw arm strength. His fastball is a plus-plus offering that ticked up to 95-100 mph based on data the Cubs received during the shutdown, and it plays up further with plus armside life. Jensen’s mid-80s slider continues to get sharper the more he throws it and projects to be an above-average pitch. Jensen rarely threw a changeup in college and is still in the early stages of developing one. He is relatively new to starting, so his control and feel to pitch are still developing. Some Cubs officials believe Jensen is athletic enough to become an average strike-thrower, but others are less bullish.

THE FUTURE: Jensen’s changeup and control will be key to watch in his first full season in 2021. If they stall, his fastball and slider combination will play in high-leverage relief.
Fastball: 70. Slider: 55. Changeup: 40. Control: 45.

TRACK RECORD: Jensen began as a reliever at Fresno State before transitioning to the rotation as a sophomore. He blossomed as a junior, winning Mountain West Conference pitcher of the year honors, and the Cubs drafted him 27th overall and signed him for $2 million. Jensen pitched a 2.25 ERA in his pro debut at short-season Eugene, but also struggled with his control with 14 walks and 19 strikeouts in 12 innings.

SCOUTING REPORT: Jensen is a tremendous athlete with loads of raw arm strength. His fastball is a plus-plus offering that ticked up to 95-100 mph based on data the Cubs received during the shutdown, and it plays up further with plus armside life. Jensen’s mid-80s slider continues to get sharper the more he throws it and projects to be an above-average pitch. Jensen rarely threw a changeup in college and is still in the early stages of developing one. He is relatively new to starting, so his control and feel to pitch are still developing. Some Cubs officials believe Jensen is athletic enough to become an average strike-thrower, but others are less bullish.

THE FUTURE: Jensen’s changeup and control will be key to watch in his first full season in 2021. If they stall, his fastball and slider combination will play in high-leverage relief.
TRACK RECORD: Jensen moved from the bullpen at Fresno State into the rotation in the middle of his sophomore year and saw mixed results. His stuff was plenty strong to thrive, but his scattershot command and control often counteracted his powerful pitch mix. Still, the Cubs were intrigued by Jensen’s raw tools and what they could become when paired with pro coaching. They were so strongly convinced, in fact, that they used their first-round pick in 2019 on Jensen and signed him to a $2 million bonus. He made six starts in the short-season Northwest League before shutting it down after throwing a career-high 100 innings at Fresno State.

SCOUTING REPORT: The intrigue surrounding Jensen comes from his two-seam and four-seam fastballs. While plenty of pitchers have both of them in their repertoire, Jensen throws both pitches at the same velocity while keeping them as two distinct pitches. Both pitches average 96 mph, but the four-seamer features carrying life through the zone while the two-seamer shows power sink and armside run. He backs up the fastballs with a mid-80s slider with power break. His changeup is a distant fourth pitch and was seldom needed in college. The key will be honing Jensen’s mechanics to make them more repeatable and helping him control the length of the movement on his pitches. He showed fatigue toward the end of the season, but area scout Gabe Zappin and West Coast crosschecker Shane Farrell noted that Jensen held his stuff throughout his outings despite a smaller than normal frame from a power pitcher.

THE FUTURE: After an offseason to recover, Jensen will likely move to one of the Cubs’ Class A levels to begin 2020. His upside is as a high-end power arm in the rotation but he could be a power reliever as well and use his fastballs and slider to wipe out hitters.
TRACK RECORD: Jensen moved from the bullpen at Fresno State into the rotation in the middle of his sophomore year and saw mixed results. His stuff was plenty strong to thrive, but his scattershot command and control often counteracted his powerful pitch mix. Still, the Cubs were intrigued by Jensen's raw tools and what they could become when paired with pro coaching. They were so strongly convinced, in fact, that they used their first-round pick in 2019 on Jensen and signed him to a $2 million bonus. He made six starts in the short-season Northwest League before shutting it down after throwing a career-high 100 innings at Fresno State.

SCOUTING REPORT: The intrigue surrounding Jensen comes from his two-seam and four-seam fastballs. While plenty of pitchers have both of them in their repertoire, Jensen throws both pitches at the same velocity while keeping them as two distinct pitches. Both pitches average 96 mph, but the four-seamer features carrying life through the zone while the two-seamer shows power sink and armside run. He backs up the fastballs with a mid-80s slider with power break. His changeup is a distant fourth pitch and was seldom needed in college. The key will be honing Jensen's mechanics to make them more repeatable and helping him control the length of the movement on his pitches. He showed fatigue toward the end of the season, but area scout Gabe Zappin and West Coast crosschecker Shane Farrell noted that Jensen held his stuff throughout his outings despite a smaller than normal frame from a power pitcher.

THE FUTURE: After an offseason to recover, Jensen will likely move to one of the Cubs' Class A levels to begin 2020. His upside is as a high-end power arm in the rotation but he could be a power reliever as well and use his fastballs and slider to wipe out hitters.
Jensen started his career in the bullpen for Fresno State before transitioning to a starter's role in 2018 with mixed results. His 2019 season has been much better, as Jensen became the Bulldogs' Friday starter and helped lead the team to a Mountain West Conference championship with a 3.09 ERA over his first 84.1 innings. While Jensen stands at just 6 feet, 180 pounds, he has big-time stuff with a fastball that's been as high as 98 mph. The pitch has plenty of life in the form of arm-side run and natural sink, and he pairs it with an impressive slider that scouts say flashes plus at times. He has also shown a changeup that has solid arm-side movement, but he's primarily pitched off of his fastball/slider combination. Despite Jensen's intriguing stuff, he hasn't struck out as many batters as evaluators would expect. His 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings through his first 15 starts in 2019 is a career high, and he struck out 8.2 batters per nine innings during his first two seasons. This likely stems from Jensen's control, which is scattered at times. Jensen struggles to spot his fastball due to the amount of movement on the pitch, and batters tend to see the ball well as Jensen has some length in the back of his arm stroke and throws from a standard three-quarter slot. Jensen should get a chance to start at the next level thanks to a viable third-pitch changeup, but some scouts believe he'd thrive in a bullpen role, where his fastball and slider could tick up and his fringe-average control wouldn't be as much of an issue.