Hayden Wesneski

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Chicago Cubs #8 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/Medium
  
  Track Record: Wesneski pitched three seasons in Sam Houston State's rotation and finished fourth in school history with 224 career strikeouts. The Yankees drafted him in the sixth round in 2019 and signed him for a below-slot $617,500. Wesneski rose three levels to Triple-A in his first full season in 2021 and delivered another strong showing in 2022. The Cubs acquired him for reliever Scott Effross at the trade deadline and called him up to the big leagues in September, when he posted a 2.18 ERA over 33 innings as a starter and long reliever in a tenure that also included an immaculate inning.
  
  Scouting Report: Wesneski succeeds by mixing and locating a deep, five-pitch mix. His four-seamer sits 93-94 mph and touches 97 with heavy sinking life, and his 92-95 mph two-seamer runs in hard and late on righthanded batters. Both are difficult pitches to elevate and result in a heavy dose of ground balls. Wesneski's low-80s slider with two-plane snap is a plus pitch that gets swings and misses both in and out of the strike zone, and he'll also mix in an 87-90 mph cutter to give batters a different look. He rounds out his arsenal with a below-average, upper-80s changeup he'll need to improve in order to better handle lefthanded batters. Wesneski's delivery is somewhat unconventional with his long arm action and low three-quarters arm slot, but he has a good feel for pitching and throws everything for strikes with above-average control. He is a tough competitor who earns the bulldog moniker from team officials.
  
  The Future: Wesneski's deep pitch mix gives him a chance to be a back-of-the-rotation starter or bulk reliever. He'll compete for a spot in the Cubs' Opening Day rotation in spring training.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55. Slider: 60. Cutter: 50. Changeup: 40. Control: 55
• 
  Ranked New York Yankees #6 prospect in 2022
  Track Record: A 33rd-round pick by the Rays out of high school, Wesneski instead went to Sam Houston State, improved his fitness and saw a corresponding jump in stuff. That led the Yankees to take him in the sixth round in 2019. Wesneski got his feet wet in Rookie ball in his pro debut, then made great strides via remote training during the canceled 2020 season and rocketed from High-A to Triple-A in 2021.
  
  Scouting Report: Wesneski works with an arsenal of four- and two-seam fastballs, a slider, a changeup, a curveball and a newly added cutter. The four-seamer parks in the mid 90s and has peaked at 99 mph with heavy sinking life. His average slider has short, sweepy break, while his curveball is potentially plus and acts more like a powerful slurve with horizontal and vertical break. His changeup is a potentially average pitch and is thrown in the low 80s. Wesneski’s delivery features a deep shoulder load, a three-quarters slot and a wider release point that leads to fringy control. He’ll have to improve his direction to the plate in order to help his stuff maintain its consistency.
  
  The Future: After reaching Triple-A for his last two starts of 2021, Wesneski is likely to return to the level. There, he’ll work on continuing to develop his cutter, learning how to better sequence his wide arsenal and honing his control and command to reach his ceiling as a No. 4 or 5 starter.
  

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #302 prospect in 2019 draft
  Wesneski has been a stalwart for Sam Houston State for three seasons. He went an impressive 10-2, 3.93 as a freshman, but he realized he needed to continue to improve. His body and his stuff have improved and it paid off this year in a 8-3, 3.32 season that saw him strikeout 9.4 batters per nine innings. He now touches 94-95 mph although he generally sits 91-93. He's continued to refine his average slider and has some feel for a fringe-average changeup. As a lower-slot righthander with average stuff, there's some thought that Wesneski will respond well to an eventual move to the bullpen, where he could get to the upper registers of his velocity range more often. With a fastball that has plenty of movement and a solid slider, he has the makings of a back-end starter or solid reliever.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/Medium
  
  Track Record: Wesneski pitched three seasons in Sam Houston State's rotation and finished fourth in school history with 224 career strikeouts. The Yankees drafted him in the sixth round in 2019 and signed him for a below-slot $617,500. Wesneski rose three levels to Triple-A in his first full season in 2021 and delivered another strong showing in 2022. The Cubs acquired him for reliever Scott Effross at the trade deadline and called him up to the big leagues in September, when he posted a 2.18 ERA over 33 innings as a starter and long reliever in a tenure that also included an immaculate inning.
  
  Scouting Report: Wesneski succeeds by mixing and locating a deep, five-pitch mix. His four-seamer sits 93-94 mph and touches 97 with heavy sinking life, and his 92-95 mph two-seamer runs in hard and late on righthanded batters. Both are difficult pitches to elevate and result in a heavy dose of ground balls. Wesneski's low-80s slider with two-plane snap is a plus pitch that gets swings and misses both in and out of the strike zone, and he'll also mix in an 87-90 mph cutter to give batters a different look. He rounds out his arsenal with a below-average, upper-80s changeup he'll need to improve in order to better handle lefthanded batters. Wesneski's delivery is somewhat unconventional with his long arm action and low three-quarters arm slot, but he has a good feel for pitching and throws everything for strikes with above-average control. He is a tough competitor who earns the bulldog moniker from team officials.
  
  The Future: Wesneski's deep pitch mix gives him a chance to be a back-of-the-rotation starter or bulk reliever. He'll compete for a spot in the Cubs' Opening Day rotation in spring training.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55. Slider: 60. Cutter: 50. Changeup: 40. Control: 55
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/Medium
  
  Track Record: Wesneski pitched three seasons in Sam Houston State's rotation and finished fourth in school history with 224 career strikeouts. The Yankees drafted him in the sixth round in 2019 and signed him for a below-slot $617,500. Wesneski rose three levels to Triple-A in his first full season in 2021 and delivered another strong showing in 2022. The Cubs acquired him for reliever Scott Effross at the trade deadline and called him up to the big leagues in September, when he posted a 2.18 ERA over 33 innings as a starter and long reliever in a tenure that also included an immaculate inning.
  
  Scouting Report: Wesneski succeeds by mixing and locating a deep, five-pitch mix. His four-seamer sits 93-94 mph and touches 97 with heavy sinking life, and his 92-95 mph two-seamer runs in hard and late on righthanded batters. Both are difficult pitches to elevate and result in a heavy dose of ground balls. Wesneski's low-80s slider with two-plane snap is a plus pitch that gets swings and misses both in and out of the strike zone, and he'll also mix in an 87-90 mph cutter to give batters a different look. He rounds out his arsenal with a below-average, upper-80s changeup he'll need to improve in order to better handle lefthanded batters. Wesneski's delivery is somewhat unconventional with his long arm action and low three-quarters arm slot, but he has a good feel for pitching and throws everything for strikes with above-average control. He is a tough competitor who earns the bulldog moniker from team officials.
  
  The Future: Wesneski's deep pitch mix gives him a chance to be a back-of-the-rotation starter or bulk reliever. He'll compete for a spot in the Cubs' Opening Day rotation in spring training.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55. Slider: 60. Cutter: 50. Changeup: 40. Control: 55
• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 50/Medium
  
  Track Record: A Rays 33rd-round pick in 2016, Wesneski made it to Sam Houston State, where he got in better shape and saw a corresponding jump in stuff. That led the Yankees to take him in the sixth round in 2019. He got his feet wet in Rookie ball in his pro debut, then made great strides via remote training during the lost 2020 season before rocketing from High-A to Triple-A in 2021.
  
  Scouting Report: Wesneski works with a five-pitch arsenal of four- and two-seam fastballs, a slider, a changeup and a newly added cutter. The four-seamer, which parks in the mid 90s and has peaked at 99 mph with heavy sinking life. His slider has shorter, sweepier break, while his curveball is potentially plus and acts more like a powerful slurve with horizontal and vertical break. His changeup is a potentially average pitch and is thrown in the low 80s. Wesneski&#39s delivery features a deep shoulder load, a three-quarters slot and a wider release point. Some scouts believe he&#39ll have to improve his direction to the plate in order to help his stuff maintain its consistency.
  
  The Future: After reaching Triple-A for his last two starts of 2021, Wesneski is likely to return to the level. There, he&#39ll work on continuing to develop his cutter, learning how to better sequence his wide arsenal and honing control and command to reach his ceiling as a No. 4 or 5 caliber starter.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 70. Curveball: 60. Slider: 50. Changeup: 50. Control: 45.
• December, 2021 Scouting Report
  Track Record: A 33rd-round pick by the Rays out of high school, Wesneski instead went to Sam Houston State, improved his fitness and saw a corresponding jump in stuff. That led the Yankees to take him in the sixth round in 2019. Wesneski got his feet wet in Rookie ball in his pro debut, then made great strides via remote training during the canceled 2020 season and rocketed from High-A to Triple-A in 2021.
  
  Scouting Report: Wesneski works with an arsenal of four- and two-seam fastballs, a slider, a changeup, a curveball and a newly added cutter. The four-seamer parks in the mid 90s and has peaked at 99 mph with heavy sinking life. His average slider has short, sweepy break, while his curveball is potentially plus and acts more like a powerful slurve with horizontal and vertical break. His changeup is a potentially average pitch and is thrown in the low 80s. Wesneski’s delivery features a deep shoulder load, a three-quarters slot and a wider release point that leads to fringy control. He’ll have to improve his direction to the plate in order to help his stuff maintain its consistency.
  
  The Future: After reaching Triple-A for his last two starts of 2021, Wesneski is likely to return to the level. There, he’ll work on continuing to develop his cutter, learning how to better sequence his wide arsenal and honing his control and command to reach his ceiling as a No. 4 or 5 starter.
  
• July, 2021 Scouting Report
  Wesneski has been one of the Yankees' better pitching stories this season. Scouts raved about what they saw from him in High-A, including a five-pitch mix of sinker, cutter, four-seamer, slider and changeup. The cutter is the newest part of his arsenal, installed to provide him with answers for righties and lefties.
• December, 2018 Scouting Report
  Wesneski has been a stalwart for Sam Houston State for three seasons. He went an impressive 10-2, 3.93 as a freshman, but he realized he needed to continue to improve. His body and his stuff have improved and it paid off this year in a 8-3, 3.32 season that saw him strikeout 9.4 batters per nine innings. He now touches 94-95 mph although he generally sits 91-93. He's continued to refine his average slider and has some feel for a fringe-average changeup. As a lower-slot righthander with average stuff, there's some thought that Wesneski will respond well to an eventual move to the bullpen, where he could get to the upper registers of his velocity range more often. With a fastball that has plenty of movement and a solid slider, he has the makings of a back-end starter or solid reliever.