Hagen Danner

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #23 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 40/Medium
  
  Track Record: A standout two-way player in high school, Danner was drafted and developed as catcher over his first few professional seasons. He committed to pitching prior to the 2020 pandemic and has climbed the rungs of the Blue Jays system in the three years since. Danner spent a majority of 2023 with Triple-A Buffalo before earning his first big league callup. Danner pitched one inning for the Blue Jays before injuring his oblique and spending the final six weeks on the injured list. He has a long history of injuries and missed time.
  
  Scouting Report: Danner is a flame-throwing reliever with major question marks about his durability. He mixes a trio of pitches in his four-seam fastball, slider and curveball. Danner’s fastball sits 96-97 mph and touches 98-99 with good ride and armside run. It’s not a bat-misser, but sets up his slider well. Danner’s slider is his primary secondary. It sits 87-88 mph with heavy cut. The slider is Danner’s best pitch and it misses bats in and out of the strike zone. He throws an upper-70s curveball with heavy two-plane break but struggles to land it. Danner’s command is average overall, and he throws strikes with his fastball and slider.
  
  The Future: Danner is a one-inning reliever with the stuff to cut it as a high-leverage arm.
  
  Scouting Grades Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 40 | Slider: 60 | Control: 50
• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #17 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/High
  
  Track Record: Danner was drafted as a two-way player and toiled for the better part of three seasons as a catcher before committing to pitching full time prior to the 2020 pandemic. He returned in 2021 and flashed loud power reliever stuff in 25 appearances for High-A Vancouver and earned an addition to the 40-man roster. Danner spent much of 2022 injured and made just four appearances for New Hampshire. He returned in the Arizona Fall League, where he pitched in eight appearances with Salt River and flashed his signature stuff. Despite his injury-riddled season, the Blue Jays have kept Danner on the 40-man roster.
  
  Scouting Report: In Fall League play Danner sat 96-98 mph on his four-seam fastball and touched 99 at peak with ride and cut. His fastball has the ability to overpower hitters no matter where it lands in the zone, with exploding life as it nears the plate. His primary secondary is a high-80s slider with cutter-like shape and he'll flash a more traditional hammer breaking ball at 78-79 mph with depth and two-plane break. With a violent delivery and injury history, Danner is a high-risk relief prospect with immense, high-leverage relief upside. His strike throwing has been average in his small professional sample as a pitcher. If he can manage to stay healthy and show his command is average or better Danner's 2023 season might end among the Blue Jays relief corps.
  
  The Future: A potential fire-breathing dragon at the backend of a bullpen, Danner's future depends heavily on his ability to stay healthy and throw strikes.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 70. Curveball: 55. Slider: 50. Control: 45.
• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #27 prospect in 2022
  Track Record: Danner was a legitimate two-way prospect in high school, pitching for USA Baseball’s 18U national team for two summers and running his fastball up to 95 mph. Many scouts preferred Danner on the mound, but the Blue Jays drafted him as a catcher with their second-round pick in 2017 and signed him for $1.5 million. It quickly became apparent that Danner’s bat was a liability, but he resurrected his prospect status with a move to the mound for the 2021 season, to the point where the Blue Jays added him to the 40-man roster in November.
  
  Scouting Report: Danner is now a reliever with one of the best fastballs in the organization. He pitches at 95-97 mph and can tickle 100 mph, with good carry up in the zone on his four-seam fastball to blow past barrels. Danner also throws a mid-80s slider that can be an average pitch but is still inconsistent. For a conversion guy, Danner’s pitching background was evident in his control with just 3.0 BB/9.
  
  The Future: If Danner can continue to throw strikes and sharpen his breaking stuff, he should get to the big leagues as a power reliever. He heads to Double-A New Hampshire to start 2022.
  
• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #28 prospect in 2018
  Danner played in the 2011 Little League World Series and went on to play for Huntington Beach High, one of the top high school programs in the country. He pitched for USA Baseball's 18U National Team twice and developed into a two-way prospect whom many scouts preferred on the mound, where he reached 95 mph and flashed a swing-and-miss curveball with tight spin. The Blue Jays, though, signed Danner as a catcher for $1.5 million with their second-round pick. His pro debut was rocky, as Danner struggled in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League. Danner has a high baseball IQ that helps him behind the plate. He may have been run down in the GCL, as he looked like he needed to improve his blocking and receiving skills and threw out just 21 percent of runners despite having a plus arm. Danner has solid-average raw power but will need time to develop as a hitter. His swing is built more around strength than bat speed, with an extreme pull approach that he will have to adjust to better handle pitches on the outer third. Focusing full-time on catching should help Danner, though pitching could always be a fallback option down the road.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #61 prospect in 2017 draft
  Danner has been one of the most decorated high school players in recent years. He starred on the 2011 Little League World Series championship team from California, played for one of the nation's top programs at Huntington Beach High and donned the red, white and blue for the 18U National Team for two summers. He's a legitimate two-way prospect, though most scouts prefer him on the mound. Behind the plate, Danner is a capable receiver and has handled top arms well throughout his amateur career. He has a plus arm behind the plate. He shows plus raw power from the right side, though scouts see him as being more of a slugger than a pure hitter; he lacks elite bat speed and shows a pull-heavy approach. On the mound, Danner shows above-average control of his fastball and curveball. He pitches routinely at 90-93 mph and can touch as high as 95. His curveball has plus potential, showing late 12-to-6 break and consistently tight spin. Danner flashes feel for his changeup. Scouts question the deception of his fastball because he lacks explosive arm speed and high school hitters seem to square up his fastball more than scouts would expect. Danner has battled through shoulder soreness and some scouts are fearful of how he'll hold up. Danner is committed to UCLA and could be an immediate impact player for the Bruins if he makes it to campus, though teams will be interested in picking him on the first day of the draft.

Minor League Top Prospects

• 
  Ranked American League #16 prospect in 2018
  Danner's progress transitioning into a full-time catcher was slowed this summer, as he got injured in July after taking a fastball off his forearm and returned as a designated hitter only. While was still in the early stages of getting his defensive fundamentals down after being a two-way player out of high school, Danner did take strides forward offensively. After walking just five times in 136 plate appearances (3.7 BB%) in 2017, Danner walked 20 times in 137 plate appearances (14.6 BB%) this summer, while improving his average and slugging significantly as well. He's got strength and bat speed that should allow him to become an average hitter with average power. He'll have to make up for lost time defensively in instruct leagues this fall, where he has work to do with his footwork, throwing accuracy and blocking.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/High
  
  Track Record: Danner was drafted as a two-way player and toiled for the better part of three seasons as a catcher before committing to pitching full time prior to the 2020 pandemic. He returned in 2021 and flashed loud power reliever stuff in 25 appearances for High-A Vancouver and earned an addition to the 40-man roster. Danner spent much of 2022 injured and made just four appearances for New Hampshire. He returned in the Arizona Fall League, where he pitched in eight appearances with Salt River and flashed his signature stuff. Despite his injury-riddled season, the Blue Jays have kept Danner on the 40-man roster.
  
  Scouting Report: In Fall League play Danner sat 96-98 mph on his four-seam fastball and touched 99 at peak with ride and cut. His fastball has the ability to overpower hitters no matter where it lands in the zone, with exploding life as it nears the plate. His primary secondary is a high-80s slider with cutter-like shape and he'll flash a more traditional hammer breaking ball at 78-79 mph with depth and two-plane break. With a violent delivery and injury history, Danner is a high-risk relief prospect with immense, high-leverage relief upside. His strike throwing has been average in his small professional sample as a pitcher. If he can manage to stay healthy and show his command is average or better Danner's 2023 season might end among the Blue Jays relief corps.
  
  The Future: A potential fire-breathing dragon at the backend of a bullpen, Danner's future depends heavily on his ability to stay healthy and throw strikes.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 70. Curveball: 55. Slider: 50. Control: 45.
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/High
  
  Track Record: Danner was drafted as a two-way player and toiled for the better part of three seasons as a catcher before committing to pitching full time prior to the 2020 pandemic. He returned in 2021 and flashed loud power reliever stuff in 25 appearances for High-A Vancouver and earned an addition to the 40-man roster. Danner spent much of 2022 injured and made just four appearances for New Hampshire. He returned in the Arizona Fall League, where he pitched in eight appearances with Salt River and flashed his signature stuff. Despite his injury-riddled season, the Blue Jays have kept Danner on the 40-man roster.
  
  Scouting Report: In Fall League play Danner sat 96-98 mph on his four-seam fastball and touched 99 at peak with ride and cut. His fastball has the ability to overpower hitters no matter where it lands in the zone, with exploding life as it nears the plate. His primary secondary is a high-80s slider with cutter-like shape and he'll flash a more traditional hammer breaking ball at 78-79 mph with depth and two-plane break. With a violent delivery and injury history, Danner is a high-risk relief prospect with immense, high-leverage relief upside. His strike throwing has been average in his small professional sample as a pitcher. If he can manage to stay healthy and show his command is average or better Danner's 2023 season might end among the Blue Jays relief corps.
  
  The Future: A potential fire-breathing dragon at the backend of a bullpen, Danner's future depends heavily on his ability to stay healthy and throw strikes.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 70. Curveball: 55. Slider: 50. Control: 45.
• December, 2021 Scouting Report
  Track Record: Danner was a legitimate two-way prospect in high school, pitching for USA Baseball’s 18U national team for two summers and running his fastball up to 95 mph. Many scouts preferred Danner on the mound, but the Blue Jays drafted him as a catcher with their second-round pick in 2017 and signed him for $1.5 million. It quickly became apparent that Danner’s bat was a liability, but he resurrected his prospect status with a move to the mound for the 2021 season, to the point where the Blue Jays added him to the 40-man roster in November.
  
  Scouting Report: Danner is now a reliever with one of the best fastballs in the organization. He pitches at 95-97 mph and can tickle 100 mph, with good carry up in the zone on his four-seam fastball to blow past barrels. Danner also throws a mid-80s slider that can be an average pitch but is still inconsistent. For a conversion guy, Danner’s pitching background was evident in his control with just 3.0 BB/9.
  
  The Future: If Danner can continue to throw strikes and sharpen his breaking stuff, he should get to the big leagues as a power reliever. He heads to Double-A New Hampshire to start 2022.