Jason Jennings

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Colorado Rockies #8 prospect in 2002
  Baseball America's 1999 College Player of the Year, Jennings was a twoway star at Baylor. He showed off those skills last August at Shea Stadium, where he became the first player in major league history to both homer and throw a shutout in his debut. His father Jim played in the Rangers system, and his grandfather James is a longtime stadium announcer for the Dallas Cowboys and the Mesquite Championship Rodeo. Jennings has three quality pitches, including a lively 92 mph sinker that's the perfect pitch for Coors Field. He has a hard slider and understands the importance of using his changeup. He has a thick lower body, but he's a quality athlete who fields his position exceptionally well and can hit. He sometimes overuses his slider and has to learn to pitch off his fastball, which is a big league pitch. A catcher in high school, he's still learning the art of pitching. Jennings will get a prime shot at Colorado's rotation this spring.
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  Ranked Colorado Rockies #6 prospect in 2001
  One of just three college players the Rockies have taken with their top pick in nine years of drafting, Jennings was Baseball America's 1999 College Player of the Year. He went 13-2, 2.58 with 172 strikeouts in 147 innings at Baylor that year, and hit .386-17-68 as a DH. His father Jim played baseball at Texas and in the Rangers farm system. Jennings has three pitches he can command in the strike zone. What makes him so attractive for Coors Field is a solid, low-90s sinker. He complements it with a hard slider. He draws physical comparisons to Rick Reuschel, who like Jennings was a deceptively good athlete despite his bulk. Jennings can be a bit stubborn at times, but he's competitive enough that he eventually will make the adjustments necessary to succeed at the upper levels. He's still getting the confidence necessary to throw his changeup in key situations. He got a taste of Double-A at the end of last season and will open 2001 back with Carolina. He could be promoted quickly and figures to be in the big leagues in 2002 with a future as a No. 3 starter.

Minor League Top Prospects

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  Ranked Carolina League #12 prospect in 2000
  Just a year removed from winning BA’s 1999 College Player of the Year award at Baylor, where he hit 35 home runs in his final two seasons, Jennings easily could be one of Colorado's top power prospects. But his professional at-bats will be limited because his future is on the mound. "He has a very good slider and he can mix in 10 or 15 changeups, but everything comes off the fastball," Salem pitching coach Bob McClure said. "The advantage he has is that his fastball has movement. He already has average major league movement." Jennings tops out at 92 mph, but location rather than velocity makes him so difficult to hit. His two-seam fastball is particularly effective because it has a tendency to dart or dip away from batters at the last second.
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  Ranked South Atlantic League #3 prospect in 1999
  Jennings was Baseball America's 1999 College Player of the Year, when he doubled as a power-hitting DH. The Rockies' brass wisely limited him to the mound, and to 75 or so pitches per outing. Jennings mixed four- and two-seam fastballs to hitters on both sides of the plate. Most foes were overmatched. "First of all, he has a tremendous personality," Asheville manager Jim Eppard said. "He's also very, very talented. He throws his fastball on the inside part of the plate and the outside part of the plate. His slider is very sharp, very quick and very small, and he consistently has good control of it." Even tired from the combined college/pro season, Jennings was stellar. He probably will throw 91-93 mph in 2000, up from 87-89. Some scouts liken his arsenal and body to Toronto's Joey Hamilton.

Top 100 Rankings

• Ranked Baseball America's #87 prospect in 2000

• December, 1999 Scouting Report
  Just a year removed from winning BA’s 1999 College Player of the Year award at Baylor, where he hit 35 home runs in his final two seasons, Jennings easily could be one of Colorado's top power prospects. But his professional at-bats will be limited because his future is on the mound. "He has a very good slider and he can mix in 10 or 15 changeups, but everything comes off the fastball," Salem pitching coach Bob McClure said. "The advantage he has is that his fastball has movement. He already has average major league movement." Jennings tops out at 92 mph, but location rather than velocity makes him so difficult to hit. His two-seam fastball is particularly effective because it has a tendency to dart or dip away from batters at the last second.