Drew Rasmussen

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Milwaukee Brewers #14 prospect in 2021
  TRACK RECORD: Rasmussen had Tommy John surgery at Oregon State as a sophomore in 2016. The Rays drafted him 31st overall the following year but didn't sign him due to concerns about his elbow. Rasmussen returned to school and had a second Tommy John surgery that wiped out his 2018 season, but the Brewers still drafted him in the sixth round and signed him for $135,000. Rasmussen returned in 2019 and jumped three levels up to Double-A on the strength of a fastball up to 99 mph. He began the 2020 season at the alternate training site and made his major league debut in August.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Rasmussen's best pitch is his fastball, which he pumps at 96-99 mph. The pitch has good life to miss bats when he pitches up in the zone, but his control escapes him at times, leading to too many walks and hard contact. His 85-88 mph slider is a slightly above-average pitch with good bite that could still tick up, though he has trouble landing it in the strike zone. Rasmussen is primarily a fastball/ slider pitcher, but he mixes in a fringe-average curveball and an occasional below-average changeup at 89-91 mph.
  
  THE FUTURE: Rasmussen should break camp with the Brewers in 2021. He has the stuff to pitch highleverage relief innings if he can sharpen his command.
• 
  Ranked Milwaukee Brewers #9 prospect in 2020
  TRACK RECORD: The Rays drafted Rasmussen 31st overall in 2017 out of Oregon State but did not sign him over concerns about his elbow following the Tommy John surgery he had as a sophomore. He returned to OSU and needed a second TJ as a senior. Believing he would make a full recovery, the Brewers drafted him in the sixth round in 2018 and signed him for $135,000. After a year of rehab, Rasmussen re-emerged throwing in the upper 90s at 2019 spring training and rose three levels to Double-A.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Rasmussen overpowers hitters with a mid-90s fastball that touches 99 mph. It has plus velocity and plays with life in the strike zone to make it a plus-plus pitch. Rasmussen backs up his fastball with an above-average power slider in the 88-91 mph range and an improving changeup which has a chance to be an average third pitch. Rasmussen quickly regained his feel for pitching postsurgery and fills up the strike zone with above-average control
  
  THE FUTURE: Rasmussen has starter stuff, but after two surgeries and a careful approach to pitch counts, his future could be in the bullpen. He will see Triple-A San Antonio in 2020 and has a shot at making his major league debut.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #173 prospect in 2018 draft
  Rasmussen's career at Oregon State has been nothing short of a roller-coaster ride. An overweight, upper-80s prep righthander before he got to Corvallis, Rasmussen transformed his body with the help of Driveline Baseball and quickly established himself as the staff ace, throwing the only perfect game in Oregon State history as a freshman. Rasmussen then tore his UCL his sophomore year and was sidelined with Tommy John rehab until midway through the 2017 season. The 6-foot-2, 225-pound righthander used his rehab as an opportunity to get stronger, and he came back late last April working 94-97 mph and touching 98 mph with an explosive fastball, showing enough for the Rays to take him with the 31st overall pick. But the Rays didn't sign him after a post-draft physical revealed issues with his first Tommy John surgery. Rasmussen returned to Corvallis and had a second, mostly corrective, surgery with Dodgers team doctor Neal ElAttrache late in 2017. The surgery was successful and by all reports Rasmussen has progressed well in his rehab--even losing some weight--but he has yet to throw a baseball and likely won't start throwing until closer to the draft. When healthy, Rasmussen works in the mid- to upper 90s, with a devastating split-like changeup as his main out-pitch and an average breaking ball as his third pitch. He's a first-rounder in terms of talent, but scouts haven't seen him fully healthy since 2016 and won't be able to see him on a mound before draft day. After two Tommy John surgeries, Rasmussen's landing spot will hinge on how teams view his medical report.
• Ranked #56 prospect in 2017 draft
  Oregon State already was leading the nation with a sub-2.00 ERA when it got Rasmussen back in late April after a 13-month rehabilitation from Tommy John surgery. He's a huge draft wild card as teams assess his return, as he was hitting 98 mph in short stints as a reliever. He can maintain a downhill angle from his 6-foot-1, 225-pound frame and gets swings and misses with the heater, sitting in the 92-95 mph range as a starter. Rasmussen's slider and changeup rank as average at their best, with the changeup there for him more frequently than the breaking ball. Some evaluators like him best as a bullpen arm down the line and a potential closer thanks to his explosive heater. A strong finish from Rasmussen, who threw a perfect game as a freshman in 2015, could push him into the first two rounds.

• March, 2021 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Rasmussen had Tommy John surgery at Oregon State as a sophomore in 2016. The Rays drafted him 31st overall the following year but didn't sign him due to concerns about his elbow. Rasmussen returned to school and had a second Tommy John surgery that wiped out his 2018 season, but the Brewers still drafted him in the sixth round and signed him for $135,000. Rasmussen returned in 2019 and jumped three levels up to Double-A on the strength of a fastball up to 99 mph. He began the 2020 season at the alternate training site and made his major league debut in August.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Rasmussen's best pitch is his fastball, which he pumps at 96-99 mph. The pitch has good life to miss bats when he pitches up in the zone, but his control escapes him at times, leading to too many walks and hard contact. His 85-88 mph slider is a slightly above-average pitch with good bite that could still tick up, though he has trouble landing it in the strike zone. Rasmussen is primarily a fastball/ slider pitcher, but he mixes in a fringe-average curveball and an occasional below-average changeup at 89-91 mph.
  
  THE FUTURE: Rasmussen should break camp with the Brewers in 2021. He has the stuff to pitch highleverage relief innings if he can sharpen his command.
• December, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Rasmussen had Tommy John surgery at Oregon State as a sophomore in 2016. The Rays drafted him 31st overall the following year but didn't sign him due to concerns about his elbow. Rasmussen returned to school and had a second Tommy John surgery that wiped out his 2018 season, but the Brewers still drafted him in the sixth round and signed him for $135,000. Rasmussen returned in 2019 and jumped three levels up to Double-A on the strength of a fastball up to 99 mph. He began the 2020 season at the alternate training site and made his major league debut in August.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Rasmussen's best pitch is his fastball, which he pumps at 96-99 mph. The pitch has good life to miss bats when he pitches up in the zone, but his control escapes him at times, leading to too many walks and hard contact. His 85-88 mph slider is a slightly above-average pitch with good bite that could still tick up, though he has trouble landing it in the strike zone. Rasmussen is primarily a fastball/ slider pitcher, but he mixes in a fringe-average curveball and an occasional below-average changeup at 89-91 mph.
  
  THE FUTURE: Rasmussen should break camp with the Brewers in 2021. He has the stuff to pitch highleverage relief innings if he can sharpen his command.
• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: The Rays drafted Rasmussen 31st overall in 2017 out of Oregon State but did not sign him over concerns about his elbow following the Tommy John surgery he had as a sophomore. He returned to OSU and needed a second TJ as a senior. Believing he would make a full recovery, the Brewers drafted him in the sixth round in 2018 and signed him for $135,000. After a year of rehab, Rasmussen re-emerged throwing in the upper 90s at 2019 spring training and rose three levels to Double-A.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Rasmussen overpowers hitters with a mid-90s fastball that touches 99 mph. It has plus velocity and plays with life in the strike zone to make it a plus-plus pitch. Rasmussen backs up his fastball with an above-average power slider in the 88-91 mph range and an improving changeup which has a chance to be an average third pitch. Rasmussen quickly regained his feel for pitching postsurgery and fills up the strike zone with above-average control
  
  THE FUTURE: Rasmussen has starter stuff, but after two surgeries and a careful approach to pitch counts, his future could be in the bullpen. He will see Triple-A San Antonio in 2020 and has a shot at making his major league debut.
• February, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: The Rays drafted Rasmussen 31st overall in 2017 out of Oregon State but did not sign him over concerns about his elbow following the Tommy John surgery he had as a sophomore. He returned to OSU and needed a second TJ as a senior. Believing he would make a full recovery, the Brewers drafted him in the sixth round in 2018 and signed him for $135,000. After a year of rehab, Rasmussen re-emerged throwing in the upper 90s at 2019 spring training and rose three levels to Double-A.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Rasmussen overpowers hitters with a mid-90s fastball that touches 99 mph. It has plus velocity and plays with life in the strike zone to make it a plus-plus pitch. Rasmussen backs up his fastball with an above-average power slider in the 88-91 mph range and an improving changeup which has a chance to be an average third pitch. Rasmussen quickly regained his feel for pitching postsurgery and fills up the strike zone with above-average control
  
  THE FUTURE: Rasmussen has starter stuff, but after two surgeries and a careful approach to pitch counts, his future could be in the bullpen. He will see Triple-A San Antonio in 2020 and has a shot at making his major league debut.