Red Sox pitching prospect Blake Wehunt has been named the South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Week for the week of August 12-18, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.
Wehunt was superb in his last start for High-A Greenville this past Friday. Going up against the Aberdeen IronBirds on the road, the 23-year-old right-hander struck out six and walked only one over five scoreless, no-hit innings in which he faced the minimum. He threw 65 pitches (38 strikes) and induced a game-high nine swings-and-misses.
In 10 starts for the Drive, Wehunt has posted a 4.80 ERA and 3.70 FIP with 49 strikeouts to 11 walks over 45 innings pitched. That comes after he forged a 2.16 ERA (2.76 FIP) with 44 strikeouts to 11 walks in eight starts (33 1/3 innings) for Low-A Salem to open his first full professional season before receiving a promotion to Greenville in early June. Between the two stops, opposing hitters have batted just .199 against him.
Among the 113 South Atlantic League pitchers who have thrown at least 40 innings to this point in the year, Wehunt ranks 10th in walks per nine innings (2.20), 11th in walk rate (6 percent), 16th in WHIP (1.07), 30th in xFIP (3.58), 39th in FIP, 43rd in batting average against (.222), 50th in strikeout rate (26.6 percent), and 53rd in groundball rate (41.2 percent), per FanGraphs.
Wehunt, who turns 24 in November, was selected by the Red Sox in the ninth round of last year’s draft out of Kennesaw State. The Georgia native signed for $100,000 and is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 33 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks 17th among pitchers in the organization.
Standing at an imposing 6-foot-7 and 240 pounds, Wehunt throws from a three-quarters arm slot and incorporates a high leg kick into his delivery. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, he operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of a 93-94 mph fastball that has reached 96 mph this season, an 82-86 mph slider, and an 84-85 mph splitter.
Wehunt becomes the third Greenville hurler to earn South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Week honors this season, joining fellow righties Juan Daniel Encarnacion (May 6-12) and Yordanny Monegro (July 29-August 4). He was also recognized as the Carolina League Pitcher of the Week for the week of April 29-May 5 while still with Salem.
