Jason Hirsh: Difference between revisions

Jason Michael Hirsh (born February 20, 1982, in Santa Monica, California) is a starting pitcher for the New York Yankees organization in Major League Baseball.

Hirsh has a very large but athletic frame, standing at 6' 8" and weighing 250 lbs.[14]

Despite his size, Hirsh drew little interest out of St. Francis High School of La Cañada, California, because he threw just 86-88 mph. He went undrafted, and no NCAA Division I programs wanted him, so he wound up at Division III California Lutheran.

Hirsh attended and played baseball at California Lutheran University, where he was a 3-year starter, and flashed a 97-mph fastball and a mid-80s slider. He compiled a 26-6 record with a 2.96 ERA, striking out 238 batters over 258.1 innings. He is tied for first at the university in career wins (26), and holds the record for the most strikeouts in a game (18). Twice in his college career he was named to the First-Team All-SCIAC, and in 2003 he was also an ABCA All-West Region First-Team selection.^[1]

He was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 2nd round (59th overall) of the 2003 amateur entry draft, and signed for a $625,000 signing bonus.

He dominated the New York-Penn League in his pro debut, going 3-1 for the 2003 Tri-City ValleyCats, with a 1.95 ERA, and limiting batters to a .175 average, and fanning 33 hitters in 32.1 innings of work. In 2004 he skipped the low-A Lexington Legends to record 11 victories at the Advanced-A Salem Avalanche, while honing his secondary pitches.

For a week in January 2005 he worked with Nolan Ryan at his off-season pitching camp in Houston, as the Rangers invited their elite pitching prospects to work with Ryan. Hirsh said: "The biggest thing I got out of it was the confidence and being able to have [Astros manager] Phil Garner and Nolan Ryan sit there and tell you that you've got the stuff to be in the big leagues."^[2]

Playing for the Corpus Christi Hooks in 2005, he went 13-8 with a league-best 165 strikeouts and was named Texas League Pitcher of the Year, after finishing with a team-leading 13 wins while ranking second in ERA (2.87) and innings (172.1). He also earned Texas League post-season All Star honors, and pitched two perfect innings for the Texas League's West All Star team in the All Star Game.^[3] He was team MBP, and was the Texas League pitcher of the week three times.

Hirsh was rated as the Astros top prospect by Baseball America heading into the 2006 season, and was also listed with "Best Control" in the organization.

Hirsh began 2006 with the Triple A Round Rock Express, where he had a record of 13-2 (including a 12-game winning streak; an Express record), and a 2.10 ERA and 118 strikeouts (both leading the league). He held batters to a .193 batting average.^[4] He was named the 2006 Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Year.

Hirsh was the Pacific Coast League's Pitcher of the Year in 2006.^[5] He led the league in wins (13), ranked 2nd in ERA (2.10), and 4th in strikeouts (118) and in innings pitched (137.1). He was named the starting pitcher for the U.S. Team at the 2006 MLB All-Star Futures game in Pittsburgh, and was also named a Triple A All-Star.

He was regarded as the top pitching prospect in the Astros' farm system. He was rated by Baseball America as having the best breaking pitch in the PCL, and being the # 9 prospect in the Pacific Coast League.

In 2003-06, Hirsh's minor league record was 40-18 with a 2.90 ERA. He pitched 472.1 innings, averaging 7.3 hits, 3.0 walks, and 7.8 strikeouts per 9 innings.

In 2008, in AAA he was 4-4, with a 5.80 ERA in 99.1 innings.

Hirsh made his major league debut for the Astros on August 12, 2006. He started 9 games, winning 3 of them. He held batters to a .231 batting average when runners were in scoring position.

On December 12, 2006, the Astros traded Willy Taveras, Taylor Buchholz, and Hirsh to the Colorado Rockies for Rockies pitchers Jason Jennings and Miguel Asencio. In March 2007 Rockies manager Clint Hurdle designated Hirsh his No. 4 starter.^[6] He demonstrated much-improved command of his changeup, previously a troublesome pitch for him. Hirsh went on the disabled list after breaking his right fibula in a game August 7th. Not realizing he'd broken it on a line drive comebacker that caught him in the shin, Hirsh went on to pitch 6 innings that day, earning a key win for the club.^[7]

In 2007, in 28 starts, Hirsh compiled a 5-7 record with a 4.81 earned-run average, and kept batters to a .204 batting average in their first plate appearance against him in games. Hirsh missed the World Series, as he was still on the 60-Day DL.^[8]

Hirsh was expected to be in the starting rotation in 2008, as the number 4 starter.^[9][10] He started the season on the disabled list, however, because of right rotator cuff inflammation.^[11] He pitched in only four games during the season, pitching under 9 innings.

Hirsh was reassigned to the Rockies Triple A affiliate, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox of the Pacific Coast League.

On July 29, 2009, Hirsh was traded to the New York Yankees for a player to be named later. He was assigned to the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees.

• 2005 - Texas League All-Star P
• 2005 - Double-A All-Star SP
• 2005 - Texas League Most Outstanding Pitcher
• 2006 - Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Year

Hirsh has good leverage and pitches down to hitters. Hirsh had one of the most refined repertoires in Triple-A in 2006. He has a plus 2-seam fastball that has sink and good movement at 91-94 mph, while Hirsh’s plus hard-breaking slider is consistent and has bite at 80-86 mph (managers rated it the best breaking ball in the Texas League). Hirsh continues to refine his moderate changeup, which has fair deception and movement in the low-80s. He also throws a 4-seam fastball in the 94-96 mph range, and touches 97-98.^[12][13] He’s not afraid to pitch inside, and throws strikes to both sides of the plate.

He can still improve his command, which is average. His changeup used to be an unreliable pitch, but he has employed it to much greater effect in the early going of the 2007 season and even goes to it as an out pitch when he is ahead in the count.

The Astros drafted and signed his younger brother (6' 5"; 235 lbs.) Matt, another Cal Lutheran right-handed pitcher, in the 30th round in 2005.^[14] Matt went 1-2, 5.61, in 2005 at Rookie-level Greeneville.

Hirsh is Jewish.^[15] He didn't find that to be an issue with the 2007 Rockies, even though as The New York Times put it, "Christianity rocks in Colorado's clubhouse." Hirsh said, "There are guys who are religious, sure, but they don’t impress it upon anybody. It’s not like they hung a cross in my locker or anything. They’ve accepted me for who I am, and what I believe in."^[16][17]

He married Pamela Clark in 2007,^[18] and as a wedding present bought her a new Jeep Grand Cherokee.^[19] In July 2009 the couple was expecting their first child.^[20]

Hirsh makes his offseason home in Burbank, California.

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs
• Hardball Times stats
• BR Bullpen profile
• No 10. - MLN FAB50 Baseball 2006 - Minor League News
• Project Prospect, 1/17/07
• "Hirsh a candidate for stardom," 2/15/07
• "Warming up for the Jewish Boys of Summer," 3/5/08
• Hirsh Brothers
• Jweekly Celebrity Jewish Baseball

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