JAKE THOMPSON, RIGHT HANDED PITCHER
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Born: August 8, 1989 Height: 6’2″ Weight: 225 Bats: Right Throws: Right Drafted: 2nd Round, 66th Overall, 2010 (Rays) How Acquired: Minor league free agent College: California State University – Long Beach Agent: N/A |
WTM’S PIRATE PLAYER PROFILES |
Thompson was a second-round pick of the Rays who impressed at the beginning of his pro career but quickly dropped off the prospect radar. When he first joined the Rays, he had a 92-94 mph fastball, and a slider and change that both were effective pitches at least some of the time. He never developed consistency, though, and the fastball lost a little velocity.
2010 Thompson had an impressive debut, ranking as the New York-Penn League’s top pitching prospect and the Rays’ tenth best prospect, according to Baseball America. He also had a strong two-game stint in high A, allowing just two hits and two walks in 11 innings. 2011 Making the jump to high A, Thompson put up a good ERA — likely helped by the extreme pitching environment of the Florida State League — but missed few bats due to inconsistency. He missed a little time with elbow tightness. BA ranked him 30th in the Rays’ system after the season, the last time he appeared on one of their prospect lists. 2012 Thompson got hit hard in AA, with opponents putting up a 314/376/459 line against him. He also struggled with his control. 2013 The Rays sent Thompson back to AA and he improved, but not dramatically. His K rate actually slipped. 2014 Thompson moved to the bullpen in 2014, apart from one start in AAA. He opened the season in AA, then moved up about after a month. Thompson improved his walk and K rates, but wasn’t that effective in AAA. He pitched only sparingly after June. 2015 Thompson remained with the Rays through more than half the 2015 season, but never pitched anywhere. They finally released him in early July and the Pirates signed him to a minor league contract two weeks later. They assigned him to Indianapolis, but he never made appearance for them, either. Thompson has one more year before becoming a minor league free agent. If he’s healthy, he could appear with Altoona or Indianapolis, or both. |
CONTRACT INFORMATION
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2016: Minor League Contract |
PLAYER INFORMATION
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Signing Bonus: $550,000 MiLB Debut: 2010 MLB Debut: N/A MiLB FA Eligible: 2016 MLB FA Eligible: N/A Rule 5 Eligible: Eligible Added to 40-Man: N/A Options Remaining: 3 MLB Service Time: 0.000 |
TRANSACTIONS
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June 8, 2010: Drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2nd round, 66th overall pick; signed on July 7. July 3, 2015: Released by the Tampa Bay Rays. July 17, 2015: Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as a minor league free agent. |