There’s a saying in sports that to be the best, you have to beat the best, and having the desire to compete against the best is a characteristic that, many times, separates the prospects from the suspects. It’s also a characteristic that Jacob Cantleberry, a left-handed pitcher in the Dodgers organization, has shown his whole life.
Center Grove High School
Cantleberry went to Center Grove High School in Greenwood, Indiana, and had an award-winning prep career under Keith Hatfield, the 2022 District Coach of the Year as awarded by the Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association. As a Trojan Cantleberry was named the Johnson County Player of the Year, the two-time Indiana Daily Journal Player of the Year, was also recognized as a Central Region Preseason All-American, and was rated as the #3 Left-handed pitcher and #11 overall recruit in Indiana by Perfect Game. He was widely known as one the most talented pitchers in his Region, but he was equally as well known for his desire to compete against the best and showed that when he chose San Jac. to further his career in College. San Jacinto Junior College is one of the most historic college baseball programs of all time and is led by Tom Arrington who is one of the winningest coaches of all time. When asked about his time at San Jac., here’s what Cantleberry had to say:
San. Jac. was one of my favorite baseball experiences. I was there for 2 years. The way they ran the program, and the talent I got to play with every year was fantastic. We had 10+ draftees in my Freshman and Sophomore years, and we had a lot of guys that went to big schools, so it was very competitive, and I made a lot of really good friends there.
San Jac to Mizzou
After 2 great years of playing against the best competition at the JUCO level, the lefty from Indiana had offers from Arizona, Arizona State, and Houston to further his career, but eventually settled in on Mizzou after taking a trip to Columbia. While on his visit he loved everything about Mizzou, its campus, its facilities, the coaching staff, and the fact that they could offer him the chance to play in college baseball’s best conference, the SEC. Cantleberry chose to be a Tiger and he’s glad he did.
I went on a visit not expecting too much, but the campus was beautiful, the facilities were great, I really liked the staff there with Coach Bieser and Coach Corral, and I wanted to play in the SEC. I wanted to play against great competition and I was really big on playing the best amateur baseball I possibly could.
Mizzou to Dodgers
Cantleberry spent one very good year at Mizzou, and flashed big stuff in the premier role as the Friday night starter for the Tigers striking out 97 hitters in 72.1 innings, and got drafted by the Dodgers in the 13th round of the 2019 draft after his Junior year. Turning pro, especially with an organization like the Dodgers, was a no-brainer of a decision for the young lefty as he was ready and excited to get his professional career started. Here’s what he had to say about turning pro.
I was ready, and playing professional baseball has always been my goal, and, when the Dodgers drafted me it was a no-brainer. It was a surprise because the Dodgers were not one of the teams I talked to before the draft, so it was a blessing. My experience as a Dodger has been fantastic. The development, the staff we have, and the amount of things I’ve learned since I got drafted is incredible.
Cantleberry finished 2019 in Rookie ball at Ogden, then spent most of 2021 in High A Great Lakes where he started this year before being moved to AA Tulsa in Mid August.
Feature Cut
Cantleberry has always had a + changeup, but worked really hard with the developmental staff and developed a slider to add to his 4-seam fastball that sat 91-92 towards the end of this year. Click the video to get a good look at his fastball, and one thing to notice is how well he hides the ball, so it seems to get “on” the hitter quicker than they expect.
Slider
Cantleberry has always had a deceptive fastball and a + changeup, but added a slider to his arsenal this year and it has turned into a really good pitch. His fastball gives hitters the “rising effect and his change up gave hitters the tumbling effect, and it also gives him a “right-turn”. By developing a slider, he now has a pitch that can take a right turn, so now has every different shape to present to hitters. He can throw his slider to the back-door or the back-foot. Click the video to see his slider for yourself.
Changeup
Cantleberry’s changeup looks identical to his fastball coming out of his hand, and the way he hides the ball, trying to figure out the velocity and/or movement of his pitches is very tough for hitters. Click on the video to see a sequence of Cantleberry changeups.
Deception
I’ve eluded to it on a couple occasions, but one of the things that makes Cantleberry so effective is how he hides the ball. If you click on the video you will see this effect in action and notice how the hitter can’t see the ball until right at the release point. That deception makes the hitter feel as if the pitch gets on them faster than they expect, and it also makes identifying spin much tougher because Cantleberry makes it impossible to find tips like the type of grip he has on the ball.
Final Thoughts
Cantleberry is used to playing in the most competitive of environments and against the best competition, so the competition that he faces in the Dodgers system is something that he will embrace and will make him better. I would like to finish by saying thank you to Jacob for taking the time to talk, it was a pleasure to get to meet this young man and I am very grateful to have had the chance to tell at least a part of his story. Jacob is an incredible young man and one that fits in perfectly with the Dodgers culture between his work ethic, the kind of person he is, and the talent he possesses. He has the world at his fingertips and it is going to be fun to watch his future in the organization.
