Jack Dreyer
Jack Dreyer is a left-handed reliever who grew up in Iowa, went to Iowa, but fought injury. He had a shoulder injury that forced him to miss his Sophomore season in 2019, then COVID-19 canceled almost all of 2020.
So, in reality, he got to pitch as a Freshman at Iowa, then only pitched 29 innings in the next 3 years, which is why he went undrafted.
The Dodgers signed him to an Undrafted Free Agent Contract in August of 2021.
He didn’t pitch the remainder of that year, then threw just 12.1 innings in 2022.
Jack posted an ERA of 2.30 in High A Great Lakes in 2023, then got promoted to AA Tulsa to start 2024 and didn’t give up a run in 14.2 innings. He had 20 strikeouts and no walks during that stint, earning him a quick promotion to AAA.
The success being as immediate as it was and as consistent as it has been is fairly unprecedented. As a result, Dreyer was placed on the 40-man roster ahead of the Rule 5 draft, which means he’s gonna be in the system for a while moving forward.
Beginning the 2024 season, his first full season in a long time, Dreyer featured primarily a fastball/slider mix. Then, after meeting with Rob Hill and Dave Anderson, they tweaked his grip and added back in the curveball he had back in college.
That 3 pitch mix led to a ton of swing and miss for the Lefty.
When asked where he thinks he’ll eventually end up sitting, in terms of velocity, Dreyer said he had no doubt he could get up to 94 to 95 on average, while hitting higher than that.
Ben Casparius
Ben Casparius has mainly been a starter throughout his journey through the Minor Leagues, but, as we saw in the post-season last year, he is versatile enough to pitch in any role. That versatility is vital for the young pitchers because there are so few opportunities on such a stacked roster.
Casparius posted a 3.36 ERA overall at the AAA level, then got the call. He made this MLB debut on August 31, then posted a 1.42 ERA in 6.1 innings in the playoffs.
Casparius was a 2-way player as recently as his time at North Carolina where he went out of High School. He eventually transferred back home to UConn, and it was there that he began his full-time journey on the mound. So, he is still somewhat in the beginning stages of learning “who” he is as a pitcher and “what” he can become.
He has used the Minor League process to continue to find the best version of himself and has prioritized the “process” over results. Because of that mindset, he’s continued to redefine his mix and has built an arsenal that might be the best of any of the young pitchers in the organization.
His slider has always been his “Crown Jewel” because it has a sharp break. But, now his fastball has caught up and is approaching 100 miles per hour, so he now has multiple ++ pitches.
He is developing a harder and a softer cutter and has featured as many as five pitches in the past. Of course, no pitcher can get to 5 pitches in a relief setting, so his 2 “crown jewels” would likely be leaned on in relief appearances. But, if asked to provide length, he can reach into his bag pretty deep. He has a change-up to add to the 4 seam, slider, and cutters.
Edgardo Henriquez
Edgardo Henriquez is a right-handed reliever who has a lightning bolt of a right arm. He made a historic jump through every level of the Minor Leagues last year, starting at Low A Rancho and ending up on the NLCS roster.
He hit 104 miles per hour with his four-seam fastball and has hit 94 with his bullet slider. His stuff is elite, there is no doubt about that, but he still has work to do with his command. And sometimes control as well.
Henriquez struck out 88 hitters last year at the Minor League level in 53 innings but had a 7.11 BB/9 ratio at the AAA level. His BB/9 ratio with LA was 5.40, but that was greatly offset by his 14.94 K/9 mark.
To further illustrate how “crazy” his “stuff” is, his spin consistently hit above 2600, so he is a Video game.
He was a former starter but underwent Tommy John Surgery and was transitioned into relief when he splashed onto the scene last year in the Spring Breakout game. He continued that momentum into Rancho, then Great Lakes, then Tulsa, then OKC, then LA, then the playoffs.
His season in 2024 was one of the most incredible things I have ever seen in this game.
Despite having such a devastating arsenal, Henriquez is still far from a finished product, so he will likely start in OKC in 2025. Plus, the 26-man roster is loaded, so opportunities, even for pitchers as talented as him, will be limited.
Carlos Duran
Carlos Duran is a 6’6 right-handed pitcher who has worked as a starter and out of the pen during his time in the Minor Leagues. When I asked him which role he preferred, he didn’t hesitate to say “starter”, but with the depth of this organization, having a choice isn’t always an option. He has been in the organization since 2018, but, because he was signed out of the Dominican Republic at such a young age, he’s still only 23 years old.
There is still plenty of time for him to reach the potential that has placed him on several top prospects lists in the past.
Duran is another pitcher on the long list of Tommy John reclamations. Last year was his first full year back after he missed all of 2023 recovering. He started in Rancho, then jumped from there to AA, then finished in AAA OKC.
2024 saw him throw only 1.1 innings at AAA OKC, so his biggest body of work was at AA Tulsa where he was very good. He posted a 3.05 ERA and struck out 48 hitters in 38.1 innings with the Drillers.
Standing at 6’6 he has good length and can hit in the 96 range, but typically sits in the 92-94 range. He also has a very good slider, and creates a lot of arm-side movement to his fastball, so he can miss both bats and barrels. He’s also thrown a tumbling curveball in the past and has worked on a changeup as well, so he has a starter mix.
He has a unique windup where he varies his tempo, holds his leg kick, and works on the hitter’s timing. So, his stuff is explosive enough but also deceptive. He was Rule 5 eligible, but not taken, so the Dodgers did not put him on the 40-man roster, which means he would need someone, or multiple people to get hurt to have opportunity.
Jose Hernandez
Jose Hernandez is not a prospect and has Major League experience, but he’s not on the 40-man roster, is slated to start in OKC, and is also a name Dodgers fans might not be familiar with. So, he’s worth covering in an article that’s meant to familiarize fans with some guys they may not know all that well.
Hernandez is a 6’3 left-handed reliever from the DR that was taken in the Rule 5 Draft after the 2022 season. So, he spent all of 2023 in the Pittsburgh organization, then started last year with them before making his way back to the Dodgers last June.
It came as a surprise to many when he was taken in the Rule 5 Draft because he had only AA experience, but his fastball had reached 99 with Tulsa and he was the leader in saves in the Midwest League with Great Lakes when he was promoted. So, he has explosive stuff and a lot of potential to be a very good high-leverage reliever.
Hernandez also has featured an 83ish mile-per-hour off-speed pitch but spent a good deal of time on the developmental list last year refining and reworking his mix. So, all bets are off in terms of the off-speed, but he’s thrown a cutter that has approached 90 miles per hour in the past, as well as a change in the 84 range and then a sweeping slider.
And you can be assured he’ll have his he’ll have his explosive fastball still in his back pocket as well.
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Thanks Casey, I enjoyed getting to know more about these prospects.
You bet, thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. Really appreciate it, hope you do it more often.