Strike throwing earns Hart a shot
Lefty didn’t throw hard at Indiana, but control was reason Sox liked him
BOSTON – Blair Henry, the Red Sox scout who tracked Kyle Hart closely when the lefthander pitched at the University of Indiana, remembers that plenty of convincing was needed.
Selling those with the ultimate authority on who gets drafted and who to bypass … let’s just say if Hart threw in the mid-to-upper 90s, he would have heard his name called much sooner.
“If he was touching 93 or 94 [miles per hour] in college, he would have gone in the top five rounds. When you touch 91 like Kyle did, you end up in the 19th round,” noted Henry. “When you get past velocity … he was a guy I asked for and definitely wanted just because he was a strike thrower. Those guys tend to work their way up the ladder.”
Kyle
Hart didn’t let his status as a low-round pick discourage him in his quest to accelerate through Boston’s farm system. On Thursday, the 27-year-old reached his sport’s pinnacle as Hart faced Tampa Bay in his first major league start at Fenway Park.
“Now he’s getting an opportunity,” Henry. “He’s earned it all.”
Reached Thursday via phone, Henry said he filed reports on Hart before he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2015 and again when Hart returned to the mound for Indiana in 2016. It was easy for Henry to scout Hart prior to Tommy John as his primary focus was Sam Travis, the former PawSox first baseman/outfielder who Boston took in the second round in 2014.
“I always liked him and how he went about his work … a lefthander who threw strikes and was ultra-competitive. He was never scared out there,” said Henry. “I saw him struggle in a start [at the University of Minnesota] and walked away saying, ‘I don’t care. I still like him. He knows how to pitch.’”
What makes Hart’s rise-through-the-ranks story even more noteworthy is that there were times when frustration could have easily gotten the best of him. In 2017, Hart was sent to extended spring training after posting a 2.31 ERA in four starts the previous summer for Boston’s rookie-league affiliate in the Gulf Coast League. Typically, it’s a move that you don’t see from someone with a college background.
“Like I told Kyle (Wednesday), that’s when guys hang it up. I’m not even going to Single-A ball? I’m 24 years old here. What’s going on?” said Henry. “To his credit and
said testament, he battled and fought through. I think all along, he knew he was a major league-caliber pitcher. You’ve got to give him credit for going through that. Someday he’ll enjoy looking back and saying, “Yes, I earned that.’”
Asked if he takes any solace in being the scout who turned the organization onto Hart on a day when the player he invested time in makes his MLB debut, Henry responded, “It’s always neat to say you signed a big leaguer. These kind of guys, they are the ones we enjoy the most and are really neat. When you sign a Sam Travis in the second round, there’s expectation that they’re going to get there. [Hart] is my first guy who I signed for under $100K who’s gotten there, but it’s also a testament to what scouts can do if you give them the opportunity to take some players later in the draft.”
The Indiana version of Hart generated many swings and misses with his changeup. Since then, he’s incorporated a slider and a cut fastball to go along with a college arsenal that included a standard fastball and curveball. Today, Hart possesses the ability to throw five pitches for strikes.
“If one [pitch] doesn’t feel right, he can scrap that. He still has four. If he scraps another one, he still has three. That’s valuable,” said Henry. “He’s one the most intelligent and well-spoken kids you’ll run across.”
Henry touched base with Hart after his promotion to the big leagues became official.
“One thing I did say to him is that as hard as it is to get there, it’s even harder to stay. He knows that,” said Henry. “(Thursday) is an opportunity for him to go out and show what he’s made of.”