Blue Jays relief prospect Hagen Danner has reportedly been called up to the major leagues

If you’re questioning the validity of the source, don’t. Giunta has been correct (and first) with both Spencer Horwitz’s and Davis Schneider’s call-up.

What makes Hagen Danner so intriguing? Well, the right-handed pitcher was selected in the second round of the 2017 draft out of high school. He spent his first three professional season catching, before converting to a pitcher during COVID. And oh boy, have the transition ever paid off.

In his first season pitching, he pitched for High-A Vancouver and posted a 2.02 ERA and a 3.61 FIP in 35.2 innings pitched. There he had a 29.4 K% and an 8.4 BB%, pretty good numbers for a guy who hadn’t pitched since 2017. The Blue Jays added him to the 40-man roster after just one year of pitching.

He missed pretty much all of 2022, minus a few April innings and representing the Blue Jays at the Arizona Fall League, but came back with a vengeance in 2023. He started the season with Double-A New Hampshire, where he had a 3 ERA and a 0.36 FIP in 9 innings pitched, along with a 43.2 K% and a 5.4 BB%.

With the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons, he has a 3.81 ERA and a 5.55 FIP in 28.1 innings pitched, along with a 31.5 K% and a 6.3 BB%. He’s given up his fair share of home runs (eight), but has clearly shown enough to get this call-up.

As for what he throws, Danner’s repertoire consists of a four-seam fastball, a slider, and a curveball. The fastball averages 96.5 mph, but he’s touched at least 98 mph with it. Despite that, his sharp slider that he throws at an average of 87.5 mph generates a 36.1 whiff %. Moreover, his looping curveball has only been thrown 39 times with Buffalo, but has a 38.5 whiff%.

The big question is what corresponding move will be made. Is a pitcher (such a Ryu) injured and needed an IL stint? Is Alek Manoah going back to the minor leagues? I guess we’ll figure out soon

Danner is a great ball player and an even better human being. This opportunity is well-deserved, and it’ll be exciting to see him make his debut for the Blue Jays!

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