Heath Fillmyer
| IP | 104 |
|---|---|
| ERA | 5.106 |
| WHIP | 1.442 |
| BB/9 | 3.808 |
| SO/9 | 6.231 |
- Full name Heath Devon Fillmyer
- Born 05/16/1994 in Roebling, NJ
- Profile Ht.: 6'1" / Wt.: 195 / Bats: R / Throws: R
- School Mercer County CC
- Debut 06/24/2018
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Drafted in the 5th round (162nd overall) by the Oakland Athletics in 2014 (signed for $305,000).
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Fillmyer stands out as an athletic, fresh-armed Northeast pitcher. A New Jersey native, he pitched and played shortstop in high school and in his first college season, when he threw just eight innings. The 6-foot-1, 180-pounder's arm strength still prompted the Rockies to take him in the 28th round last year, but he returned to school. He had an erratic but intriguing summer in the Atlantic Collegiate League last year, ranking as its No. 4 prospect and sitting 89-92 mph while striking out 36 in 27 innings. He built on that this spring, pitching Mercer to the Division II Junior College World Series in Enid, Okla., winning all nine of his starts with a 0.60 ERA and 87 strikeouts and 17 walks in 60 innings. Fillmyer has a quick arm and the ability to spin a hard breaking ball. His slider sits in the low 80s and flashes above-average, while his fastball sits 90-93 mph and touches higher. His changeup needs work, but his arm action is clean and he has shown aptitude for pitching.
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Organization Prospect Rankings
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Still relatively inexperienced on the mound, Fillmyer has made significant strides in understanding the art of pitching. Mainly a shortstop through high school and his first year in junior college, the righthander went to the mound full-time in his sophomore season, after which the A's drafted him. As a sophomore, he went 9-0 with an ERA under 1.00 as he helped Mercer County CC reached the Division II Junior College World Series. Fillmeyer's fastball sits in the low-90s, and he also throws a curveball and a changeup. Fillmyer doesn't have wipeout stuff, but he knows how to use both sides of the plate, change speeds and sequence pitches. He drops in a quick pitch every now and then, a la Johnny Cueto. Fillmyer capped his 2017 season by working five innings in Double-A Midland's 2-0 victory in Game 3 of the Texas League championship series. He has made steady progress in terms of innings pitched in the past three seasons, from 99 in 2015 to 134 in 2016 to 150 in 2017. If Fillmyer keeps progressing in his adjustment to pitching, he could become a back-end starter in the next few years. -
As a freshman at Mercer County (N.J.) JC, Fillmyer played shortstop and pitched just 7.2 innings, but that was enough to entice the Rockies to draft him in the 28th round as a pitcher. He passed on signing and decided to return to school and took the hint, moving to the mound full-time. He went 9-0, 0.68, drawing the attention of A's area scout Ron Vaughn and signing for $305,000 after being drafted in the fifth round in 2014. Fillmyer got knocked around in 2015, but in 2016 he put stuff and results together. The athletic righthander showed a much-improved changeup that now projects above average and improved command overall. His fastball is still an above-average pitch, working in the 92-96 mph range with good sink. Fillmyer has a much cleaner delivery with improved timing and tightened up the spin on his curveball, which projects as an average pitch. Fillmyer is solidly built and a good athlete on the mound. He missed the season's final week and Double-A Midland's playoff run because he had pitched a career-high 134 innings, which Oakland believed was enough. He should begin 2017 back at Double-A, with a promotion to Triple-A possible if he continues to progress. -
The Athletics are quick to point out the story of Fillmyer's season goes deeper than his uninspiring statistics. A former shortstop who converted to pitching full-time in the spring of 2014, Fillmyer came into the system after signing for $305,000 with a huge arm and plenty of room for development. He consistently works in the 92-96 mph range with his fastball and gets sinking action on it as well. It took him some time to find a comfortable grip on his curveball, but it shows promising, tight break now, while his changeup has splitter-like action. Despite his velocity, Fillmyer was knocked around to the tune of an 8.24 ERA in the first half at low Class A Beloit. As the year went along, he developed some feel for mixing his pitches. The team was able to get his mechanics in order as well, getting his delivery more online to home plate and improving the timing and rhythm of his motion. Although he's not the tallest pitcher, Fillmyer is solidly built and a good athlete on the mound. The club's efforts bore fruit almost immediately, as Fillmyer posted a 2.31 ERA over his last 10 starts at Beloit and then was named best pitcher during instructional league. He'll try to keep the momentum going at high Class A Stockton in 2016. -
The Rockies, intrigued by Fillmyer's arm strength, drafted him as a pitcher in the 28th round in 2013, even though he'd spent most of the spring playing shortstop at Mercer County (N.J.) JC, throwing just eight innings on the mound. He opted to return for a second season with MCJC to pitch full-time to see if he could raise his stock. All he did was go Fillmyer went 9-0, 0.68 to the Vikings to the Division II Junior College World Series in 2014 before landing a $305,000 bonus from the Athletics. After years of mainly being a position player, Fillmyer is still plenty raw, but he has an undeniably big arm. His fastball sits in the mid-90s with downhill angle and gets up to 97 mph. He spins a solid-average curveball that flashes plus, and while he's still learning his changeup, the pitch does show potential. Fillmyer's delivery required some extensive cleanup after the A's brought him into the fold, but he has come a long way in a short period. The team worked to get him to stay over the rubber longer and not jump at hitters, and he now throws with an easier, more repeatable motion and does a good job of throwing strikes. Fillmyer will need development time, but the A's are excited about what they have as he projects to open 2015 at low Class A Beloit.
Draft Prospects
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Fillmyer stands out as an athletic, fresh-armed Northeast pitcher. A New Jersey native, he pitched and played shortstop in high school and in his first college season, when he threw just eight innings. The 6-foot-1, 180-pounder's arm strength still prompted the Rockies to take him in the 28th round last year, but he returned to school. He had an erratic but intriguing summer in the Atlantic Collegiate League last year, ranking as its No. 4 prospect and sitting 89-92 mph while striking out 36 in 27 innings. He built on that this spring, pitching Mercer to the Division II Junior College World Series in Enid, Okla., winning all nine of his starts with a 0.60 ERA and 87 strikeouts and 17 walks in 60 innings. Fillmyer has a quick arm and the ability to spin a hard breaking ball. His slider sits in the low 80s and flashes above-average, while his fastball sits 90-93 mph and touches higher. His changeup needs work, but his arm action is clean and he has shown aptitude for pitching.
