Drafted in the 7th round (226th overall) by the Houston Astros in 2019 (signed for $150,000).
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Henley has been a productive pitcher in three years at Texas, but scouts are lukewarm in part because his stuff hasn’t really gotten better since he was in high school. He had a dominant senior year at Fort Worth’s Arlington Heights High, throwing back-to-back-to-back no-hitters at one point. A 22nd-round pick of the Yankees in 2016, Henley was a well-rounded righthander out of high school with an 88-92 mph fastball. Three years later, he’s a well-rounded righthander with an 88-92 mph fastball. He has a rock-and-fire delivery and an over-the-top release point. He’s a solid strike-thrower with a fringy fastball. His plus 76-78 mph curveball is his best attribute. It’s a high-spin rate pitch that he’s shown an ability to locate. He has a fringe-average changeup.
Top Rankings
Organization Prospect Rankings
TRACK RECORD: An unsigned 22nd-round pick of the Yankees out of high school, Henley spent three years in the starting rotation at Texas as a solid but unsensational performer. The Astros drafted him in the seventh round and signed him for $150,000. Henley dominated with a 1.60 ERA over 11 appearances in the New York-Penn League after signing, although most of it came in relief.
SCOUTING REPORT: The Astros are trying to squeeze velocity gains out of Henley the way they have with other pitchers in recent years. His fastball is already up a little bit and sits in the low 90s with the ability to touch 94 mph. Henley is moving away from a two-seamer he relied on in college to throw more four-seamers up in the zone to try to miss more bats. His separator is a plus slider with extremely tight spin (over 3,000 revolutions per minute) and sharp bite to dive underneath barrels. His changeup is a below-average pitch. Henley showed uneven control in college, but was significantly better throwing strikes in his pro debut.
THE FUTURE: Henley isn't overpowering, but his slider is a legitimate weapon that could carry him to the majors. He should start 2021 at one of the Class A levels.
TRACK RECORD: A 22nd-round pick of the Yankees out of high school, Henley was a reliable starter for three years for Texas. But scouts weren't all that thrilled with his pedestrian velocity. Already with the Astros, he's gained a tick of velocity and he was dominating in his pro debut.
SCOUTING REPORT: Keep an eye on Henley in 2020, as he seems like the perfect candidate to benefit from the Astros' program to increase velocity. He already spins a plus breaking ball with elite spin rates (3,200 rpm) and he's touching 93-94 mph. His below-average changeup needs to improve. His control needs to improve along with his stuff, but the pieces are there for him to be a mid-rotation starter.
THE FUTURE: Henley was able to work three to four innings on a strict 50-60 pitch limit. The pitch efficiency combined with his strikeout stuff gives him a path to being a back-of-the-rotation MLB starter.
Draft Prospects
Henley has been a productive pitcher in three years at Texas, but scouts are lukewarm in part because his stuff hasn't really gotten better since he was in high school. He had a dominant senior year at Fort Worth's Arlington Heights High, throwing back-to-back-to-back no-hitters at one point. A 22nd-round pick of the Yankees in 2016, Henley was a well-rounded righthander out of high school with an 88-92 mph fastball. Three years later, he's a well-rounded righthander with an 88-92 mph fastball. He has a rock-and-fire delivery and an over-the-top release point. He's a solid strike-thrower with a fringy fastball. His plus 76-78 mph curveball is his best attribute. It's a high-spin rate pitch that he's shown an ability to locate. He has a fringe-average changeup.
Henley was a 22nd-round pick of the Yankees out of Arlington Heights (Texas) HS, where he threw back-to-back-to-back no-hitters during his senior season. After serving as a mid-week starter/reliever as a freshman he's developed into a reliable weekend starter for Texas as a draft-eligible sophomore. Henley's 90-94 mph fastball plays a little better than the radar gun would indicate because of an excellent spin rate. His 81-83 mph slider also is a high RPM pitch, giving him a pair of potentially above-average offerings.
Henley has a high asking price to buy him out of his commitment to Texas, so it's thought by many that he'll be a Longhorn next year. But the righthander has a very solid three-pitch mix already with an 88-91 mph fastball that will touch 92-93. His slider and changeup are both average at their best, and he's mixed in a potentially fringe-average curveball as well. Henley, a listed 6-foot-3, 195 pounds, has a compact delivery and his arm works well. If he makes it to Texas he has a chance to be a prominent prospect in three years.
Scouting Reports
TRACK RECORD: An unsigned 22nd-round pick of the Yankees out of high school, Henley spent three years in the starting rotation at Texas as a solid but unsensational performer. The Astros drafted him in the seventh round and signed him for $150,000. Henley dominated with a 1.60 ERA over 11 appearances in the New York-Penn League after signing, although most of it came in relief.
SCOUTING REPORT: The Astros are trying to squeeze velocity gains out of Henley the way they have with other pitchers in recent years. His fastball is already up a little bit and sits in the low 90s with the ability to touch 94 mph. Henley is moving away from a two-seamer he relied on in college to throw more four-seamers up in the zone to try to miss more bats. His separator is a plus slider with extremely tight spin (over 3,000 revolutions per minute) and sharp bite to dive underneath barrels. His changeup is a below-average pitch. Henley showed uneven control in college, but was significantly better throwing strikes in his pro debut.
THE FUTURE: Henley isn't overpowering, but his slider is a legitimate weapon that could carry him to the majors. He should start 2021 at one of the Class A levels.
TRACK RECORD: An unsigned 22nd-round pick of the Yankees out of high school, Henley spent three years in the starting rotation at Texas as a solid but unsensational performer. The Astros drafted him in the seventh round and signed him for $150,000. Henley dominated with a 1.60 ERA over 11 appearances in the New York-Penn League after signing, although most of it came in relief.
SCOUTING REPORT: The Astros are trying to squeeze velocity gains out of Henley the way they have with other pitchers in recent years. His fastball is already up a little bit and sits in the low 90s with the ability to touch 94 mph. Henley is moving away from a two-seamer he relied on in college to throw more four-seamers up in the zone to try to miss more bats. His separator is a plus slider with extremely tight spin (over 3,000 revolutions per minute) and sharp bite to dive underneath barrels. His changeup is a below-average pitch. Henley showed uneven control in college, but was significantly better throwing strikes in his pro debut.
THE FUTURE: Henley isn't overpowering, but his slider is a legitimate weapon that could carry him to the majors. He should start 2021 at one of the Class A levels.
TRACK RECORD: A 22nd-round pick of the Yankees out of high school, Henley was a reliable starter for three years for Texas. But scouts weren’t all that thrilled with his pedestrian velocity. Already with the Astros, he’s gained a tick of velocity and he was dominating in his pro debut.
SCOUTING REPORT: Keep an eye on Henley in 2020, as he seems like the perfect candidate to benefit from the Astros’ program to increase velocity. He already spins a plus breaking ball with elite spin rates (3,200 rpm) and he’s touching 93-94 mph. His below-average changeup needs to improve. His control needs to improve along with his stuff, but the pieces are there for him to be a mid-rotation starter.
THE FUTURE: Henley was able to work three to four innings on a strict 50-60 pitch limit. The pitch efficiency combined with his strikeout stuff gives him a path to being a back-of-the-rotation MLB starter.
TRACK RECORD: A 22nd-round pick of the Yankees out of high school, Henley was a reliable starter for three years for Texas. But scouts weren't all that thrilled with his pedestrian velocity. Already with the Astros, he's gained a tick of velocity and he was dominating in his pro debut.
SCOUTING REPORT: Keep an eye on Henley in 2020, as he seems like the perfect candidate to benefit from the Astros' program to increase velocity. He already spins a plus breaking ball with elite spin rates (3,200 rpm) and he's touching 93-94 mph. His below-average changeup needs to improve. His control needs to improve along with his stuff, but the pieces are there for him to be a mid-rotation starter.
THE FUTURE: Henley was able to work three to four innings on a strict 50-60 pitch limit. The pitch efficiency combined with his strikeout stuff gives him a path to being a back-of-the-rotation MLB starter.
Henley has been a productive pitcher in three years at Texas, but scouts are lukewarm in part because his stuff hasn't really gotten better since he was in high school. He had a dominant senior year at Fort Worth's Arlington Heights High, throwing back-to-back-to-back no-hitters at one point. A 22nd-round pick of the Yankees in 2016, Henley was a well-rounded righthander out of high school with an 88-92 mph fastball. Three years later, he's a well-rounded righthander with an 88-92 mph fastball. He has a rock-and-fire delivery and an over-the-top release point. He's a solid strike-thrower with a fringy fastball. His plus 76-78 mph curveball is his best attribute. It's a high-spin rate pitch that he's shown an ability to locate. He has a fringe-average changeup.
Career Transactions
Corpus Christi Hooks released RHP Blair Henley.
RHP Blair Henley roster status changed by Houston Astros.
RHP Blair Henley assigned to Corpus Christi Hooks from Sugar Land Space Cowboys.
Corpus Christi Hooks activated RHP Blair Henley.
Sugar Land Space Cowboys placed RHP Blair Henley on the 7-day injured list.
Houston Astros sent RHP Blair Henley outright to Sugar Land Space Cowboys.
Houston Astros designated RHP Blair Henley for assignment.
Houston Astros optioned RHP Blair Henley to Sugar Land Space Cowboys.
Houston Astros selected the contract of RHP Blair Henley from Sugar Land Space Cowboys.
RHP Blair Henley, and assigned to Corpus Christi Hooks from Asheville Tourists.
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