Former MLB outfielder Tyler Naquin says his comeback attempt as a pitcher started last year

As he begins his attempted comeback at a new position, Cleveland Guardians right-hander Tyler Naquin says his transition from playing outfield to pitching was over a year in the making.

Naquin, who played the outfield for four different major league teams from 2016-23, has signed a minor league contract with the Guardians in hopes of making it back to the big leagues as a pitcher. Naquin told reporters Friday that he started working out as a pitcher in January 2024.

“I was actually sitting in a parking lot with a buddy, he owns a gym down in College Station (Texas),” Naquin said. “I just looked at him and said, ‘I think I’m going to pitch.’ We went and picked up a glove and we started playing catch. It was as simple as that, to be honest with you.”

That friend was Clay Tillman, who runs a sports performance center. He regularly played catch with Naquin and worked out a strength program for him.

The 33-year-old Naquin says he hasn’t pitched in an actual game since throwing in a scrimmage while playing for Texas A&M in 2010. He said he also pitched in high school, mostly closing but also starting a couple of games.

But he starred at Texas A&M and got to the big leagues as an outfielder who happened to have an elite throwing arm.

Baseball Savant rated Naquin’s arm strength in the 98th percentile among major leaguers in 2021 and in the 94th percentile in 2022, his last two full seasons in the majors. Naquin played just eight games with the Chicago White Sox in 2023.

Naquin said Friday his fastball velocity has topped out at 97 mph but is more consistently at 94-96. He said he also has a changeup and a cutter.

“I definitely think personally there’s more in there, doing it the right way and learning from these guys and learning my body and how it moves and recovering the right way,” Naquin said.

Naquin said he had started sending out video of himself in the early stages of this experiment and added that “at some point, I think some people started to realize it was for real.”

He also said his agent had reached out to teams and noted that a scout had attended one of his bullpen sessions at College Station.

Naquin is attempting this comeback with the same organization that selected him with the 15th overall pick in the 2015 draft. Naquin played for the Guardians from 2016-20.

“I’m thankful to be somewhere where I would say and from what I’ve heard is No. 1 in pitching development and just treating their pitchers how they should be treated,” Naquin said. “What an opportunity I have, to come into that. This is also somewhere where I’m comfortable, I’ve been around. There’s familiar faces. It’s a good recipe for success if done in the right way, and I think I’m in a really good spot for that.”

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb