Back In The Chase
Bridgewater, New Jersey – There was a high level of excitement for Yankees top-pitching prospect Chase Hampton for what 2024 had in store when he reported to Tampa for spring training nearly two weeks early this past February. The 80th ranked prospect in all of baseball on MLB Pipeline received
Bridgewater, New Jersey – There was a high level of excitement for Yankees top-pitching prospect Chase Hampton for what 2024 had in store when he reported to Tampa for spring training nearly two weeks early this past February. The 80th ranked prospect in all of baseball on MLB Pipeline received an invitation to Big League camp on the heels of being honored as the 2023 Kevin Lawn award winner as the Yankees “Minor League Pitcher of the Year.”
#Yankees top pitching prospect Chase Hampton DEALT in his return to Somerset🎟️🥊
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) August 3, 2024
3️⃣. 2️⃣ IP | 0️⃣ R | 3️⃣ H | 2️⃣ BB | 4️⃣ K pic.twitter.com/FmLbC48fyu
In his first full-season in pro-ball, the ascending hurler fanned 145 batters in 106 innings and pitched to a 3.63 ERA in a campaign that culminated in a well-deserved mid-summer promotion to Somerset before being shut down at his innings limit in late-August.
With a spot in the backend of the Yankees rotation seemingly up for grabs as spring training opened, Hampton was admittedly anxious to make a strong impression with a job hanging in the balance. The right-hander tossed a scoreless inning against Tampa Bay on Feb. 27 and as quickly as things took off for the highly touted pitcher, it looked like they could be over just as fast.
Hampton never did get back into a game during the spring – in fact he spent the next four months sidelined with a flexor strain. There was imminent fear that the injury could be significant and potentially season ending, but the 2022 sixth-round draft selection is grateful to be back after a rigorous rehab program.
“The way it felt, I was concerned a little bit,” admitted Hampton. “After talking to the doctors and everything, it kind of eased my mind a little bit. It was more of a muscle issue than a UCL issue, so I feel good about it.”
Hampton added, “I was juiced up going into spring training to try and make a spot and try and make a name for myself a little bit more. It kind of took me by surprise with the workload that I was putting on my body. Once I figured out that I needed to take a step back a little bit then just kind of happened to blow out a little bit there at the end.”
Hampton began throwing again in June with a program that had him tossing three times per week to gradually build stamina. After a few weeks of throwing, Hampton got back on the bump in live game action with the Florida Complex League and eventually Low-A Tampa. The Texas Tech product made five rehab appearances – he tossed 13 innings and allowed five earned runs on seven hits while striking out 12 batters.
“It was frustrating, for sure,” Hampton admitted. “I wanted to pitch and get some innings under my belt and make my way up to Triple-A and hopefully make the big leagues. But I took a step back and looked at things in the bigger picture and it’s not that bad.”
“It took some time to get healthy and get back into shape,” Hampton added. “Had some mechanical issues here and there, but now we’re kind of getting back into the swing of things. My main plan was to take my time with it. Of course I wanted to pitch again this year, but they told me to take my time and get ready for it and just go out there whenever I could.”
Wake up babe, Chase Hampton is back on the mound for Somerset tonight!😈 pic.twitter.com/dOG7tRn1bF
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) August 2, 2024
The Patriots officially activated Hampton off of the 60-day IL on July 30 and he made his first start for Somerset since August 22 last summer when he took the mound against Bowie last Friday night. A long and grueling road back, indeed.
With a limited number of bullets in his proverbial holster, Hampton tossed 57 pitches (37 strikes) over 3.2 innings of shutout ball while striking out four Baysox batters.
“I feel one hundred percent healthy; I feel really good,” said Hampton. “We’re still building up the pitch count each week and hopefully once I get up there it’ll be even better.”
Hampton says that the organization’s plan for him to close out the season is for his workload to increase by increments of five or six pitches each week. His next start is scheduled for Saturday night against Binghamton at TD Bank Ballpark when he expects to get up into the neighborhood of 65 pitches. With the promotion of Cam Schlittler to Somerset earlier this week, the Patriots also appear to be going to a six-man starting rotation moving forward which will naturally lessen his workload.
While trying times often present challenges they also often bring forth silver linings. As Hampton looks to finish out a mostly lost 2024 season on a high note going into the offseason, he finds learning experiences in the time he lost.
“I’m going to try not to throw so early,” said Hampton of how he hopes to approach his routine coming into next season. “Not come into spring training trying to light up the radar instead of actually just building up during spring training so I am able to pitch later into the year.”
Hampton added, “If I just keep the path that I am going on and keep building and keep getting stronger and smarter on the mound, I’m not going to say that I’m going to be a big leaguer next year, but hopefully it happens.”
Matt Kardos | SomersetPatriots.com Senior Writer
Matt Kardos has covered the Yankees minor league system for over a decade and will spend his 12th season on the beat covering the Patriots for SomersetPatriots.com. Throughout his career, Matt has contributed to MLB.com, YES Network and Pinstriped Prospects. When he’s not at the ballpark, Matt enjoys traveling with his wife Kimberly, watching Jets football and collecting sports cards.