Sunday, July 11, 2010

Huchingson Joins Kingsport Mets

New Mets signee, Chase Huchingson, did something last season while playing for the University of Central Arkansas that few players have done. He was both the game's starting pitcher and his team's leadoff hitter. And though he pitched only one inning, he was credited with the win. (He remained in the game as the team's DH.)

The Mets have assigned Huchingson to the Kingsport Mets. That team's roster erroneously lists the lefty as a catcher and even misspells his last name.

Here's what Baseball America had to say about Huchingson in 2007:
Lefthander Chase Huchingson figured to be the first high school player drafted in the state, as a projectable 6-foot-5, 190-pound lefthander who could touch 90 mph this spring. But his mechanics got out of whack and he spent much of the spring working in the low 80s. He could be a premium pick three years down the road because it's unlikely a team will draft him high enough this year to divert him from Arizona State.
This past season at Central Arkansas, Huchingson did poorly as a hitter and even worse as a pitcher. As a hitter, he batted .236; as a pitcher, his ERA was 8.36. Yet, the Mets signed him.

Before he joined the Central Arkansas Bears, he played for two seasons at University of Arkansas-Fort Smith, a junior college, where he had much more success than with the Bears. Here are his JC stats for 2008 and 2009.

MLB teams drafted Huchingson twice: in 2007 the Rangers selected him in the 34th round; in 2008, the Astros selected him in the 23rd round.

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