November 8th, 2024 | @TyPaddor
The Rockies put their offseason into full swing on Friday afternoon by claiming right-handed arm Jimmy Herget off waivers from the Chicago Cubs, the club announced. Adding Herget de-facto filled the Rockies 40-man roster. With the Rule 5 Draft looming in the coming weeks, the Rockies will have to clear a spot or two to add Rule 5 eligible prospects.
The value of 40-man roster spots at the beginning of the offseason can’t be overstated. In season, teams will have anywhere from one to a large handful of players on the 60-day IL where they don’t count against the 40-man roster cap. Players cannot be stashed there during the offseason, making roster flexibility even more precious than normal.
The Rockies kicked off the off-season by acquiring utilityman Owen Miller from the Brewers–an extremely minor move, though one that could impact the active roster down the line.
With the value of 40-man spots in mind, Jimmy Herget clearly stood out to the Rockies. What led Herget to the Rockies and just what does the 31-year-old bring to the table?
Herget’s Story
Herget was a 6th round draft pick by the Reds in 2015 out of the University of South Florida where the Tampa native had a fabled career, departing USF with a 1.96 ERA across 303 innings.
Herget diced through the Reds farm system–primarily in a closer role–reaching Triple-A in the middle of 2017. Herget dominated Triple-A for a year and a half before the Reds gave him a look in the big leagues with Herget debuting on July 7th, 2019.
After a mediocre cup of coffee, the Reds designated Herget for assignment in the offseason only for him to be claimed by the Rangers before they subsequently designated the right-hander as well. This time, Herget stuck with the Rangers after clearing waivers and served as a depth piece until Herget elected free agency after being DFA’d yet again.
The Angels promptly scooped up the sidearm-throwing Herget where he flourished for about 2 years in a bullpen role, posting a 3.28 ERA in Anaheim, establishing himself as a master of funk and earning the nickname the Human Glitch.
Early this past season, the Braves saw an opportunity to aid their bullpen and traded for Herget in exchange for cash, though Herget only made it until September before he was on the move again, this time claimed off waivers by the Cubs. The Cubs never deployed Herget on their active roster and decided to cut ties earlier this week.
Herget’s career numbers suggest he’s been overlooked and not given a fair opportunity since his Angels tenure. This past season with Atlanta, Herget pitched 12.1 innings, striking out 15 batters, walking just 3.
To date in his career, Herget possesses a very sturdy 3.54 ERA with 141 strikeouts (22.2 K%) to 47 walks (7.4 BB%) across 155 innings and has accumulated 1.6 fWAR, though his 2022 season alone saw a 1.6 fWAR mark posted. Herget has recorded 4 or more outs in 41 of his 129 career appearances, showing he can be a versatile bullpen piece.
As alluded to earlier, he’s a side-arm thrower with a cross-body delivery that makes him a truly unique look for hitters. Besides the low slot, what stands out?
Herget’s Arsenal
The Human Glitch’s mechanics are one of a kind. Herget throws with what looks like super low effort from a low slot with cross-body mechanics. Herget’s arsenal is just as funky as his mechanics.
The 6-foot-3 Herget throws a sweepy curveball roughly 40% of the time, a mid-to-high 70s offering that misses bats and avoids damage. It plays up because of his cross-body delivery and can be flat out dominant against right-handed hitters.
According to Stuff+, Herget’s curveball garnered a 128 mark (100 is average; 128 is 28% better than average) since the start of last season, ranking 32nd in MLB among pitchers with 40 or more innings. With his curveball alone, Herget can get MLB outs but Herget has flashed other effective offerings.
Herget threw a tighter slider (106 Stuff+ since ’23) when he pitched for the Angels and it served as a change of pace, sitting between 83-86. It moves more like a cutter but missed bats with the Angels. The main caveat here is that Herget has never effectively thrown both his curveball and slider in the same season. If he can find that middle ground, two deceptive breaking balls could lead Herget to consistent success.
Herget throws both a 2-seam and 4-seam fastball with both sitting in the low-90s, though Herget’s 4-seamer can grab 95 on occasion. Neither pitch has consistently performed at the big league level, though a well-located 2-seam fastball can be a groundball pitch, more suited to Coors Field, and be an offering that plays better off his breaking pitches.
Finally, Herget has mixed in a changeup during his career but clearly Herget is more suited to supinate the baseball (snap his wrist down and to the gloveside; yielding quality breaking balls versus pitches with armside movement). The changeup has missed a lot of bats in a small sample and it could be worth incorporating more.
Overall, Herget’s pitch breakdown will probably look much different in 2025 with the Rockies, though the club will certainly maximize the righty’s ability to spin a breaking ball. With Herget’s ability to throw strikes, he has a sturdy floor as a low-leverage arm but if his arsenal finds a happy medium, there’s intriguing upside here.
What’s In Store?
As mentioned just above, Herget should be able to provide some low-leverage work for the Rockies, at the very least. There’s appeal in his ability to consistently throw 20-30 pitches in an outing and record more than 3 outs which could place Herget in a Chris Rusin-type role (think 2017 Rusin; 85 IP in 60 games).
In a best case scenario, Herget could be a relied upon 7th inning arm with a league-wide reputation that mirrors the likes of Brent Suter and Jalen Beeks. In other words, teams might have some interest in an arm like Herget as a trade target.
To put all the pieces together, the Rockies found themselves a pitcher with unique mechanics, two quality breaking balls, the ability to sit 91-93 with a pair of fastballs, and a proven MLB track record. That combination does not grow on trees.
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