Over the years there has been some great talent coming out of the Florida State League and in the 2023 season, it is no different.
The Clearwater Threshers, Low A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, finished the first half of the season in first place in the FSL West Division at 44-21. In the second half they have continued their dominance with an 11-4 start and part of their success goes to Jonh Henriquez, who is 10-0, with a 3.09 ERA in 21 games out of the pen.
The Dominican Republic native started pro baseball with the Phillies Dominican Summer League team in 2022 at the age of 22. What is ironic about the age, is that most international ball players are signed as young as 16 years old.
In 2023, he was promoted to Low A Ball in Florida and so far has been perfect in the win/loss column. In his first month of games in the Florida State League, he finished April at 3-0, with a 2.40 ERA through six games, with opponents batting just .157 against him. In the 15 innings of relief, he allowed four earned runs, eight hits, six walks and struck out 13 batters.
Henriquez opened up the month of May with one of his toughest games all season, as he allowed four earned runs on five hits in 2.2 innings out of the pen. After that tough appearance, he was nearly unhittable the rest of the month, aside from a game on May 18th, when he allowed two runs on four hits in two innings. He finished the month 4-0, with a 3.45 ERA through seven games.
The first two appearances out of the pen in June kept him on track, but he had one bad day in June 16th, when he allowed five runners to score against the Tampa Tarpons in just an inning of work. On June 23rd, he recorded his first professional save of his career. Henriquez closed out the month with six scoreless innings, finishing at 2-0, with a 3.55 ERA in six games out of the pen.
The month of July has been good so far for Henriquez, as he earned his second save on the 4th and his 10th victory three days later on a perfect two innings of work.
Henriquez has not been totally lights out in 2023, but he has been nearly as good as you can be, and still have room for growth. It doesn’t hurt that he is also part of a team that is also having a great season.
Keep an eye on Henriquez, as he continues to grow and develop into a bona fide big league relief pitcher.
