2024 Fort Wayne Player and Pitcher of the Year

Summary: It was a challenging year in Summit City, as the TinCaps finished 53-79, including going 8-25 at home in the second half of the season. While Fort Wayne did show dominant pitching throughout the season, their offense ranked last in the Midwest League in most categories, including 75 home runs as a team with a batting average of .223), and an OPS of .646.

While the record is the worst since Fort Wayne became the TinCaps, the season had plenty of bright spots. The starting pitching, led by Jagger Haynes, Enmanuel Pinales, Henry Baez, and Braden Nett, showed that even after AJ Preller traded nearly every advanced pitching prospect in the system, the farm still has more to offer.

Overview: We use a simple formula for the awards. The player is eligible for the team for which he appeared the most. For the top prospect, we consider not just what the player did this year but also his age and potential impact in the major leagues.

We lean toward more of a middle-of-the-road evaluation, relying on a couple of questions to filter through:

1. How old is the prospect compared to the competition?

2. How raw or developed is the prospect heading into a full-season baseball?

3. Is he making the necessary adjustments in terms of mechanics and approach?

Level: High-A is usually the first full year home for college prospects taken in the previous aft. It is also the second or third season for international and high school prospects after spending time in the Complex League and Low-A.

As previously noted, Fort Wayne had a historically bad year. Their most consistent threat at the top of the lineup, Homer Bush Jr., was sent to Tampa as part of the Jason Adams trade. That left one player as the clear choice for Player of the Year.

Player of the Year: C/2B Anthony Vilar (unanimous)  .257/.378/.390

This was not the catcher; most expected him to be the Player of the Year at the start of the season. However, the 25-year-old Vilar had a breakout month in May. On a team that collectively hit .223/.312/.334 on the season, Vilar hit .296/.390/.465 in May. After cooling off in June, Vilar went on a tear again, with a .908 OPS over his final month with Fort Wayne before being promoted to San Antonio.

Vilar, a middle infielder with the Hurricanes before being drafted in the 15th round of the 2021 draft, still sees game time at second base, logging over 165 innings there this season, along with third, first base, shortstop, and even pitched in a few blowouts. He receives praise for game-calling and handling young pitchers while behind the plate. As a defensive first catcher, anything he does offensively is a plus.

Others of Note: C/DH Ethan Salas, OF Kai Murphy, OF Tyler Robertson, and OF Joshua Mears. 

At 17, Ethan Salas was the youngest player in full-season ball. He struggled most of the summer to regain his offensive prowess, making him one of baseball’s top pros cts. Salas made minor swing adjustments, which led to him hitting .255/.308/.429 over the final month.  … Kai Murphy, 24, led the team in runs and walks and finished in the top three in most other categories. While his .695 OPS was nothing remarkable, he also tied for the lead in games he played. … Games played can be important when you miss half the season.  He’s come a long way since starting as a pitcher at Oregon State. … After a breakout 2023 campaign, Tyler Robertson, 24, was poised to continue his momentum in Fort Wayne. When healthy, he did. Robertson’s .278 batting average led the team, his 16 steals were second to Homer Bush, and his .738 OPS was second only behind Anthony Vilar.  Robertson also missed 61 games due to injuries.  … After taking time off to attempt to pitch in Spring Training, Joshua Mears, 23, reminded everyone why he is so hard to give up on. Despite only being on the team for two months, Mears led the team in home runs, including multiple 450-foot plus home runs that would hit the building behind Parkview  Field. Mears lowered his strikeout rate to 34% with the TinCaps but could only hit .215/.262/.408.

Pitcher of the Year: RHP Enmanuel Pinales (John, Ben, Kevin, Mark), RHP Henry Baez (David)

After making his stateside debut in 2023, we had Enmanuel Pinales as a sleeper pick for a breakout prospect, and he did not disappoint. The 23-year-old tossed 111 innings of 3.49 ERA all. His ERA ranked him second in the league among qualified players, and he was second on the team with 101 strikeouts. While he doesn’t have overpowering stuff, Pinales can locate all his pitches, which generate much swing-and-miss, especially at lower levels. He might not have the raw ability of the other pitchers on this list, but he was constantly able to keep hitters in the Midwest League off-balance and avoid sitting on one pitch.

Henry Baez, 22, continued his claim as one of the top pitching prospects in the organization. Baez put up a 2.95 ERA over 76.1 in ings. He struck out 78 and held hitters to a .20 BAA. After a slow start, Baez allowed only 10 earned runs over his last 10 starts. After only touching 97 mph in 2023, Baez was able to hit it more consistently, often sitting between 94-9 mph. Baez would have been unanimous had it not been for a midseason promotion to San Antonio.  His coaches raved about his maturity level and consistent improvement.

Others of Note: LHP Jagger Haynes, RHP Braden Nett, RHP Bradgley Rodriguez

The Padres drafted Jagger Haynes in 2020, and in the four subsequent seasons since then, he pitched 25.1 innings. After a slow start, Haynes bounced back to quadruple that number in 2024, throwing 110.2 innings and striking out 114. As is common for most pitchers coming off of Tommy John, the walks were problematic with 66. While his 4.64 ERA doesn’t stand out, he only gave up 11 earned runs in his first 4.2 innings and 18 earned runs over his last four starts, 20.1 innings. Without those bookend numbers, Haynes would have had a 2.94 ERA. … Also coming back from surgery was Braden Nett. The 22-year-old struck out 10.44 K/9 but had a 5.22 B/9. He showed the ability to sit in the upper 90s, but his ability to consistently locate his pitches will be what makes or breaks him. … The only pitcher in the organization that can make the upper 90s look like nothing, Bradgley Rodriguez, 20, consistently hit triple-digits. He struck out 45 in 41.2 innings with a 2.5 ERA. Rodriguez has two excellent pitches with his four-seamer and changeup he can play at any level if he can locate them.

Note: Another hard-throwing relief option for the Padres, Francis Pena, started with Fort Wayne and went 3-0, 0.86 ERA over 21 innings, but he threw more innings with the Missions.

Top Position Prospect: Ethan Salas  (unanimous)

Despite the rough season, Salas remains one of baseball’s most highly regarded prospects. It is hard to fathom that he spent the season in High-A being the same age as many high school juniors. Salas made a few mechanical adjustments to his swing late in the season, leading to his offensive improvement, which he carried on in the Arizona Fall League and finished with four home runs. As he grows into his frame, there is no reason that the number will not increase closer to the 10-20 range. Salas will not turn 19 until June of 2025, and one good month, and there will be conversations again about whether or not Salas should be one of the top handful of prospects in baseball.

Top Pitching Prospect: Jagger Haynes (Ben, John, Mark) Braden Nett (Kevin, David)

Both pitchers are young, hard-throwing, oft-injured pitchers with high walk rates. For southpaw Jagger Haynes, the question was whether or not he could get healthy and stay healthy for an entire season. That question seemed to be answered in 2024. Haynes kept the velocity on his mid-90s fastball, showing a plus slider and a building changeup. He has the repertoire and makeup of a mid-rotation starter in the big leagues. The only question is health, and if he is now further removed from surgeries, can he cut down on the walks?

While Haynes finally stayed healthy all of 2024, the same couldn’t be said for Braden Nett. Nett kept his mid to upper-90 fastball throughout the season, showing off an improving slider and curve. After missing most of 2023, Nett had thrown 5.2 innings in the season’s first two months. Even when he returned, he was mostly fastball and hesitant to mix in the off-speed pitches that he has. He routinely struggled to find the plate, averaging 5.22 walks per nine innings. When he finally hit his stride at the end of July, he was among the top pitchers in the league. Over his last eight starts with Fort Wayne, Nett went 5-1 with a 1.59 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 39.2 innings.