Orioles prospect Lucas Humpal off to hot start for Shorebirds
Lucas Humpal has always been a patient person.
In his junior year of college at Texas State, Humpal, a right-handed pitcher was selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 37th round of the 2015 MLB draft. His dream of becoming a professional baseball player could finally become a reality.
Rather than leave school behind, Humpal declined the Indians' request and returned for one more season as a member of the Bobcats team.
“When I got drafted in the 37th round, my expectations for myself were higher. I felt like I wasn’t seen as the asset that I thought myself to be,” Humpal said. “I said I was going to go back to college, have a better year and hope and expect to have my status increase.”
Returning for his senior year, Humpal shaved his ERA down from 5.28 to 3.06 while striking out 85 batters. He also put up seven total wins, the most throughout his college career.
His patience ultimately paid off. The following year, Humpal was selected 28 rounds higher by the Baltimore Orioles in the 2016 draft. Knowing the time was right, the Texas native said goodbye to the Lone Star State and headed north to officially become a part of Major League Baseball.
“When I got drafted it was kind of scary because I didn’t really know what to expect,” Humpal said. “But I was excited and happy to start playing.”
But once again, Humpal would have to wait before seeing the mound in a major-league stadium.
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Like many draftees, the then-22-year-old was sent to one of the minor league teams in the Orioles farm system. Instead of calling Baltimore home, Humpal would set up shop in Aberdeen as one of the newest pitchers for the Ironbirds.
Appearing in just 11 games (29 innings pitched), Humpal made the most of his time up north, finishing the season with a 3.34 ERA, tossing 27 strikeouts and walking just nine batters.
“I just took a lot of the things I learned in college. Four years of college I learned a lot, three years, I don’t know if I would have learned as much. There’s a lot of things I took from college that helped me when I got to Aberdeen,” Humpal said.
Despite his success, following just one season, Humpal was transferred to the Delmarva Shorebirds along with seventeen other Ironbird players. Most notably making the move with Humpal were fellow pitchers Alex Wells and Matthias Dietz — two athletes who were selected to the Orioles top 30 prospect list prior to the season.
But as the season began, it wasn’t Wells or Dietz catching the fans' attention at the mound — instead it was Humpal.
In the first game of the year, Humpal earned the start and struck out four batters, allowed no walks and finished with a 0.00 ERA. A few days later, he returned to the mound and took down another six batters while allowing just two hits.
He hasn’t slowed down since, leading the Shorebirds in strikeouts (41) and innings pitched (65.1). Through 11 games, Humpal has allowed just 67 hits and has an ERA of 4.27.
“I know I’m a good pitcher, and I just have to go out there, take it one game at a time, take it one pitch at a time and let the results take care of themselves,” Humpal said. “You shouldn’t try to change yourself to something other people want you to be. People tell me I can’t do something and I’m like, ‘Watch me do it.’”
One person who has helped Humpal through his time in the minors has been Shorebirds pitching coach Justin Lord, a former minor-league pitcher in the Royals and Pirates farm systems.
Lord and Humpal worked together in 2016 in Aberdeen, and once the two made the move to Delmarva, the duo focused on taking Humpal’s game to the next level.
“Lucas is a pitcher, and what I mean by that is he can throw four pitches, most of them are strikes and when he needs to he can throw down low in the zone, get guys off balance, command his fastball, and at this level that’s the biggest thing we’re trying to establish with these guys,” Lord said.
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With years of pitching under his belt, Lord has seen and played with several players who have gone on to the pro level.
He believes each of his pitchers on the Shorebirds have certain similarities to some major league players, and when looking at Humpal, Delmarva’s pitching coach sees comparisons with another pitcher who sports the black and orange.
“I wouldn’t say he’s exactly like anybody, but every now and then he might remind you of (Baltimore Oriole) Chris Tillman,” Lord said. “He throws a good fastball, nice curveball and a good changeup like Tilly.”
But when personally thinking about which major-leaguer he most resembles, Humpal couldn’t think of anyone. He would rather focus on playing his game and becoming the best ballplayer he can be.
“I am who I am; I’m not really keen on copying anyone,” Humpal said. “I think you should just go out there and be who you are, and ultimately that’s going to give you more confidence and make you a better player.”
With the 2017 season more than a third of the way through, Humpal continues to focus on working the mound, throwing accurate pitches and improving his overall game.
Rather than focus on getting moved up in the Orioles’ farm system ranks, Humpal is determined to do whatever he can to ensure the Shorebirds win games and that fans at Perdue Stadium get the best experience possible.
Humpal is confident the time will come when he finally takes the mound at a major-league stadium — he just has to stay patient.
“I just want to pitch as well as I can. My job here is to come in and pitch, and whatever happens happens,” Humpal said.