Lewis Thorpe (baseball)

Lewis Thorpe
Minnesota Twins
Pitcher
Born: (1995-11-23) 23 November 1995
Melbourne
Bats: Right Throws: Left

Lewis Thorpe (born 23 November 1995) is an Australian professional baseball player. A pitcher, Thorpe plays in Minor League Baseball for the Minnesota Twins organisation.

Career

As an amateur, Thorpe trained at the Melbourne Aces Baseball Academy.[1] He competed in international youth baseball tournaments.[2] In 2011, Thorpe won the "Golden Arm" award from the Australian Baseball Federation.[1] In 2012, he signed with the Twins, receiving a $500,000 signing bonus.[3][4]

In the 2013 season, Thorpe made his professional debut with the Gulf Coast Twins of the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League (GCL). He pitched to a 4–1 win–loss record and a 2.05 earned run average (ERA) in 44 innings pitched, and a GCL-leading 64 strikeouts. He pitched in the 2013 18U Baseball World Cup after the season for the Australian national baseball team. He pitched Australia to victory against the United States national baseball team, the only game the United States lost. After the season, Baseball America named him the seventh-best prospect in the GCL.[5] Thorpe made his Australian Baseball League debut with the Aces on 22 November 2013.[6]

After participating in extended spring training, the Twins assigned Thorpe to the Cedar Rapids Kernals of the Class A Midwest League in June 2014, where he became the youngest player in the league.[7] He finished the year with a 3–2 win–loss record and a 3.52 ERA in 16 games started. At the end of the 2014 season, Thorpe was diagnosed with a sprained ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his pitching elbow.[8] He will undergo Tommy John surgery to repair the UCL in March 2015.[9]

References

  1. 1 2 "A league of their own". Smh.com.au. 6 October 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  2. ↑ Seiner, Jake (15 March 2014). "Twins' Thorpe emerging from Down Under | MiLB.com News | The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". Milb.com.
  3. ↑ Gardiner, Gilbert (5 July 2012). "Doncaster teen Lewis Thorpe signs with Minnesota Twins which includes $500,000 bonus". Herald Sun. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
  4. ↑ "Twins sign 16-year-old Australian left-hander Lewis Thorpe | Sportswire: Minnesota Twins". 1500 ESPN Twin Cities. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  5. ↑ "Latest hot prospect for Minnesota Twins: Lewis Thorpe, Australian lefty » Twins Now". Pioneer Press. 24 September 2013. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  6. ↑ "Twins prospect Lewis Thorpe makes strong impression in Australian Baseball League debut | MLB.com: News". Mlb.mlb.com. 25 November 2013. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  7. ↑ Johnson, Jeff (15 June 2014). "Youngster Thorpe trying to feel his way with Kernels: Starting pitcher is youngest guy in Midwest League". The Gazette. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  8. ↑ Berardino, Mike (9 September 2014). "Twins pitching prospect Lewis Thorpe injures elbow". Pioneer Press. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
  9. ↑ "Twins prospect Lewis Thorpe to undergo Tommy John surgery - HardballTalk". nbcsports.com. Retrieved 28 March 2015.

External links

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