Drew Thorpe Flaunts Elite Changeup in Impressive MLB Debut - Cal Poly (2024)

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS (MLB.com)

SEATTLE, Wash. — Former Cal Poly pitcher Drew Thorpe made his Major League debut Tuesday night for the Chicago White Sox against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park in Seattle.

Thorpe allowed two runs, one of them earned, and scattered three hits before leaving the game after five innings. The White Sox led 3-2 at the time of Thorpe’s departure, but he was credited with a no-decision as Cal Raleigh’s two-run double in the bottom of the seventh inning lifted the Mariners to a 4-3 victory.

Throwing 98 pitches, 61 for strikes, Thorpe struck out four and walked two. He faced another former Mustang twice, inducing Mariner right fielder Mitch Haniger to ground out to shortstop and fly out to center field.

I can’t really put it into words, honestly. It’s my dream come true, and it was good to get the first one out of the way.

Drew Thorpe (on his MLB debut)

With his start Tuesday, Thorpe became the 23rd former Cal Poly baseball player to wear a Major League uniform and the 14th in Larry Lee’s 22 seasons as head coach.

“Classic Drew,” Lee, in attendance for the game, said of Thorpe’s performance. “He mixed his pitches well with heavy usage of his changeup. Lack of defense behind him probably cost him another inning and a run. Overall, a great first outing.”

Of Thorpe’s 98 pitches, 38 were changeups.

“He did a good job pounding the zone,” White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. “He used every single pitch. He did a really nice job and gave us a chance to win.”

Thorpe was to face another former Cal Poly pitcher starting for the Mariners, Bryan Woo, but the second-year Major Leaguer was scratched from what would have been his seventh start of the season due to issues with his right forearm.

Woo, 3-0 with a 1.07 ERA this year, was scheduled for an MRI and on Wednesday the club reported that the results were "perfectly clean." The right-hander missed the first six weeks of the season with elbow inflammation and landed on the injured list with inflammation last August as well.

The Mariners have yet to announce when Woo will return to the rotation.

In addition to Thorpe, Woo and Haniger, in his ninth MLB season overall and seventh with the Mariners, other ex-Mustangs currently in the Major Leagues, both pitchers, are Spencer Howard, in his fifth MLB season and first with the San Francisco Giants; and Justin Bruihl, in his fourth big league season and first with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Cal Poly had a record six Major Leaguers a year ago and 10 ex-Mustangs played in MLB spring training games earlier this year.

Thorpe fielded his position well, best exemplified on his last pitch of the night when he popped off the mound quickly to grab a swinging bunt off the bat of Raleigh and threw him out at first.

“He looked like a shortstop out there,” said Paul DeJong, Chicago's actual shortstop on the night. “He’s kind of a calm, cool and collected guy, and a good athlete, too.”

Catcher Martín Maldonado said Thorpe also displayed quiet confidence, noting that the rookie wasn’t afraid to shake him off and that he hardly showed any emotion on the bump.

“I feel like he’s worked hard in his career to be here,” Maldonado said. “He made adjustments in the middle of the game, which was good to see.”

Woo has been dominant in six starts for Seattle with a 0.53 WHIP and 24:2 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 33.2 innings. His 1.07 ERA is the lowest through the first six starts of a season in team history.

Woo, who had Tommy John surgery in the spring of 2021while pitching at Cal Poly, did not throw a bullpen session following his most recent start and Seattle manager Scott Servais said the Mariners wanted to skip a start to "give him a blow.”

Jhonathan Diaz from Triple-A Tacoma was called up to replace Woo on the mound Tuesday. Servais categorized it as a spot start for Diaz.

“Where does this go with Bryan? We'll just have to wait and see," Servais said. "Get some tests done, let the doctors look at it. Hoping to stay away from an IL stint. I have no timeline or anything like that.

"He has gone through things like this before, and come out just fine with it. I know he's a little frustrated. I don't want to get out ahead of ourselves. We just have to wait until we have more information.”

Seattle Times sports reporter Ryan Divish interviewed Woo prior to his scratch from Tuesday’s game.

“Drew’s been a good friend of mine,” Woo said. “Before we got to Cal Poly, we played summer ball together going into freshman year. We were friends throughout (college) and I think we’ve actually gotten closer over the last couple of years, just talking over pro ball and development and stuff.”

Both Woo and Thorpe were two-way players going into college and had to figure out what they wanted to focus on. Woo had always leaned toward the pitching side, which is why he went to Cal Poly.