Texas Rangers pitching prospect Ricky Vanasco shows why hopes are high against TCU
Texas Rangers pitching prospect Ricky Vanasco took a deep breath in the dugout.
He had just struggled in his first inning Friday night in an exhibition game against TCU at Lupton Stadium. It was his first time pitching in front of fans since August 2019. He had Tommy John surgery in September 2020.
Vanasco, who turned 23 two weeks ago, threw 21 pitches, most out of the strike zone and walked two, including one with the bases loaded before the inning was rolled, which means they moved to the second inning without the Rangers recording three outs. He was throwing hard, however, with his fastball regularly hitting 93-95 mph.
“Nobody ever wants that, but I came back in [the dugout], sat down, took a breath,” said Vanasco, who was a 15th-round pick for the Rangers in the 2017 MLB Draft. “Our pitching coach came over and said find your rhythm with your three pitches. Find your rhythm, find your rhythm. So that’s what I did, and I went out there and got on the mound and I just found my rhythm. I found who I pitch as. I found my sweetness that I need to have when I go out there and pitch.”
He did just that. He struck out two of three batters in a quick, nine-pitch second inning, including showing off an effective slider and 96 mph fastball.
Before his arm injury, Vanasco was 3-1 with a 1.81 ERA in 11 starts with Class A Spokane and Hickory in 2019.
“My anxiety was through the roof today,” he said. “I think I set some expectations too soon for myself for this game, and I think that’s kind of what made me struggle in the first inning. In the second inning, I went out there and pitched like I know how to pitch and the result was there.”
He wasn’t trying too hard to impress the Rangers, Vanasco said, whose hat flew off during one pitch in the first inning. Admittedly, he said, “I don’t pitch cool.”
“That’s just how I am. I’m a very amped-up guy, I’m an emotional guy,” he said. “I’m very emotional when I’m on the mound, so the anxiety kind of takes over sometimes. Once I catch my breath and I calm down, I found my rhythm, and it’s all good. I didn’t have any of that [anxiety] in the pen. Then you sit down and look around and it hits you. I hadn’t pitched in front of fans in two years. It was a bigger setting for me, so it was good. It was good to finally be back out there in front of everyone.”
Most importantly, for Vanasco and the Rangers, his arm feels great. He bulked up his body by 40 pounds while rehabbing after surgery.
“The important thing is I’m healthy and I’m ready to go for next year,” he said. “Regardless of the first inning and what happened, I’m very pleased with how the second inning ended. Once I found that rhythm in the second inning, that was just like night and day.”
The Rangers are likely to add him to their 40-man roster after the World Series because he’s Rule 5 eligible.
“I’ve never felt better,” he said. “I’m not going to set any expectations for myself. Just going to go out there and pitch like I know how to pitch. I’m going into next year healthy, obviously, which is the biggest thing for me. The main goal is just to stay healthy all year and see where it takes me.”
