Last year was a true breakthrough season for Cole Henry. After years of battling major injuries, including Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, the former second round pick made the big leagues as a reliever. Despite the solid season, Henry has seemingly overhauled his pitch mix entering year 2. I think his cutter will prove to be a massive weapon this season.
While Henry technically threw five pitches last season, he was primarily a 4-seam fastball and sweeper pitcher. Both of those pitches have strong characteristics, but with nothing in between those pitches, it could be easy to tell what was coming. I think that is part of the reason hitters rarely chased against Henry. He needed to find a bridge pitch between the fastball and the sweeper.
For most of his career, Henry has been reliant on his dynamic fastball and a slower breaking ball. Last year, that breaking ball was classified as a curveball, but this offseason that was changed to a sweeper. Whatever you want to call it, Henry has always relied on those two pitches. Even when he was a starter before all the injuries, those were the highlights of his mix.
However, he did not have an effective pitch in the velocity range between the fastball and sweeper. It looks like that is what he spent his offseason focusing on because Cole Henry has really been leaning on a refined cutter this spring. He has thrown the pitch at least 20% of the time in all of his spring outings so far, and I really like it as a compliment to his other two pitches.
Last year, Henry threw a cutter just under 4% of the time. However, it was not effective and he did not trust the pitch. This year he is throwing it way more and it looks a little bit different. The pitch is 2 MPH harder than it was last while having more of a true cutter shape. He must have found a new grip or something because the shape is completely different to the cutter he was throwing last year.
This change makes Henry a true three pitch guy who can throw any of those offerings at any time. I love this tweak because it makes him much less predictable. Armed with this new cutter, I think Henry has a chance to get save opportunities at some point this season. Clayton Beeter’s stuff may be louder, but his feel for the zone comes and goes. Henry has command issues at times, but has more strike-throwing than Beeter.
I would not be surprised if this tweak was driven by the new front office and coaching staff. Henry actually talked about some of the changes the front office made on the radio yesterday. They had him study his own game using data in a way he had not done before.
With this new information, Henry must have decided that he needed a pitch between the fastball and the sweeper. I think that is a smart decision that could make Henry a much better pitcher. He was already solid last year, but there is another level for him to reach. Having another healthy offseason under his belt will be helpful as well.
Even before this tweak to his arsenal, Henry was an intriguing reliever. His low arm slot and dynamic fastball shape made him a favorite for some analysts. There is a list I saw that included Henry when discussing underrated relievers heading into the season.
Now with this new change, he could be even better. Henry tossed a 1-2-3 inning against Venezuela last night and has looked very sharp so far this spring. There is a chance that he could open the season as the closer if he keeps this up. Clayton Beeter is probably the favorite for that role, but there is a real shortage of proven options at the back end of the Nats bullpen.
Now heading into his second year and armed with a new weapon, this could be a big year for Cole Henry. I really do think the cutter solves a lot of his biggest problems. The other thing he is going to have to improve is his command. He walked over 13% of hitters last year and had a real problem with hit batters.
I actually think the cutter could help improve that as well. It gives him a pitch he can throw in the zone and get weak contact with. The cutter could also make his fastball and sweeper tougher to prepare for as well. It just gives hitters a whole new look and I love the addition. I think Cole Henry could be in for a big 2026 season.
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