Fastball command is the key for Harrington

The Pittsburgh Pirates have reassigned most of their top pitching prospects to minor- league camp, eliminating Bubba Chandler, Braxton Ashcraft, Hunter Barco and Mike Burrows from the Opening Day roster.

That Thomas Harrington not only remains in big league camp but is scheduled to start a Grapefruit League game Tuesday against the Philadelphia Phillies is telling.

The 23-year-old righthander is No. 3 in the Pirates’ farm system and a top-100 prospect who is ranked 74th by Baseball America and 79th by MLB Pipeline. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound Harrington is proving why he was a 2022 first-round pick (No. 36 overall) out of Campbell University and appears the closest to making it to the majors.

“Experience helps. The more you pitch, the better you become,” Harrington said. “Whether that’s (making the team) right out of camp or going back to Triple- A, it is what it is. But I do feel like I’m ready to help this team.”

Whether he makes the Opening Day roster remains a long shot, given the starting rotation appears set with right-handers Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller and Jared Jones and lefties Bailey Falter and Andrew Heaney. Harrington could be an insurance policy, if someone isn’t ready to start the season. The Pirates didn’t include him on their Spring Breakout roster, instead having Harrington pitch three innings against Triple-A and Double-A players at Pirate City last week to stay on schedule.

Unlike Chandler and Ashcraft, Harrington doesn’t touch triple digits. His four-seamer sits in the low 90s, instead relying on pinpoint command that allows his six-pitch mix to play off a fastball that topped out at 95.3 mph in a scoreless inning against the Atlanta Braves on Feb. 25. Harrington likes to throw his fastball up and in, allowing his sweeping slider to play off it. To set up that pitch, he likes to go inside to lefties.

“For me, the biggest thing is trying to put hitters away,” said Harrington, whose arsenal also includes a sinker, splitter, cutter and curveball. “I kind of have to set them up to put them away. I can’t get strikeouts with fastballs on top of the plate like Jared (Jones). For me, it’s more executing and tunneling those pitches to put guys away.”

The Braves game marked the first time Pirates catcher Joey Bart caught Harrington, who allowed one hit, one walk and had one strikeout without being able to challenge left-handed hitters with his changeup. Harrington threw 18 of his 27 pitches for strikes, though he wasn’t able to showcase his entire repertoire.

“He’s a really good command guy,” Bart said. “He knows where to throw the ball. He knows how to pitch. Those guys get outs.”

That’s not to say Harrington can’t put hitters away. He had 115 strikeouts against 19 walks in going 7-3 with a 2.61 ERA, 0.96 WHIP in 117 1/3 innings over 22 appearances (21 starts) across Double- A Altoona and Triple-A Indianapolis last season.

Harrington was named Eastern League Player of the Month for July, going 2-0 with a 0.70 ERA, 0.82 WHIP, .170 batting average against and 32 strikeouts in four starts for the Curve. He was promoted to Indianapolis on Aug. 4, and won International League player of the week honors after throwing seven shutout innings Aug. 17. Harrington went 5-1 with a 3.33 ERA and 0.94 WHIP in eight starts at Indianapolis, striking out 38 against eight walks.

No wonder Harrington expects to make his major league debut this season.

“Absolutely, I really feel like this is a big year for me,” Harrington said. “I really feel like I can help this team in different ways, on the field as well as being in the clubhouse. It’s going to be a really cool year for me. I’m excited to keep going.”