Clemson freshman lefthander Chris Dwyer has been one of the early sensations of the 2009 college baseball season. He’s also generated a rare buzz for a freshman in the scouting community.
Dwyer has made two appearances to date, and followed up a 4-0 win over Charlotte in a sparkling debut with an even more impressive outing Wednesday in Clemson’s 4-2, 14-inning loss to Furman. He worked five hitless innings while pitching to one batter over the minimum.
In 11-2/3 scoreless innings overall, Dwyer has allowed two ground-ball hits, walked one and struck out 12. He’s been dominant with a solid three-pitch mix that includes a steady 91-92 mph fastball which has peaked at 94, and a hammer curveball.
But to suggest that the 6-foot-3, 215-pound Dwyer has been pitching at a level beyond his years would only be partially correct as the Connecticut prep product is all of 20 years old—and turns 21 on April 10. He’s effectively the same age as most college juniors.
As a 21-year-old, he’ll not only be eligible for this year’s draft but will become the only known prospect in the modern history of the draft to be eligible as a true college freshman.
Clemson coach Jack Leggett quickly recognized that Dwyer was no ordinary freshman after he dominated Charlotte in his college debut, striking out nine, including seven in a row, while walking one and allowing two scratch singles. Leggett said it was the most impressive debut by a freshman that he’d witnessed in his 30 years of coaching. He praised Dwyer as much for his poise and mental toughness, as his superior stuff and command.
On the basis of that performance, Leggett adjusted his pitching schedule for the following weekend and designated Dwyer to start last Sunday’s scheduled game against arch-rival South Carolina in the back half of a home-and-home series—in a hostile environment, no less. That game was ultimately rained out, and Dwyer’s starting assignment was pushed back to Tuesday at Furman. He promptly struck out the side in the first inning, and retired the first 13 hitters he faced before allowing his only base runner on a hit batter.
Clemson pitchers kept the no-hitter intact until two outs in the ninth before Furman’s Connor Lind scratched out an infield hit with two strikes on him, and Brian Harrison followed with a dramatic two-run homer, sending the game to extra innings. The Paladins won the contest five innings later by pushing across two runs.
But all the talk was about Dwyer, a 38th-round draft pick of the New York Yankees a year ago who didn’t pitch at all last summer because of a stress fracture in his left shin. Though his performance to date has exceeded expectations, it was apparent in fall practice that Dwyer was something special, that he had all the ability to emerge quickly this spring as a premium prospect.
Scouts have already locked in on him, and they should be there in large numbers for his next scheduled outing Sunday in Chapel Hill, N.C., in the third game of a key Atlantic Coast Conference three-game series between Clemson and North Carolina. The contest should have additional intrigue as the Tar Heels are expected to start righthander Matt Harvey—the top-rated college player in the 2010 draft class, and, like Dwyer, a Connecticut high-school product.
Even with his fast start, Dwyer was hardly an unknown commodity to scouts as he went 7-0, 0.07 with 83 strikeouts in 41 innings as a senior last spring at The Salisbury School, a Connecticut prep school, and played alongside shortstop Anthony Hewitt, who was selected in the first round of last year’s draft by the Philadelphia Phillies.
The chances of Dwyer being drafted in the first round himself this year have grown exponentially with each outing this spring as scouts have been impressed with all facets of his game. The one complicating factor, though, may be his age.
Since Dwyer will be eligible for every draft throughout his career at Clemson, it will give him leverage never previously afforded any player in college history. It’s entirely possible that he may decide not to come out this year, no matter where he’s drafted, and that scenario could leave teams in a quandary as they ascertain whether to risk an early-round pick—possibly even a valued first-round choice—and possibly get burned in the process. Teams will have to get a clear indication he’s signable before drafting him.
Dwyer is in the unique position of being a draft-eligible freshman because he repeated two grades, ostensibly to bolster his athletic and academic credentials. Both his older sisters followed the same path, and earned athletic scholarships. Dwyer was held back a grade in elementary school and also repeated his junior year of high school while in the process of transferring from St. Mary’s School near his hometown in Swampscott, Mass., to The Salisbury School in neighboring Connecticut.
Interestingly, it was ostensibly more for football purposes that the multi-talented Dwyer chose both to transfer and repeat his junior year. He believed he would enhance his chances of securing a scholarship to a major Division I school by waiting a year, and he went on to earn all-New England honors for his quarterback play as a senior. But baseball became a greater priority at his new school, and he became a dynamic two-way player by hitting .470-5-45 as a center fielder in his final year, in addition to his prowess on the mound.
Dwyer almost certainly would have been drafted as high as the fourth or fifth rounds last June had he been willing to accept a slot bonus in the $300,000 to $400,000 range. He might have gone even higher had scouts been able to establish a greater comfort level with his signability.
But with a unique leverage opportunity hanging in the balance by attending Clemson for even one year, Dwyer knew a much larger payday might be in the works—and there’s little question at this point that he’ll capitalize handsomely on that decision. It’s just a case of when that day will come—this year or next, or possibly even 2011 or 2012.