Getting to Know Cubs Undrafted Free Agent: Charley Hurley |
Lost in the shuffle of the MLB Draft concluding and the Chicago Cubs signing all 20 of this year's draft picks, the team continued to do their homework as they added some pieces to the puzzle. This is known as the undrafted free agent process, and unlike the NBA and NFL, where most undrafted free agents are scooped up within days, the MLB undrafted process could take the rest of the summer as teams look to add for the future.
Although they haven't done much yet, the Cubs already dug into the undrafted free-agent ranks, and when you look at their past history, they have had some success going in this direction. As things stand, the Cubs have added two undrafted pickups thus far, one being a pitcher and one being a position player. Today we will focus on the pitcher side as former Texas Longhorn RHP Charley Hurley was the first of the Cubs two undrafted pickups so far. Hurley was one of the biggest, if not the biggest, pitchers in this year's draft class. He is an imposing 6-8 on the mound. He is coming off a season where he went 5-0, but with a 6.36 ERA, he was far from dominant on the mound. This is another one of those classic scouting plays by the Cubs, as Hurley does have some good peripherals to build around if the Cubs can find a way to maximize his talent on the mound. Before arriving in Austin, Hurley spent two seasons with USC, where he had a combined 6-5 with a 5.67 ERA. That included his 6-2 mark in 2022, where he also added a 4.19 ERA. Taking all that into account, Hurley may not have the ideal ERA, but with a 16-5 mark and a career 4.82 ERA, he knows how to win games despite giving up plenty of hard contact. Command has also been an issue at times, as he walked 98 batters compared to just 148 strikeouts, and that alone is another reason why the numbers are where they are. Anytime you get a 225-pound pitcher standing at 6-8, you would think that velocity isn't an issue, but with his fastball sitting at just 91.7 MPH, Hurley is far from overpowering. He is one of those candidates you would expect to add velocity, as his frame alone would make that easy to do. Lately, his fastball has turned more into a sinker that sits at 91.1 MPH, and if that is the pitch he wants to stick with, most scouts expect that to get up to 93-94 MPH. That increase in velocity alone could make the biggest difference for him on the mound, as any added velocity can go a long way. Along with his fastball/sinker pitch comes the secondary offerings, which all start with the slider. Averaging 85 MPH with that pitch, Hurley's slider is considered a Gyro pitcher due to the sharp breaking/frisbee-like movement around the plate. He also adds in an 86 MPH change-up from time to time, but he hasn't used that pitch enough for it to be an impact pitch. With this being solely a scouting play for the Cubs, expect them to work on adding some velocity to his game, even if it is just a few MPH. You then have to consider this team's work in the pitching lab, where they identify a strength in a pitcher and continue to build on it. For Hurley, that strength could be his slider, and if the Cubs can maximize that pitch, who knows what the future holds for Hurley. The Cubs have had a lot of success surrounding undrafted free-agent pitchers in the past, with Grant Kipp being the latest one. Hurley hopes to follow a similar path and has joined the right organization if that is the path he wants to take.
