Notes and quotes on Nationals’ lefty DJ Herz’s breakthrough 2024 campaign…
“We got a 22-year-old left-handed pitcher that’s striking out almost 12-13 players per nine innings,” GM and President of Baseball Operations Mike Rizzo told reporters of one of the two players Washington received from Chicago in a deadline deal in 2023 which sent the Nationals’ third baseman, Jeimer Candelario, to the Cubs.
“At 22 years old in Double-A already we like that escalation. His name is Herz.”
DJ Herz, of course. DavidJohn Herz. A 2019 8th Round pick by the Cubs debuted as a pro with six starts late in year he was drafted, out of high school, then 2020 happened. In the 2021 campaign, he pitched at Class-A and High-A, moved up to Double-A from High-A in 2022, and was back there in 2023 when the trade happened.
“I think his succession — he’s on track,” Rizzo told reporters of Herz already pitching at Double-A at the time he spoke after the deadline passed:
“We see him as a starting pitcher that has three pitches. He’s got an out pitch right now with that changeup. He struck out a lot of guys in a level that’s a tough level for a 22-year-old. The way our scouts portrayed him on the mound is aggressive, strike-throwing, and attacks hitters. And those are all words that I like to hear when describing a pitcher.”
Herz, now 23, (24 on January 4th) came to the Nationals along with Kevin Made (SS) in return for Candelario, and pitched at Double-A Harrisburg late in 2023, then started at Triple-A Rochester last season before getting the call early and hanging around in the majors for a total of 19 starts (4.16 ERA, 3.71 FIP, 36 walks (3.65 BB/9), 106 strikeouts (10.76 K/9), and a .224/.303/.359 line against in 88 2⁄3 IP).
“It’s been a good season. There’s been a lot of learning,” Herz said after his next-to-last start.
“I’m proud of myself getting through this first one,” he added, as quoted by MASN’s Mark Zuckerman towards the end of the 2024 season:
“It was really good. I’m just thankful to get through the season healthy and have another full season down.”
His manager was happy with what he got from Herz overall, while noting there are, obviously at this point, things to focus on improving going forward.
“For me it’s all about him not being afraid to attack the strike zone,” Davey Martinez said, stressing his persistent message when discussing pitching.
“He’s really in the zone quite a bit. The tendency for him is if he doesn’t throw the ball in the zone, he gets behind, that’s when he gets in trouble, the walks get him in trouble, but when he’s ahead, he’s throwing strikes, he’s around the plate, he gets early outs and he’s able to be efficient.”
DJ Herz, 95mph Paint. ️ pic.twitter.com/uMYOOSLswD
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 7, 2024
As noted in the Nationals’ Season in Review, from his debut forward, Herz, “… ranked second among rookies with 10.76 strikeouts per 9.0 IP (min. 85.0 IP).”
Herz, “… ranked 3rd among MLB rookies (min 80.0 IP) in strikeout rate (27.7%),” and he was, “…the 3rd rookie in Nationals’ history to record at least 100 SO in a season.”
Over his last six starts, Herz held opposing hitters to a combined .170 AVG (17 for 100).
“He’s starting to really understand that, one, he can pitch here,” Martinez said, “and two, is that he doesn’t have to rely on striking guys out, or hey, here we go, I’m just going to work ahead, get ahead, and try to get early swings and some misses, but when he’s around the plate he does that. He uses his fastball a lot, and then he goes back to his changeup, and both pitches are effective.”
Herz threw his fastball 54.2% of the time in the majors last season, holding opposing hitters to a combined .222 AVG on the pitch, mixing in his changeup (24.5%; .224 BAA), and slider (17.9%,;.229), and knuckle curve (3.3%; .200 BAA).