Chase Hampton

Hampton’s last outing this spring was his best, dominating the Omaha-bound Notre Dame squad with 12 punchouts in six innings of work out of the bullpen. The physical 6-foot-2, 225-pound righthander attacked with a live 92-96 mph fastball, collecting multiple swings and misses and challenging the Fighting Irish up in the zone. Hampton’s long, loose arm action is delivered from a lower three-quarter slot, causing uncomfortable at-bats for opponents. He throws both a curveball and a slider, each with a distinct shape. The 84-87 mph slider serves as his putaway pitch. If the bender is working in that particular game, Hampton will get hitters to chase it out of the zone as well. He does have a changeup, and when timed up, the downward-fading action presents a serious problem for lefthanded bats. Scouts feel Hampton is just now coming into his own. He does have starter potential, but evaluators also envision a late-inning power arm out of the bullpen.