Whisenhunt entered the spring ranked as the top college arm in the class
East Carolina University left-hander Carson Whishenhunt, who entered this year's draft as the top college pitcher ranked by CBS Sports in the spring, remains ineligible by the NCAA, according to Pirates head coach Cliff. Will not pitch for the session. Godwin. (Godwin did not specify what WhishenHunt did to receive such punishment.)
Whistlehunt was originally suspended for the opening day series of Pirates. At the time, Godwin classified WhishenHunt's suspension as a violation of team rules. He later noted that Whinhunt would not be available for Campbell or the Pirates' subsequent series against North Carolina.
WATCH: ECU Baseball Head Coach Cliff Godwin addresses the Carson Whisenhunt situation in full. Whisenhunt will not play for the Pirates for the rest of the season. pic.twitter.com/g29ZJ7hAe6
— Pirate Radio ☠️ (@PR927FM) March 14, 2022
ECU has taken six players in the top two rounds of the draft in the school's history. Half of those have happened in the last two years. Whistlehunt, arguably the best healthy collegiate branch to enter spring, should improve both figures. He's a tall, gangly southpaw who combines strike-throw polish with an intriguing pitch mix. His '90s fastball has a lot of carry, and analysts are high on his turnaround, which checks in about 10 ticks with a slow and silent spin. His curveball is a work in progress, but he throws it with enough velocity and spins to project well. Former teammate Gavin Williams was selected 23rd last summer; Whistlehunt lacks Williams' raw materials, yet a team convinced that having more chicken on the bone, either by breaking the velocity joint or ball refinement, can take him earlier.
It looks like this will result in Whisnhunt slipping into the draft ahead of its expected slot.
Whisnhunt made 13 starts for the Pirates last season. He accumulated 3.77 ERAs and 3.59 strike-to-walk ratio in 62 innings.
Whisnhunt's ineligibility is the latest in a hit series of college pitching classes. Kumar Rocker's decision not to return to Vanderbilt and injuries to Landon Sims, Connor Prelip, Peyton Pellet, Blade Tidwell and Reggie Crawford have left the door open for others to increase their stock.