Player: Ian Hamilton
Position: Right-Handed Pitcher
Height: 6’1 Weight: 200 Age: 25 Bats/Throws: R/R Current Level: MLB
MLB.com Rank: 18th in White Sox System
Drafted: 2016 (Round 11, 326th overall by CHW)
Hometown: Vancouver, WA
College: Washington State
Ian Hamilton has been a reliever dating back to his time as a closer at Washington State. He then moved over to a starting role to finish his career as a Cougar. After being drafted in the 11th round in 2016, Hamilton moved back to the bullpen and rocketed through the system and made his MLB debut in 2018. He allowed four earned runs on six hits over his eight innings in Chicago. In March of 2019, Hamilton injured his shoulder in a car accident. When he returned to Triple-A Charlotte, he had a 9.92 ERA over 16.1 innings. Then a line drive broke his jaw when he was sitting in the dugout and ended his 2019 season. A freak incident that caused Hamilton to have multiple surgeries. Hamilton said he was back to 100% going into Spring Training in 2020.
Scouting Grades
Hamilton has gotten to the majors behind his velocity. Back in 2018, Hamilton was sitting in the mid-90s with his fastball and could climb up to triple-digits. His number two pitch is his slider, which he throws hard: averaging 87-90 mph. His third option is his changeup, which can be anywhere from below-average to average. He has struggled against lefties at times when he can’t get the feel for either the slider or the changeup as that second option.
Control has always been a bit of an issue for Hamilton, which is a reason he has always been tagged as a bullpen arm. Hamilton is currently on the White Sox active roster and looks to be middle relief as of now, with potential to be a high leverage reliever.
Ian Hamilton Stats
