D-Backs Prospect Kyle Amendt Has an Over-the-Top Trebuchet Arm Action

When our Arizona Diamondbacks Top Prospects list was published in December, Eric Longenhagen described 24-year-old Kyle Amendt as “a late-blooming illusionist righty with a cut/rise fastball and a deceptive delivery.” Our lead prospect analyst went on to say that the physically imposing 6-foot-5, 255-pound hurler had “a 15% swinging strike rate in 2024, among the best in the org, even though his fastball sits just 88-92 mph.” Not fully sold on the total package — command is among the concerns — Eric assigned Amendt a 35+ FV.

His unorthodox style of pitching and minor league numbers nonetheless suggest a future role in a big league bullpen. Along with the aforementioned 15% swinging strike rate, the 2023 ninth-round pick out of Dallas Baptist University logged a 2.86 ERA, a 2.38 FIP, and a 40.3 K% over 44 innings across High-A, Double-A, and Triple-A. And his delivery is indeed unique. Eric called it “over-the-top trebuchet arm action,” adding that Amendt “hides the ball forever.”

Currently a non-roster invitee at D-backs camp, Amendt discussed his delivery and three-pitch arsenal during the Arizona Fall League season.

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David Laurila: I’ve heard that you have an unorthodox delivery. How would you describe it?

Kyle Amendt: “Like a high left-handed slot as a righty. My curveball is a left-handed curveball, and my fastball is anywhere from an 11:45 to a 12-[o’clock] tilt. Everything looks like it’s coming from directly over my head.”

Laurila: What is story behind your delivery?

Amendt: “It kind of started when I was trying to throw a really big 12-6 curveball. The easiest way for me to think about doing that was to get as over the top as I could. That gradually worked itself into my fastball, and now it’s just naturally how I throw the baseball. I wasn’t always as over the top. When I was in high school, I was still high — it was a high three-quarters — but nothing crazy like it is now.”

Laurila: Like a left-handed curveball is an interesting way to describe it. Are you pronating a lot when you release the ball?

Amendt: “I’m not pronating; I’m actually not good at pronating at all. I spin my curveball really well. I throw a little gyro slider. But if I try to throw a changeup of any sort, I can’t do it. I just can’t get to the inside of the ball. I think my arm slot kind of plays into that. Being so over the top, I don’t really give my hand time to get to any real pronation.”

Laurila: I assume you’ve been told that you’re deceptive?

Amendt: “Yes. I have a very short arm action out of glove-break. That’s part of it. I hide the ball well after hand-break. It kind of sits right behind my hip area, and then it’s kind of whippy-fast, up and going. Added in with the funky delivery — me going to the plate — it’s very deceptive in just about every aspect. I also carry the ball really well. My perceived velocity is probably up there a little bit, too.”

Laurila: What are the metrics on your fastball?

Amendt: “Its tough to say exactly because of the affiliates. I was in Amarillo in Double-A, and that’s at elevation. On good days, my carry was 16 to 18 [inches] there. In [Triple-A] Reno, it was 14 to 16, although I could run it up to 18 every once in a while. Here [in the AFL] I’m normally 20-plus. It’s not as elevated, so the ball kind of plays a little more true with how it’s going to move. Velocity-wise, I was about 89 to 92ish.”

Laurila: What about the metrics on your other pitches?

Amendt: “The curveball was 78 to 80 [mph], and -9, -10 [vertical] with anywhere from being pretty 12-6 — zero H-break — to… I think I averaged maybe three arm side on it. So, +3 on the horizontal axis.

“The slider was 85-86. It’s a gyro slider, and in my last outing it was four vert with one horizontal. I try to keep it pretty close to zero-zero. That way I run right down the axis on the plot.”

Laurila: A sweeper probably wouldn’t be an option given your high arm slot…

Amendt: “Yeah. I’ve never messed around with one at all. It’s also something that would be pretty well opposite of what I’m trying to do. I’m trying to be north-south, and having one outlier east-west really wouldn’t help me too much.”

Laurila: What do you consider to be your best pitch?

Amendt: “I’d say my fastball. It’s my favorite one, too. It’s the easiest to locate. But the most fun to visually look at is the curveball. I get swings-and-misses. I get a lot of takes on it, too. For the most part, I try to throw it in-zone. With two strikes, every once in awhile I’ll try to go down. Now that I’m in pro ball, it’s been a little bit easier to get swings-and-misses down. When I was in college, I didn’t get them below the zone. If I wanted a swing-and-miss on the curveball, I had to be in-zone.”

Laurila: That seems counterintuitive. I would expect players at the college level to chase more.

Amendt: “I think what happened is that I got better at tunneling, and realizing where my tunnel needed to be off of my fastball in order to get a swing-and-miss on the curveball down. In college, it was curveball in-zone, and then I could go heater up. That was pretty much what I did. Now, if I can get it middle to middle down for a strike, I feel like I can go curveball in the dirt and get a swing-and-miss. And even if I get a take, then I can go back to the fastball.”

Laurila: Would you identify as a power pitcher?

Amendt: “Yeah, I would. I’m not going to try to hide anything from you. I’m going right at hitters. It’s kind of like, ‘Here’s my best, try to hit it.’”