Cincinnati Reds pitching prospect Chase Petty entered Saturday with a 1.53 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 39 strikeouts in 35 1/3 innings over nine starts for the High-A Dayton Dragons this season.
Petty, who turned 20 earlier this year, has been mentioned in trade rumors as the Reds consider whether to add a pitcher to their starting rotation with Nick Lodolo and Hunter Greene out indefinitely.
Here are five things to know about the right-handed Petty, ranked seventh among Reds prospects in MLB Pipeline’s most recent rankings:
The Reds traded Gray and minor-league pitcher Francis Peguero for Petty in March 2022.
Gray had a 23-20 record with a 3.49 ERA in 68 starts over three seasons with the Reds. He was an All-Star in 2019 and helped the team to the postseason in 2020.
In June, Gray was named an All-Star for the third time in 11 big-league seasons. In 99 2/3 innings over 18 starts this season, he’s posted a 4-3 record, 2.89 ERA, 1.274 WHIP and allowed just three home runs, walking 39 and striking out 101. He’s expected to test free agency at the end of the season.
Peguero has posted a 7.27 ERA in 17 1/3 innings in relief this season at Double-A Wichita.
Petty was the 26th overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft.
In the first round, the Twins selected Petty nine picks after the Reds took Matt McLain 17th overall.
Among the players selected in the second round of the same draft were infielder Edwin Arroyo (48th overall, by Seattle), acquired by the Reds in a trade for starting pitcher Luis Castillo at the 2022 deadline, and Andrew Abbott (53rd overall, by Cincinnati ).
Petty, the Gatorade New Jersey Player of the Year in 2021, became the first ballplayer from South Jersey since Mike Trout in 2009 to be selected in the first round of the draft.
Petty was 6-1 with a 1.15 ERA and 99 strikeouts in 48 2/3 innings as he led Mainland Regional High School to a 23-4 record as a senior.
Petty’s fastball was recorded at 102 miles per hour in high school.
Scouts also rave about his slider and his overall athleticism, as he batted .368 with 32 hits, 11 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homers, 32 RBIs, 28 runs scored and 12 stolen bases as a senior at Mainland.
MLB Pipeline’s Petty profile notes that “he’s made a lot of progress on his changeup, which was a point of emphasis last year.”
The Reds had an eye on Petty before the Gray trade.
“We’re really excited to have him,” Reds GM Nick Krall said after the Reds deal for Petty. “John Ceprini, our area scout in the Northeast, did a lot of work on him for the draft. We thought we had a chance to get him with our comp pick (at No. 30 overall in 2021). He’s a player we’ ve liked for a long time. We think he’s got a chance to be a high-caliber Major League starter.”
Petty has credited his older brothers, Bailey and Logan, for his all-out effort and approach.
“It was competitive no matter the circumstances and it translated to baseball my whole life,” Petty said in 2021, per the Cherry Hill Courier-Post’s Josh Friedman. “Whenever I played, no matter where, no matter who I was with, I was so competitive, I wanted to do whatever I could to help my team win.”
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This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati pitching prospect Chase Petty lifts High-A Dayton Dragons