Article: Get To Know Trevor Hildenberger

[Cody Christie]

The following article was featured in the 2017 Minnesota Twins Prospect Handbook. Almost 170 players were profiled in this year's book, which also included articles and prospect rankings.

 

To meet your needs, the book is available in both paperback ($12.79 with a current 20% off sale) or ebook ($8.99).

 

Trevor Hildenberger has been the Twins Daily Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Year for two consecutive seasons. He's been able to grow and develop a lot during that time and he's had a lot of help along the way. It was announced last night that he will be called up with the anticipation of him making his big league debut.After another strong season, Trevor Hildenberger is joining some lofty company. Last year, Jose Berrios won the second of his back-to-back Minor League Pitcher of the Year awards before making his big league debut. Now Hildenberger hopes to follow the path laid by Berrios as he has been named the organization’s best minor league relief pitcher for the second consecutive season.

 

Hildenberger got a jump start on his 2016 campaign by competing in the 2015 Arizona Fall League. He made eight appearances and allowed three earned runs on 13 hits. Over 12.2 innings, he struck out 12 and didn’t walk a batter.

 

When reflecting on his AFL season, Hildenberger said, “My experience in the fall league was eye opening to say the least. I distinctly remember the first two pitches I threw in my very first outing out there were both fastballs away that got barreled up and spanked into the outfield for singles (one of them by Daniel Palka). So immediately I realized how important it would be for me to mix speeds and location no matter the batter, the score, or the inning.”

 

He went on to say, “I was coming into that fall straight from A ball and quickly everyone in those lineups had immense talent 1-9. I think working my way through the first half of the fall league helped me learn how to get more advanced hitters out and the second half, maybe my last 6-7 innings, was much smoother. So coming into 2016, I knew if I wanted to continue having success, I needed to mix speeds out of the gate, use my changeup against hitters from both sides of the plate, and utilize my over the top arm slot.”

 

In the AFL Championship Game, he took over for fellow Twins pitcher Taylor Rogers and pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout. The Scottsdale Scorpions would go on to win the game.

 

As the 2016 season commenced, the Twins took notice of Hildenberger’s AFL performance and brought him over from the minor league side of spring training. This was one of his first opportunities to impress the major league coaching staff. Paul Molitor told the Pioneer Press, “I just know a lot of people have pretty high expectations of what he might be able to do eventually.”

 

In one appearance, he faced off against the reigning NL MVP Bryce Harper. He tried to get ahead of Harper with a fastball but Harper pounced on it for a double to the gap. Hildenberger would get Ryan Zimmerman to finish the frame on three pitches.

 

After the game he told the Pioneer Press, “It was a ton of fun. I hope to draw a lot from it. The experience of warming up and getting the jitters out of the way and facing those two really good hitters- big name guys- and getting one of them out, I feel like that’s a little bit confidence building.”

 

He used that confidence as the 2016 season got underway. During his first six appearances with the Miracle, he allowed one earned run over 9.1 innings with eight strikeouts and no walks. By the end of May, he made his Double-A debut. In two of his first five appearances, he allowed two home runs while holding batters to four hits in 6.0 innings. This would be just the start of something special. Over his final 27 appearances, Hildenberger went on an unbelievable run. He allowed one earned run in his last 32.2 innings (0.28 ERA) with a 39 to 5 strikeout to walk ratio. Opponents hit .150/.193/.159 against him during that stretch.

 

“It was a lot of fun pitching during those few weeks when I felt extremely comfortable on the mound,” Hildenberger said.”I was trusting my catchers, both [stuart] Turner and [Mitch] Garver, to call what they felt appropriate and I had the ability and confidence to shake them off (which was rare).”

 

He went on to say, “During that stretch, I was throwing strikes and getting ahead of hitters; I felt really comfortable challenging them early in the count because of my confidence in the defense behind me. This led to a lot of quick outs and therefore quick innings. Being able to execute with two strikes and put hitters away was important too, it shortened at bats and innings. Pitching is way more fun when you have the confidence to execute any pitch at any time, and I was lucky to stay that sharp for a portion of the summer.”

 

Lots of coaches have helped Hildenberger to be able to put together this dominate run. “I've been in the Twins organization two and a half years now and I've learned a lot from numerous coaches. You kind of take bits and pieces of what a coach says and work with what helps you the most. For example, the way one coach talks about mechanics and body awareness may click with you more than another coach.”

 

“Personally, Henry Bonilla and Ivan Arteaga have been the pitching coaches that have helped me the most in my pro career. They have been the only two coaches I've had the past two full seasons and have helped me be more aggressive, patient, and calm against increasingly better hitters.”

 

“Henry helped me discover what I can be good at when I was in Cedar Rapids, and how to attack hitters with my strengths. He also helped my mechanics become more repeatable and reliable. Building off that, once I wasn't competing against myself when I was on the mound, Ivan has helped me identify and exploit hitters weaknesses in order to keep getting good hitters out. I think he has a way of getting his pitchers to make adjustments and learning to make those adjustments on their own that is crucial to development.”

 

Besides coaches, pitchers and catchers also have to build a strong relationship. When asked about his battery mates, Hildenberger said, “I've been lucky enough to throw to several good defensive catchers throughout the system. Rainis Silva was my main catcher in the GCL who is a young guy with a rocket arm and controlled the running game well.”

 

“I threw to Brian Navarreto during my time in Cedar Rapids in 2015 and the early part of 2016 with the Miracle. He is another stud who seems to throw out everyone that tries to steal a base. His receiving is what I enjoyed the most because of his ability to get below the ball and bring some fastballs back up to the strike zone which is important for a sinkerballer like me.”

 

Other catchers have also left their mark with Hildberger. “All the defensive praise Stuart Turner receives is true and accurate, but my favorite part about throwing to him was how smart he is. I miss throwing to him since he's with the Reds now. He helped me get hitters out late in games when he remembered their previous three at bats, and possibly more from the night before.”

 

“Mitch Garver is my favorite though, we have always been on the same page whether it be in Fort Myers, the Fall League, or Chattanooga. He has a great feel for how a hitter is feeling in the box, what they are looking for, and how to exploit it. He knows how to get a lot of different kinds of hitters out, and I'm very comfortable throwing to him. Obviously it helps that he threw out close to 50% of attempted base stealers this season. All these guys are so good at controlling the running game that it helps a pitcher worry less about the guys on bases, and focus on the guy in the box.”

 

Hildenberger’s last appearance during the 2016 season was on July 27. He was diagnosed with tendinosis or tennis elbow in his throwing elbow which can result from chronic overuse of the elbow. After undergoing an MRI, doctors found no structural damage and his ulnar collateral ligament, the ligament associated with Tommy John surgery, looked good.

 

At the time of the injury, he told the Pioneer Press, “The ligament is great.” He went on to say, “My flexor tendon has some wear and tear, so I’m shut down for the season.”

 

This winter Hildenberger said, “My arm feels fantastic and I'm ready to enter spring training 100% and ready to compete. I spent the first couple months this offseason down in Fort Myers rehabbing my forearm with Chad Jackson and Corey Dietze. I did a throwing program and got off a mound before coming home to California right before Thanksgiving and it felt great. Like I said, I'm healthy and ready to compete.”

 

Teams have to be cautious with players returning from injury. Each player is going to move at their own pace. Hildenberger has already worked through multiple hurdles and this has helped him to focus on the 2017 campaign.

 

“I have a few goals for the upcoming season: including staying healthy the entire year, pitch in the playoffs, and improve over the course of the year,” Hildenberger said. “But my number one goal is to debut in the big leagues in 2017.”

 

“Trevor had a great year,” said Twins Minor League Director Brad Steil. “He posted dominant numbers in Ft. Myers the first few weeks of the season and then improved on those numbers when he was promoted to Chattanooga.”

 

Steil went on to say, “The most important aspect of the season for Trevor was that he continues to improve in all areas. Both his slider and change-up have improved, and he continues to attack hitters. His competitive focus and work ethic are important factors in his success.”

 

When asked about how it felt to be a back-to-back winner of this award, he said, “It's always nice to be recognized and to be acknowledged like this two years in a row is an honor. I appreciate you guys taking the time to recognize minor league players and their accomplishments. Twins Daily does a good job of keeping up with the Twins affiliates for the diehard Twins fans out there so again, thank you again for this recognition. Back to back is nice and all, but I have no interest in the three peat, hopefully I've graduated from the minors by that time.”

 

Hildenberger is looking to join a Twins’ bullpen that pitched the most innings in the American League in 2016. As Minnesota looks to get back in contention, young arms like Hildenberger will be key to turning the organization around. He has been fantastic for two consecutive seasons and expectations are high for him to make his debut before the end of 2017.

 

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[Broker]

Sounds like a keeper. We need a guy like that.

[jimbo92107]

“Mitch Garver is my favorite though, we have always been on the same page whether it be in Fort Myers, the Fall League, or Chattanooga. He has a great feel for how a hitter is feeling in the box, what they are looking for, and how to exploit it. He knows how to get a lot of different kinds of hitters out, and I'm very comfortable throwing to him. Obviously it helps that he threw out close to 50% of attempted base stealers this season. All these guys are so good at controlling the running game that it helps a pitcher worry less about the guys on bases, and focus on the guy in the box.”

 

How can you not like a guy that tries to drag his buddy with him into the bigs?

[Mill1634]

Congrats to Trevor. I think he has a good chance to stick!