St. Louis Cardinal, Pine Bluff's Tink Hence reps Arkansas pitching in MLB All-Star Futures Game скачать в хорошем качестве

St. Louis Cardinal, Pine Bluff's Tink Hence reps Arkansas pitching in MLB All-Star Futures Game

It's uncommon for a baseball player in Arkansas to be drafted right out of high school and go pro at age 17. Well, Pine Bluff native Tink Hence is an uncommon pitching talent. The now 20-year-old Watson Chapel graduate and former Razorbacks signee has spent three years in Minor League ranks since being selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the second round of the 2020 MLB Draft. This month Hence was called up from the single-A Peoria Chiefs to the double-A Springfield Cardinals. Chasing his big league dreams, the 6-foot-1 RHP is treating every outing as a stepping stone and a learning lesson to eventually reach the Majors. "Just going out and competing," Hence said at Dickey-Stephens Park last week. "I feel like if I go out and compete and have fun, whether I do bad or get the results I want, I'm going to continue to grow and one day I'll be in St. Louis." Days after the Cardinals' top pitcher prospect threw a lights-out 5-inning, 5-strikeout debut as Springfield's starter on the 4th of July, Hence played in last Saturday's MLB All-Star Futures Game in Seattle. Featuring the top up-and-coming Minor League talent across the country, Hence manned the bump for the National League Team through the second inning. He began the outing with a blistering 98.9-mph fast ball, striking out a batter and allowing no runs while giving up a hit and a walk. You may think the St. Louis Cardinals' 2nd-highest rated prospect feels pressure to perform up to expectation. But Hence stays loose and simply does his thing. "I try not to really think about it," Hence said. "I just go out and have fun. Each game I go out, I look at it as a new game. Just me showing what I got again." While he's spent plenty of time traveling in his short pro career, Hence hasn't forgotten where he comes from. He's excited to rep his hometown and home state in what he hopes will be a long, fruitful baseball career. "It's really special for me, my family, and the city," Hence said. "They've been pushing for me ever since I was about 9, 10, 11. Growing up around them, they continue pushing for me to keep going and wishing nothing but blessings for me." "I got nothing to do but go hard for the city." See our full story above to hear more from Tink on his path to the pros, his growth so far in the Minors, and why he aspires to be a role model to the next generation of baseball players.