Jared Shuster Interview - Part One
A year ago, not many would have believed Jared Shuster would be a first round pick of the 2020 MLB Draft. And no one could have believed the Atlanta Braves would have wanted to draft him.
Shuster, originally from New Bedford, Mass., struggled in his first season at Wake Forest. He was 0-3 with a 7.41 ERA in 22 games.
Shuster had poor control, as he walked 21 batters and struck out 32 in 34 innings in 2018.
Then as a sophomore, Shuster was 4-4 with a 6.49 ERA in 41 games, 22 starts. Shuster allowed 83 hits in 68.0 innings, with 37 walks and 94 strikeouts.
Things changed when Shuster went to the Cape Cod League last summer. In seven starts, Shuster went 4-0 in seven starts with a 1.40 ERA. Shuster walked only five and struck out 20 batters in 32 innings.
Then before this season, Shuster worked with Wake Forest pitching coach John Hendricks to make the slider he was throwing for his breaking ball more of a curveball.
And in his four starts before the pandemic, Shuster showed the work may have been paying off. He went 2-1 with a 3.76 ERA, 21 hits allowed in 26.1 innings, only four walks and 43 strikeouts.
Here's part one of our interview with Jared Shuster.
Listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 p.m. ET on Middle Georgia’s ESPN. You can listen online at TheSuperStations.com. Follow Bill on Twitter at @billshanks and you can email him at thebillshanksshow@yahoo.com.