Carson Whisenhunt’s Velocity Jump Sets off Buzz in Giants Spring Training

Carson Whisenhunt’s taste of Major League Baseball was brief last season. The San Francisco Giants hope he sticks around for opening day.

For that to happen, there are areas where he must improve. He also must do some things that catch the attention of the front office. It’s safe to say he did that earlier this week.

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The left-hander threw a live batting practice during spring training in Scottsdale, Ariz., and while he was throwing his pitch speeds were posted on the scoreboard at Scottsdale Stadium. The number took many by surprise. His fastball was hitting 97 mph.

Beat writers, including Justice delos Santos of the San Jose Mercury-News (subscription required) took notice.

Carson Whisenhunt’s Velo Jump

Carson Whisenhunt has been consistently hitting 96, 97 during today’s sim game.

Giants are putting the Trackman on the scoreboard, so it’s not like the stadium gun is hot. That’s a real 97.

His average fastball velo last year was 92.6 mph.
— Justice delos Santos (@justdelossantos) February 19, 2026

So, what accounts for a near-five mile per hour jump in velocity from one year to the next? Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area caught up with Whisenhunt afterward as everyone was curious.

Turns out even he was a bit taken aback by the velocity.

“I was like, ‘I kinda want to see where I'm at,’” he said later. “I was not expecting to see 97.”

Looking at this Statcast numbers from last season his four-seam fastball averaged 92.6 mph, just under the average for left-handers at 93.1 mph. He threw that pitch 48% of the time, mixing in a change-up 37% of the time. He also used a slider (14%) and a curve ball (1%). Pavlovic noted that Whisenhunt topped out at 95.3 mph last season in the Majors.

Turns out it’s mechanical adjustments that may have led to the velocity jump.

“Last year I was sinking into my back hip a lot more and getting lower and I feel like it was kind of blocking velo, so to speak,” he said. “Now I'm a little more upright, not sinking as much, but still trying to get in my back hip a little bit, and then just kinda throwing the s--- out of it. That's the best way to put it.”

Last year Whisenhunt made his MLB debut on July 28. He started five games for the Giants, as he went 2-1 with a 5.01 ERA. He struck out 16 and walked 12 in 23.1 innings. While in the minor leagues he went 9-5 with a 4.43 ERA in 21 starts, with 95 strikeouts and 35 walks in 107.2 innings.

He was the Giants’ second-round pick of the 2022 MLB draft out of East Carolina, the same school that produced Toronto Blue Jays phenom Trey Yesavage a couple of seasons later. Whisenhunt received a small taste of pro ball after he was drafted, as he pitched in four games in the minor leagues.

He only started 16 games in 2023, but he pitched well enough to rise from Class-A San Jose to High-A Eugene to Double-A Richmond. He went 1-1 with a 2.45 ERA as he struck out 83 and walked 23 in 58.2 innings.

Whisenhunt pitched a complete season in 2024 to put him on the doorstep of a Major League call up. He pitched most of the at Triple-A Sacramento and went 3-5 with a 5.17 ERA in 27 starts. He struck out 141 and walked 56 in 109.2 innings.