Forsyth junior Tristan Hunter has been clocked throwing his fast ball at 93 miles per hour. Well, close enough.
“My highest I hit says 93 but it’s 92.9,” Tristan said. “I’ve got to be honest with that.”
It’s a humble answer from someone who has a junior college offer in his back pocket and interest from several Division I programs. It’s a humility he honed growing up in tiny Protem, Missouri. “Your next-door neighbor is about ten miles away,” Tristan said.
When he didn’t have teammates to practice with, Tristan made hay a different way.
“I think the first baseball field me and my dad would hit on is one where we would go out to our hayfield,” Tristan said. “We would cut a baseball field shape and we would hit batting practice on the hayfield.”
Perhaps more ballplayers should try it. In his first start of the season, Tristan recorded 15 of his 18 outs via the strikeout without allowing a single hit.
“I think of every team as the best team I’ve ever faced,” Tristan said. “There’s no overlooking anybody. I’m going after everyone the exact same. I’m giving you my best.”
And his best looks a lot like a pro ball player. His spin rate on his fastball is already about 95% of the average major league pitcher. His curveball is at 99%. Something his coach says opposing hitters always figure out eventually.
“When he steps on the mound the first time, those first couple pitches, you see that reaction,” said Forsyth Head Coach Byron Richardson. “Like, ‘Oh man, this guy can bring it a little bit.'”
