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Drew Vettleson - Switch Pitcher in the News

drew vettleson

@DrewVettleson

Tampa Bay Ray Outfield prospect. Follow Drew on Twitter



Chasing The Dream: The Drew Vettleson Story and Interview

Jan 29, 2012 chasingmlbdreams.com


When the Tampa Bay Rays selected Drew Vettleson in the 1st round of the 2010 MLB Draft they selected a truly unique player coming out of high school. Not only did Vettleson excel at as a switch hitter but he was one of the very few athletes that could also pitch from both sides of the mound. The Rays are developing him as a switch hitting outfielder but before we jump ahead to the present lets look back at Vettleson’s life before the draft as a player who could truly do it all. Read more



Switch-pitcher: More than just a novelty act

By Carla Swank, Rivals High Assistant Editor

New York Yankees pitcher Pat Venditte got the attention of the sports world last month when he became baseball's first "switch-pitcher" in a spring training game - throwing to batters as both a right-hander and left-hander.
Drew Vettleson, a senior at Central Kitsap High in Silverdale, Wash., was watching more closely than most.


Vettleson is an ambidextrous pitcher, too.


"It's definitely very cool," he said. "We're two of the only people in the world who can do this." Read more

Drew Vettleson: Double Threat

By Kevin Armstrong, EPSN Rise

With the ability to throw heat from either side of the mound -- not to mention a powerful stroke at the plate -- Central Kitsap’s (Silverdale, Wash.) Drew Vettleson is the complete package.



Central Kitsap High School baseball player Drew Vettleson strikes out sports reporter to win challenge

By WESLEY REMMER Central Kitsap Reporter, Apr 14 2010 

Drew Vettleson’s big grin stretched across the infield, masking his freakish baseball talent.
Like the ability to throw between 90-93 mph with his right arm — and in the upper-80s with his left, accurately. Or hit the ball more than 400 feet, to all directions of the field, from the left side of the plate.

Home runs and no-hitters are norms, not exceptions, for the ambidextrous Vettleson, the 2009 Gatorade Player of the Year who is rated the No. 19 prospect in the country and projected to be drafted in the 2010 Major League Draft in June.



Player of the year: CK's Drew Vettleson
DOUG PACEY, The News Tribune
Central Kitsap ace known best for his switch-pitching, but college and pro scouts know him for his mature baseball savvy

Long before college coaches and professional baseball scouts recognized Drew Vettleson for the complete ballplayer he could become, he had made a name for himself by being an ambidextrous pitcher.
“That’s what I’ve always been known for,” Vettleson said, “the kid who can switch-pitch.”
Read more

Washington: Ambidextrous pitcher Vettleson an even better hitter

The Central Kitsap outfielder can pitch with both hands, but pro scouts are flocking to see what he can do with a bat.

By Nathan Joyce, MaxPreps, March 22, 2010


SILVERDALE — Drew Vettleson is known in baseball circles as an oddity. The Central Kitsap senior pitcher can throw with both hands, an extreme rarity.
Vettleson’s ambidextrous pitching dates back to when he was young. His parents played slow-pitch softball with their son in tow. His mom is lefthanded and his dad is righthanded. He would pick up either of their gloves and start throwing.
He’s primarily a righthander and can throw in the low 90s. He also throws a curveball and a changeup.


Videos

Draft 2010: Baldelli announces pick of OF Vettleson (video)

 Drew Vettleson talks at the 2010 Area Code Baseball Games in Long Beach. Jul 2, 2010


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