AMAZING JOURNEY

The year of 2020 was anything but normal. For many players, the 2020 season and the coronavirus pandemic responsible for wiping it away represented nothing but lost opportunities.

For most high school seniors, it meant the last chance to play baseball with their childhood friends was taken away. For college and pro-caliber players, it meant lost development time. Or a missed chance to land a scholarship or impress big league scouts to improve their draft stock.

For everyone—regardless of ability or age—it was largely a season, and a year, of loss.

But for Southern California prep Thatcher Hurd it was also a year of discovery.

At the time, the Mira Costa High junior was committed to UC Santa Barbara as a catcher. He pitched occasionally, but was mostly a reliever with a big arm who would throw a few innings here and there—and throw as hard as he could—for his Manhattan Beach team. When the 2020 season was canceled, Hurd started to realize during bullpen sessions with his brother that his future just might be brighter on the opposite side of the battery.

“I just really started gravitating toward pitching,” Hurd said. “I thought it was a perfect time to be in a controlled environment and just really hone the craft. And I fell in love with it.”

Throughout the summer and fall, Hurd improved on the mound as he focused exclusively on pitching. He enjoyed the competitiveness that came with challenging one batter after another and felt comfortable within the rigors of a pitcher’s routine.

Scouts took note, and Hurd entered the 2021 season as a top 100 prospect in the draft class.

“He is a guy to watch who could jump up,” one scout said last winter. “He is not there yet, but if the velocity comes and he has a