Logan Henderson: Up-And-Coming Dynasty Player

If you don’t currently have three or four pitchers (or more) sitting on the IL list on your fantasy baseball team, then you likely are only rostering the minimum requirement of pitchers. For everyone else, it seems like we are placing a pitcher on the IL every day.

Because of that, the search for good pitching is a constant requirement if you want to field a pitching staff that even resembles a real staff.  That leads us to Logan Henderson.

If you are paying attention to what is happening in fantasy baseball, then you are likely seeing teams starting to add this 23-year-old righthander to their roster. There is a reason why this is happening.

Let’s take a look at the young hurler for the Milwaukee Brewers.

Career Statistics

The Beginning

Logan Henderson started his post-high school career at McLennan Community College, a JUCO powerhouse located in Waco, Texas. In 2021, he led the nation in strikeouts with 169 and was the Junior College World Series MVP.

The Brewers drafted Henderson in the fourth round of the 2021 draft, and he made his professional debut in 2022. Henderson has had a fantastic minor league career, going 16-11 in 49 starts and 50 games overall. In 203.2 career innings, he put together a 3.00 ERA and a fantastic 0.982 WHIP, allowing only 6.3 H/9 and 2.6 BB/9 to go along with a very impressive 12.1 K/9 rate.

The only thing that slowed Henderson down in the minors was injuries. He had elbow surgery in 2022, as he only threw 13.2 innings that season and limited his work in 2023. He then suffered an oblique strain that delayed the start of his 2024 season and limited him to 81.1 innings of work – which is actually his career high as a pro.

This season, Henderson dominated hitters in Triple-A, going 5-1 with a 2.40 ERA and 0.967 WHIP while fanning 40 in 30 innings of work. With the Brewers battling injuries and ineffectiveness on the staff, they recalled him for a start on April 20 and then added him to the MLB roster once again this month.

The Tools

• The Fastball

Through his first three starts this season, Logan Henderson has thrown this pitch 45.3% of the time, and he has been highly successful throwing it. Opposing batters have only a .174 batting average against the pitch with a .188 xBA, .304 SLG, and .314 xSLG. He also has a 32.3% Whiff% with the pitch.

The fastball only averages 93 mph, below the MLB average of 94.6 mph of fellow right-handers. But Henderson throws the pitch that ranks in the 98th percentile of Active Spin, creating a pitch that rides high in the zone and creating a lot of swing and miss.

• The Changeup

When Henderson isn’t throwing his four-seamer, then he is likely throwing his changeup (41.2% usage rate), which is an outstanding pitch. While his fastball comes in at 93 mph, he throws his changeup nearly 11 mph slower, and it has great movement.

Thanks to the difference in speed, he is generating a 33.3% Whiff%, and hitters have only a .136 average against the pitch with a .188 xBA, a .136 SLG, and a .243 xSLG.

• Everything Else

There really isn’t much to talk about in this category. Yes, Henderson throws a cutter, slider, and sinker. But he throws these three pitches a combined 13.5% of the time. As a whole, these pitches are average to below average and serve mainly as a change of pace by Henderson to get batters to see something other than the fastball or changeup.

The Verdict

Without a doubt, Logan Henderson is a player to go after right now. With so many injuries to pitchers, he is one of the top hurlers who is likely available to go after. He is currently owned in only 30% of ESPN leagues and in 58% of Yahoo leagues.

Henderson came into the season as the 12th ranked prospect in the Brewers’ system, so his price tag may not be high if you try to trade for him. Though with what he has shown so far on the MLB level, owners who are willing to trade him will likely try to sell high.

That leads to this question – is Henderson worth trading for if you have to give up a solid prospect or two or an established player of note? I think he is.

Henderson has proven at every level that he can consistently throw strikes. And while he doesn’t light up the radar gun, he gets the ball past hitters by throwing up in the zone with movement. There has been a concern that because he is basically a two-pitch pitcher that he may be destined to be in the bullpen. That may be the case this year as he starts to rack up the innings.

But he has been used as a starting pitcher throughout his minor league career, and I see no reason why he should be moved to the pen on a permanent basis. He limits hard contact, limits walks, and strikes out tons of hitters. This is a pitcher to go after.

Thanks for reading, and come back again next week.