Logan Henderson: Up-And-Coming Dynasty Player

If you have read my articles in the past, you know my aversion to young pitchers. They are just so inconsistent that they can drive you nuts.

But you can’t build a great dynasty team by ignoring the young pitchers. Thankfully, there is a great young pitcher in Logan Henderson. At just 24 years old, he has become one of the top young pitchers in the majors and is now an anchor in the starting rotation and should remain a key part of the rotation well into the future.

Not bad for a pitcher who was drafted in the fourth round of the 2021 draft and made his name at McLennan Community College (one of the top community college programs in the country) and not at an SEC school.

Despite being drafted in the fourth round, Henderson quickly rose through the minors and made his debut last year.

So let’s take a look at Henderson.

Career Statistics

Logan Henderson made his debut last year with the Brewers on April 20 and started four games before being sent back to Triple-A. He languished at Nashville until finally being recalled in August for a start on Aug. 3. But that would be his last start of the season as he suffered a right flexor strain that sidelined him the rest of the season.

This season, he has spent time on the IL with a lower back strain suffered during a start on May 22 against the Dodgers. He missed all of June before returning to the rotation July 9.

But injuries have been a part of Henderson’s career since he was drafted by Milwaukee in 2021. 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.

The Tools

• Four Seam Fastball

The first thing you notice when it comes to Henderson’s fastball is that it isn’t close to being overpowering. His 93.0 mph average ranks in the 26th percentile. Yet opposing hitters have an incredibly hard time hitting the pitch, as batters have a .168 batting average with a .316 slug.

One of the main reasons for the success of the pitch is the fact that Logan Henderson is able to generate 1.8 inches more rise and 3.6 inches more tail into right-handed hitters compared to other right-handed pitchers. The ball simply bores in against righties or away from lefties, leading to a lot of weak contact. And he uses the pitch against both lefties and righties, throwing it 45% of the time versus left-handed hitters and 46% versus righties.

• Change

Henderson throws four pitches, but in reality he features two pitches, and the change is that second pitch. And it is an outstanding pitch that ties up right-handed hitters.

Thrown at an average speed of 82.5 mph, Henderson generates 3.2 more inches of drop and 5.3 inches of tail compared to other righties. The result is a pitch that has a .190 batting average against with a .429 SLG. The few times Henderson has missed his spot with the pitch have resulted in damage, as opposing hitters have four homers in 63 at-bats against the pitch.

But otherwise it has been outstanding, generating a 37% Whiff% and is used to neutralize left-handed hitters as he throws the changeup 37% of the time to them compared to 21% to righties.

• Cutter

Henderson’s cutter doesn’t produce a lot of break. In fact, he gets 1.5 inches less break on this pitch compared to other right-handed pitchers. But he is able to keep it on plane more, generating 4.1 more inches of rise. Thrown 27 percent of the time versus righties compared to 15% against lefties, Henderson has had solid overall success with the pitch as hitters have a .263 average and .447 SLG.

This is a pitch in which Logan Henderson is gaining confidence. Last year he threw it only 8% of the time compared to the 19 percent this year.

• Sweeper

The sweeper is a new pitch for Henderson this year, using it now in place of the slider. During his five starts last year with Milwaukee, Henderson threw the slider 3% of the time and had horrible results as hitters had a .500 average and .500 SLG against the pitch. This season, the sweeper has replaced the slider. Throwing it at 80.8 mph, it comes in 2.5 mph slower with much more movement.

His slider averaged 0.5 inches of tail and 1.8 inches of drop. His sweeper: 15.3 inches of break and 3.4 inches of drop. So he has a changeup that bores in against righties and then a sweeper that attacks the other side of the zone.

The Results

• The “Good”

Logan Henderson does a great job of attacking the zone. He has thrown 57% of his pitches for strikes this season, compared to the league average of 50%. The four-seamer is thrown in the strike zone 58% of the time, while his changeup is in the strike zone 52% of the time and the cutter at 63%. The only pitch that is consistently outside of the zone is the sweeper, which is by design. The pitch lands in the zone only 37% of the time.

But throwing strikes has never been a problem for Henderson. His career walk rate with the Brewers is 2.1 BB/9, and in the minors it was 2.7/9. Instead of nibbling, Henderson attacks the zone, and that has helped lead to an 11.2 K/9 rate for his MLB career and an 11.0 rate this season.

• The “Bad”

If there is a bad, it has to be the history of injuries. He suffered them in the minors, and so far he has battled injuries in both of his major league seasons.

But when it comes to performance, there has not been a “bad.” The most hits he has allowed in a game is six in five innings of work. That has happened only once. The most runs he has allowed in a game is three, and that has happened twice, once in 5.1 innings of work and once in 6.1 innings of work.

If there is one thing to quibble about, it is the fact that he does not work deep into games. In 16 career starts, he has pitched six innings or more only four times, with the 6.1 innings he threw against San Diego in his last start being his career high. With many leagues using quality starts as a stat, Henderson seldom has helped in this area.

• In the end…

I have liked Logan Henderson for a while and wrote about him when he joined the Brewers last year. I figured it was time to write about him again as he had only three starts under his belt when I first highlighted him.

Henderson is a pitcher you want. He doesn’t issue a lot of walks while he strikes out more than 11 batters per nine. He has a career WHIP of 0.931 and an ERA of 2.53. This season he is 6-2 with a 2.88 ERA and 0.905 WHIP and 69 strikeouts in 56.1 innings. What is not to like about that?

And while he has been better at home, his splits are not horrible. This year he has a 2.42 ERA and 0.885 WHIP at home with a .194/.235/.419 slash line. On the road, he has a 3.26 ERA and 0.923 WHIP with a .200/.248/.346 slash line.

If you have Henderson, keep him unless you get an offer too good to refuse. He’s only 24 and should be an ace-level pitcher for many more years.

Thanks!

Thank you for reading, and come back again next week.