One strikeout at a time: An interview with Blue Jays prospect Connor Cooke

Confidence is key for Cooke

Speaking with the 23-year-old, who was drafted as a sophomore out of college, the reason for his success is apparent. Confidence drips from his voice through his thoughtful responses.

Not being a top draft pick or household name hasn’t slowed him from chasing his goals.

“The round I was drafted, I never really cared too much about it,” Cooke says when asked if it has been an uphill battle for him to advance in the system. “I feel as though my stuff is as good as anyone else's, so that's what I take to the mound, and it doesn't really change the mindset.”

That confident mindset was on display in his Grapefruit League debut. Two of the six batters he faced in that outing were bona fide big leaguers, Giancarlo Stanton and Gleyber Torres.

He struck out both.

Having never pitched above High-A, facing a slugger as prolific as Stanton could have intimidated the young reliever. The University of Louisiana Lafayette product was unfazed, calling the experience one of the coolest moments of his life.

“The adrenaline rush was insane; it was a lot of fun,” Cooke recalls. “I didn't really notice that it was Giancarlo in the box until right before the first pitch, which got me locked in a little bit.”

Locked in, indeed. Four sliders later, Stanton was heading back to the dugout as Cooke relished his first strikeout and received some encouragement from an unexpected source.

“After my first inning, Kevin Kiermaier came up to talk to me, telling me to trust in my stuff,” Cooke says excitedly. “That was pretty cool. He talked to me for a few minutes, just telling me my stuff's good enough and to trust it. That was a really cool moment.”

Cooke carried that experience into the season with the Vancouver Canadians. His recent promotion shines a light on just how dominant he was in High-A.

He tossed 9 1/3 innings in relief and had his way with hitters during his month in the Northwest League, posting a 2.89 ERA and 1.07 WHIP. He struck out 19 of the 39 batters he faced for a video game-like strikeout rate of 48.7%.

Canadians pitching coach Joel Bonnett has a very distinct first impression from when Cooke joined the team last August.

“My first impression of Connor was that he was a freak athlete with a very good fastball that could really spin the breaking ball,” says Bonnett. “I then started to learn that he may be one of the hardest workers in the organization and is super competitive in-game. If you put all of that together, you can see why he has been so successful.”

Offseason work produces positive results

The former standout three-sport athlete from Sulphur, Louisiana attributes his work in the offseason to his success this year.

“I got in the weight room a lot this offseason, got stronger,” says Cooke, who’s listed at 6-foot-1 and 203 pounds. “But the big thing that I did was I started throwing to a nine pocket [pitching net] a lot when I wasn't throwing to a catcher because the nine pocket doesn’t lie, and you can't strike guys out if you're not throwing strikes.”

While Bonnett agrees that Cooke’s hard work over the winter has made him a better pitcher, he’s quick to point out the constant work the reliever puts into his craft: “He also spends a lot of time prepping for the days he is throwing in a game. Throughout the week, he tries to touch the slope as much as possible to keep a good feel for all of his pitches.”

You can’t argue with the results. His 18.32 K/9 ranks fourth in High-A among pitchers with a minimum of 25 batters faced. His 24.7% swinging strike rate ranks second.

The three-pitch mix he’s using so successfully includes a high-90s fastball, a nasty slider and an improving changeup. While his fastball rode up to 98 mph against the Yankees in the spring, he admits that was from the adrenaline.

“I got up to 98 a few times during Spring Training,” Cooke says. “It was definitely a bump [from the adrenaline]. I throw anywhere from 96 to 97, but with all the adrenaline, the fastball was playing pretty well.”

Cooke’s velocity has ticked up since college, where his fastball averaged 90 mph. Last season, as a starter in Low-A, the four-seam sat 92-93 mph. He works the high velocity up in the zone as much as possible.

“Keeping the heater up was a big thing for me,” he says. “As soon as I was able to get comfortable keeping that up, I started getting a lot more swings and misses.”

In describing the rest of his arsenal, it’s obvious Cooke is partial to his big, mid-80s slider, which he keeps on the outer third and calls his best pitch. With a spin rate that touches 3,000 rpm, it’s easy to see why he feels that way.

His changeup is a work in progress, but Cooke wants his off-speed option to be as good as his breaking ball to force hitters to respect all three pitches.

“The changeup is a good pitch,” Cooke explains. “It's definitely the last one to get worked on, so I'm just working on that and continuing doing what I'm doing with the fastball and slider.”

Following his promotion to Vancouver last year, Cooke moved to the bullpen for the final month of the season.

“The organization and pitching department thought he may flourish better in a reliever role, and they were obviously right,” Bonnett explains when asked about the decision to move the youngster to the bullpen.

Cooke pitched in a relief role as a freshman at Lafayette and was on board with the move, and it has been paying off.

“I've always felt my stuff was better in the bullpen, in one and two-inning stints,” Cooke explains. “Just being able to blow it out, giving everything rather than having to hold some back through five-plus innings. My stuff obviously plays better in the bullpen now, and I feel more comfortable in the bullpen.”

New challenges await in Double-A

After his promotion to New Hampshire, Cooke faced some adversity as he adjusted to the higher level of competition. His confidence and self-belief remain apparent when asked about the new challenges. He’s not intimidated by the new opponents.

“They're better hitters,” Cooke says matter-of-factly. “They have better eyes, so keeping the ball in the zone is going to be a big thing; they’re not going to chase as much. I feel as though if I keep doing what I'm doing and throwing strikes, my stuff will play, regardless of who's in the box.”

Cooke continues to throw strikes despite allowing four runs through his first three appearances in Double-A. Now with five outings under his belt, he has 13 punchouts through 6 1/3 innings. His two most recent outings have been his best. He struck out the side with eight whiffs on 16 pitches on May 28 and followed that up on May 30 with a two-inning, three-strikeout performance to collect his first win as a Fisher Cat.

As for his future, without a definitive roadmap from the organization for his progression through the minors, Cooke knows that he must focus on himself and continue to perform.

“At this point, just continuing to get strong,” Cooke says when asked what he must do to get on a fast track to the majors. “Continuing to keep throwing harder. Throwing strikes, not walking guys and shutting a lot of guys out. Hopefully, if I keep doing that, I'll keep moving.”

When talking about his goals and where he wants to be this time next year, Cooke readily admits that the easy answer is anywhere higher than he is now. The young reliever, however, is focused on one thing in the here and now, “Striking out more guys than anyone else.”

So far, Connor Cooke‘s plan is working as he makes his journey to the big leagues one strikeout at a time.