The ball powers into the glove, making a thunderous noise as it lands in Milwaukee Brewers catcher William Contreras’ mitt. It’s a noise so loud that it’s almost impossible to ignore. The ball clocks in at an incredible 102 mph, igniting the crowd into a state of awe and excitement. But not only is this ball traveling at a blazing speed of 102 mph, but it also has a horizontal break of about 1.5 inches. It’s nearly an impossible pitch to hit.
“My filthiest reliever of the day was Abner Uribe”, said major league pitching ninja Rob Friedman.
Friedman runs an infamous Twitter and YouTube channel documenting some of the nastiest pitches he’s seen all day around Major League Baseball. Being featured on his YouTube is by all accounts a big honor, and Friedman is seemingly wildly impressed with Uribe’s pitching arsenal.
The development of Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Abner Uribe
But not only is Uribe’s fastball and overall pitching unique, he’s also had a unique path to the Milwaukee Brewers. Uribe was never on any draft boards or anyone’s college scouting radar. He was a hidden gem, only discovered by scouts who were willing to venture deep into the Dominican Republic to find some of these elite hidden talents. Rather than being drafted, Uribe was signed for $85,000 in 2017, with his fastball velocity averaging in the low 90s.
That all changed when Uribe was sent to the small town of Biloxi, Miss., home of the Biloxi Shuckers, the Double-A affiliate of the Brewers. In Biloxi, Uribe was able to access incredible pitching coaches that have developed Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes, along with elite starting pitchers Freddy Peralta and Brandon Woodruff. Just one year later, Uribe is now averaging a fastball velocity of 100.8 mph, posting a 1.44 ERA with 31 strikeouts over 25 innings pitched with Milwaukee. Uribe joins Devin Williams and Brent Suter as one of the many elite relievers the Brewers have groomed over the years.
“Remember this name, because you’re probably going to be seeing a lot of him here”, Friedman continued. “Expect big things from Abner Uribe.”