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BP Annual Player Comments

Year		Comment
2012		In Hawksworth, the Dodgers managed to get something for almost nothing, flipping Ryan Theriot shortly before the 2010 nontender deadline and receiving this heat-throwing hurler in return. Used primarily in a low-leverage capacity, he showed much-improved command of his 93-96 mph sinker, curve, and changeup, enabling him to post by far the best strikeout and walk rates of his young career. If he can maintain his health and command, he merits a shot at a larger role.
2011		On September 25, Hawksworth’s last outing of the season ended when Sam Fuld lined a shot off the side of his face. The Cardinals reliever got up and walked off under his own power, a “hockey tough” moment befitting a man whose name sounds more like a Canucks defenseman than a reliever, and whose grandfather was instrumental in bringing the Winter Olympics to Vancouver. Unfortunately, that play was also a perfect analogy for Hawksworth’s season, as National League hitters spent the summer hitting Hawksworth hard and driving him out of the park. The good news is that he improved his strikeout rate, and if he can keep his changeup down and lower his home-run rate—a task that should be rendered easier by his November change of address to Chavez Ravine—he might settle in as a serviceable swingman, but nothing more.
2010		Per FRA, Hawksworth was the second most effective reliever in the Birdpen behind Franklin, at 2.45, but he was also the reliever La Russa preferred to use when down by a few runs. It's not hard to see why: Hawksworth's pure decepticon material, relying heavily on selling his changeup. Right-handers loaded up and lost, lefties could work him, and there's not a lot to suggest he'll be a reliable contributor until he finds something else to distract hitters with.
2009		In the last two seasons, Blake Hawksworth has gotten repeatedly torched at Triple-A, but te Cards remain hopeful, and are still carrying him on the 40-man.
2008		Three years removed from labrum surgery, Blake Hawksworth finally reached Triple-A last season and was ineffective all year long
2007		Blake Hawksworth has made some nice strides since labrum surgery in 2004, but his strikeout rate hasn`t come all the way back just yet. He`s got a good curve and change and lots of movement on his fastball.
2005		Loads of potential and easily the coolest name since Dack Rambo. The problem, however, is that Hawksworth is trying to fight his way through a serious and confounding shoulder malady. He was shut down early in the season because of poor circulation in his shoulder. At this juncture, his future is quite uncertain. What is certain is that even if he does manage to return to form one of these days, he'll have a permanent red flag attached.
2004		His name calls to mind a Bond villain, pro wrestler or member of the House of Lords. Which is to say, it's a fairly cool name. His pitching isn't so bad, either. He's pitched as high as the FSL and has been strong at every stop. He has a plus fastball and change, but needs to refine his breaking stuff. His mechanics aren't the best, which certainly raises injury concerns for the future. But if there's a pitcher in the entire system that has front-of-the-rotation potential, it's Hawksworth. He'll likely start 2004 in Double-A.

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PITCHf/x Pitcher Profile

A Collaboration between BrooksBaseball.net and Baseball Prospectus - Pitch classifications provided by Pitch Info LLC

Although he has not thrown an MLB pitch in 2024, Blake Hawksworth threw 2,929 pitches that were tracked by the PITCHf/x system between 2009 and 2011, all of them occuring in Spring Training. In 2011, he relied primarily on his Fourseam Fastball (96mph), also mixing in a Change (87mph), Curve (81mph) and Sinker (96mph).