The once overlooked Andrew Abbott is now one of the best rookie starters in MLB

When Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Andrew Abbott started playing Little League baseball, his coaches put him in the outfield. When he was a teenager playing travel baseball in Virginia, it took a while for the University of Virginia to even take a look at the left-hander. In the 2020 MLB Draft, Abbott didn’t get picked.

Abbott is 6-foot, 192 pounds. His fastball sits at 93 mph. Now, he’s one of the 15 youngest starting pitchers in MLB at 24 years old.

Most young starting pitchers in baseball are overpowering and rely on velocity. None of them are showing as much savvy, poise and aggressiveness as Abbott, who has a 1.21 ERA through five big league starts.

“A lot of the game is going analytical –– spin rates and axes,” Abbott said. “But I’ve always just been able to pitch. That’s just who I am. I don’t have stuff that will blow you away. But I throw it where I want it. I keep myself composed and go from there.”

Abbott is as much a part of the Reds’ young core as Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo and Graham Ashcraft. Abbott’s ERA is the second-lowest by a Reds starter through his first five career starts since the earned run became an official stat in 1912. He’s averaging six strikeouts per game and shutting down teams with great lineups like the Astros, the Orioles and the Cardinals.

Abbott has physical gifts like Greene, Lodolo and Ashcraft. But Abbott’s gifts are harder to spot. Abbott’s fastball defies gravity, rises through the strike zone and has an elite spin rate. His curveball spins more than most curveballs. He’s able to cover the entire strike zone with those two pitches, and he can command all four pitches that he throws.

Abbott is the type of pitcher that you need to really watch to fully appreciate. He’s not overlooked anymore as he establishes himself as one of the best rookie pitchers in baseball.

Abbott had to work his way up

“I didn’t take the easiest route here, but it’s just like any job,” Abbott said. “You start at the bottom and fight your way up to the top.”

Reds pitching coach Derek Johnson always encourages pitchers to “be great at what you're good at,” and Abbott’s identity as a pitcher hasn’t changed with the Reds. Abbott throws the same fastball that he has used since he was 12. He uses the same curveball that he learned in high school.

Abbott’s priority has always been throwing strikes. He started seriously pursuing a baseball career in high school when he played for a travel ball team coached by seven-time All-Star closer Billy Wagner.

Wagner shaped the way that Abbott approaches pitching. Wagner instilled in Abbott the value of attacking hitters and getting ahead in the count.

“I hope he saw something in me,” Abbott said. “I tried to just pick his brain about the work he put in. The routines that he did. He became more of a friend. The bulldog mentality that I play with kind of started with him.”

On that travel team, Abbott picked up interest in the recruiting cycle from Xavier and Pittsburgh. Abbott was confident that he could be an impact college starting pitcher, and his dream was being a No. 1 starter for one of the best programs in college baseball.

He pitched in a tournament at Virginia’s campus. At the time, he had never heard from Virginia. He pitched so well that the Cavaliers offered him a scholarship on the spot.

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He started off in Virginia’s bullpen during his freshman year in 2018. Most freshmen round out the bullpen, but Abbott became a high-leverage reliever who appeared in 24 games. Playing for a college baseball powerhouse, he didn’t crack the Cavaliers rotation again in 2019 and 2020. But he averaged 13.7 strikeouts per nine innings and posted great ERAs every year.

In 2020, during a year where the draft was only five rounds due to the pandemic, Abbott entered the draft process expecting to get picked. His family had a draft party, and Abbott was ready to sign with a team that showed significant interest in drafting him.

Abbott bet on himself in 2020

The Rays called in the fifth round, but Abbott said they didn’t match the contract offer he was looking for. So he bet on himself and decided to go back to Virginia for his senior year of college.

Right after the draft ended, Virginia baseball head coach Brian O’Connor drove to Abbott’s house and told him that he’d be the Cavaliers ace and their Friday starter for the 2021 season.

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“I decided I wanted to go back and prove that you should have drafted me in 2020 when you probably could have drafted me for cheaper,” Abbott said. “It ended up working out.”

During the 2021 season, Abbott felt pressure as the No. 1 starter for a team that he grew up following. After years of flying under the radar, Abbott got his first chance to be the star of a team.

In 2021, Abbott posted a 2.87 ERA in 17 starts. He improved his draft stock so much that the Reds took him in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft.

Abbott started a big league game before any pitcher in his draft class who was picked ahead of him. Vanderbilt starting pitcher Jack Leiter was the No. 2 pick in the 2021 MLB Draft. While Abbott is picking up wins in the big leagues, Leiter –– a top 25 prospect in baseball –– is in Double-A.

Abbott, the pitcher who was disregarded and passed over, is now the No. 1 starter that the Reds are relying on as they compete for an NL Central title.

“I have been working toward this for my entire life,” Abbott said. “To get there the way that I did, I wouldn’t recommend it for anyone. But we got here.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY NETWORK: Cincinnati Reds' Andrew Abbott now one of best MLB rookie starters