Ready for Action in Clinton: Miami Marlins Prospect Bryce Howe

Throughout the 2018/2019 offseason, Marlin Maniac will devote one article each for every player who appeared in the Miami Marlins system for the 2018 season. Every. Single. Player. This is Part 79 of 286. Stay tuned.

Bryce Howe is a 6’2″, 250 lb. right-handed relief pitcher from Tulsa, Oklahoma. Born on November 27th, 1995, he was the Miami Marlins 18th round selection in the 2017 MLB Amateur Draft out of Oral Roberts University. You can follow him on Twitter @Bhowe23. While at Oral Roberts, he pitched to an 11-9 record with a 4.24 ERA over 55 appearances, including 32 starts. He struck out 174 in 176 innings, and completed his college career with a 1.55 WHIP.

Selected 539th overall, if Howe gets as far as the major leagues at some point, he would be the eighth member of that fraternity to make it that far. The group is led by Mark Davis (1978, New York Mets, 7.9 career WAR), Rocky Coppinger (1993, Baltimore Orioles, 1.2 WAR), and Mark Kiefer (1987, Milwaukee Brewers, 0.9 WAR).

After coming to terms, Howe was assigned to the GCL Marlins in the rookie-level, Florida-based Gulf Coast League, where he held opponents to a 1.53 ERA over 14 appearances. He whiffed a dozen in 17 2/3 innings in total, but also walked 11. He also got into a pair of games with the Batavia Muckdogs, in the short-season-A New York-Penn League. He pitched two scoreless innings, allowing one hit.

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Howe would commence the 2018 campaign on the Greensboro Grasshoppers, Miami’s single-A South Atlantic League affiliate. Even though he held opponents to a 3.86 ERA, he also allowed a frightening 13.71 hits per nine innings over a 21 inning sample. Only twice in his 14 short appearances did he hold opponents without a hit. In one of those games, he walked two and hit a batter, and in the other he hit two batters.

Shuffled back to the Muckdogs on June 14th, Howe responded with a 2-1 record and a 2.19 ERA over 15 games, including 10 starts. He whiffed 52 in 53 frames for them, and held opponents to a more manageable 9.28 H/9. In consecutive mid-August starts, he pitched four innings of shutout one-hit ball, with a combined eight strikeouts.

Howe looked good enough to graduate from the Muckdogs for good in 2018, and should commence 2019 out of the bullpen for the single-A Clinton LumberKings, in the Midwest League. With a decent showing, and normal progression following, he would get a chance at the major league level out of 2022 Spring Training.

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