Jack Armstrong, Jr.

From BR Bullpen

Jack William Armstrong, Jr.

BR minors page

Biographical Information[edit]

The son of All-Star pitcher Jack Armstrong, Jack Armstrong, Jr. was a third-round pick in the 2011 amateur draft.

High School[edit]

Armstrong was a two-sport star at Jupiter High School in Jupiter, FL. In baseball, he was captain of the team. He struck out the side in the 9th inning of the Aflac All-American game to give his team the win. The Texas Rangers took him in the 36th round of the 2008 amateur draft. In basketball, he was also the team captain, leading them to a district title and winning All-Conference honors.

College[edit]

Jack struggled as a college freshman, with a 12.91 ERA for Vanderbilt University. He did very well in the Cape Cod League, though, going 4-1 with a 2.57 ERA for the Wareham Gatemen. He tied for the Cape Cod lead in wins. As a sophomore, he improved to 7-4, 4.71. He was second on the team in wins, behind Sonny Gray. In 2011, Armstrong was moved to the bullpen as Grayson Garvin joined Gray and Taylor Hill in the rotation. Jack was 0-1 with a 2.65 ERA in 13 outings, walking 18 in 17 innings (though he struck out 17).

Draft[edit]

Despite his wild summer of 2011, Armstrong went to the Houston Astros in the third round of the 2011 amateur draft, the 99th overall selection. He was the fourth Vanderbilt player taken, following Gray, Garvin and Jason Esposito and preceding Hill and others. He was signed by scout Nick Venuto for a bonus of $750,000. However, due to a series of arm troubles including Tommy John surgery, he never pitched in the minors and retired in the spring of 2014.

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