Jared Grindlinger: A Young Baseball Star Heads to the Angels

Updated July 11, 2026, 2:41 p.m. ET

Who is Jared Grindlinger?

Big professional baseball teams (called "big league clubs") absolutely love left-handed high school pitchers (kids in high school who throw the ball with their left hand). That means they are going to be very excited about Jared Grindlinger.

Here is a simple breakdown of who he is:

• Two-way threat: This means he is really good at both pitching (throwing the ball to the batter) and hitting/playing in the field.
• Moved up a grade: He was originally going to graduate high school in 2027, but he believed in himself and finished a year early (this is called "reclassifying") to enter the draft sooner.
• His pitches (the balls he throws): He uses a fastball (a very fast straight ball), a changeup (a slow trick ball), a slider, and a sweeper (balls that move sideways).
• His throwing style: He uses a "herky-jerky" windup (a bouncy, awkward-but-effective motion) and throws from a "three-quarter arm slot" (his arm comes from the side a bit, not straight over his head).

The Big Draft Day News

Grindlinger was chosen as the 12th overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft (the big event where pro teams pick young players) by the Los Angeles Angels (a professional team based in California).

This is a big milestone for his school:

• He is now the 35th player from Huntington Beach (California) High School to ever be picked in the MLB Draft.
• He will be playing just down the road from his high school in Anaheim (where the Angels play).

Jared Grindlinger Has Plenty of Upside and Potential

Even though Grindlinger does not throw the absolute fastest fastball, many professional teams were amazed by his body and age.

• He is 6-foot-3 (quite tall) and weighs 190 pounds.
• He just turned 17 years old in April, making him one of the youngest players available in the draft. Because he is so young and tall, teams think he will get even stronger and better over time.

His Pitching Stats (Throwing the Ball)

While playing for Huntington Beach High School, he was amazing on the mound (the hill where pitchers stand):

• He won 6 games and lost 0 (a perfect record!).
• His ERA (Earned Run Average—a number that shows how many runs he lets the other team score; lower is better) was just 0.85. That is super low!
• He struck out 66 batters (made them miss the ball) over 57 and 1/3 innings.
• Opponents only hit .157 against him (meaning they barely got any hits). They struggled to hit him because he is left-handed, though they did make contact more often than not.

Important Point: Even though Jared is a fantastic pitcher, the Angels actually drafted him to be an outfielder (a player who catches balls hit into the grassy area far from home plate). This makes him a very interesting and unique pick!

His Hitting Stats (Batting the Ball)

If pitching does not work out, Jared has a backup plan: he can play in the outfield and hit! This season, he proved he is great at the plate too:

• He hit .376 (got a hit more than 1 out of every 3 times he batted).
• He had 14 extra-base hits (hits that went further than just a single).
• He had a team-high 41 hits and scored 26 runs.
• Amazingly, he only struck out twice in 109 tries at bat!
• Baseball scouts (people who judge player talent) gave him a "hit grade" of 50 (which is considered average for a pro) and "power" and "running" grades of 40 (a bit below average for a pro, but he is young!).

College Plans and Family

Jared has an older brother named Trent who is also a baseball player. When scouts came to watch Trent, they noticed Jared and liked what they saw. Because of this, Jared committed to playing college baseball at the University of Tennessee in April 2026. There was a small chance he would go to college to play with his brother again, but those chances are very slim now that the Angels picked him 12th overall!

Summary

Jared Grindlinger is a 17-year-old left-handed baseball prodigy from Huntington Beach, California. Originally set to graduate in 2027, he moved up a year and became a "two-way threat" (great at pitching and hitting). He was drafted 12th overall by the Los Angeles Angels in the 2026 MLB Draft. While he is a stellar pitcher (6-0 record, 0.85 ERA), the Angels plan to use him as an outfielder. With his young age, tall frame, and proven batting skills, he has a very bright future in professional baseball.

FAQ

1. What does it mean to be a "two-way threat" in baseball?
In ELI5 terms, it means a player is good at both pitching (throwing the ball to get batters out) and hitting/fielding (batting the ball and catching it in the outfield). Most players only focus on one!

2. Why is being a left-handed pitcher such a big deal?
In baseball, left-handed pitchers are rarer than right-handed ones. Batters are usually used to seeing right-handed throws, so a left-handed pitcher can trick them more easily. Teams love finding young left-handed throwers.

3. What does "reclassified" mean for a student-athlete?
It means Jared was supposed to finish high school and graduate in 2027, but he did the work to graduate in 2026 instead. This let him enter the professional draft a year earlier to start his career sooner.

4. Why did the Angels draft him as an outfielder if he is a good pitcher?
Professional teams sometimes think a young player’s arm (for pitching) might get tired or hurt over time. Since Jared is also an amazing batter, the Angels want to keep his hitting skills in the game by putting him in the outfield, where he can still help the team even if he stops pitching.

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This article was written by Sports Reporter Alex Martin. You can follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @NP_AlexMartin or email him at amartin@usatodayco.com. For additional high school sports coverage, be sure to follow @usatodayhss on Instagram and X.