Janzen Blade Tidwell (born June 8, 2001) is an American
professional baseball pitcher in the
New York Mets organization.
Amateur career
Tidwell attended Loretto High School in
Loretto, Tennessee, where he played
baseball and was teammates with
Ryan Weathers. In 2019, his junior year, he was named Tennessee Mr. Baseball after going 8-0 with 107 strikeouts alongside batting .557. He played only one game during his senior season in 2020 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2021, as a freshman for the
Tennessee Volunteers baseball team, Tidwell was inserted into their starting rotation. He finished his freshman season starting 18 games and going 10-3 with a 3.74 ERA and ninety strikeouts over innings. He was named to the
USA Baseball National Collegiate Team after the season alongside teammate
Drew Gilbert
Andrew Christopher Gilbert (born September 27, 2000) is an American professional baseball outfielder in the New York Mets organization. He played college baseball for the Tennessee Volunteers.
Amateur career
Gilbert attended Stillwater Area High ...
. Tidwell entered the 2022 season as a preseason All-American and a top prospect for the upcoming draft. He missed the beginning of the season dealing with shoulder soreness. After missing Tennessee's first 24 games, he made his season debut in late March, pitching one inning in relief. He made his first start of the season on April 5 in a 5-1 win versus
Lipscomb. He finished the season having appeared in 13 games (making nine starts), going 3-2 with a 3.00 ERA and 51 strikeouts over 39 innings.
Professional career
Tidwell was selected by the
New York Mets in the second round with the 52nd overall selection of the
2022 Major League Baseball draft
The 2022 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft took place on July 17–19, 2022, in Los Angeles. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to Major League Baseball (MLB) teams. The draft order was based on the reverse order of the 2021 ...
. He signed with the team for $1.8 million.
Tidwell made his professional debut with the rookie-level
Florida Complex League Mets
The Florida Complex League Mets are a Rookie-level affiliate for the New York Mets, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Mets. The team plays its home games a ...
and was promoted to the Single-A
St. Lucie Mets
The St. Lucie Mets are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the New York Mets. They are located in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and play their home games at Clover Park. The Mets have been members ...
after one game. Over innings pitched for the season, he went 0-1 with a 1.93 ERA, 11 strikeouts, and seven walks.
Tidwell was assigned to the High-A
Brooklyn Cyclones to begin the 2023 season. In late June, he was promoted to the Double-A
Binghamton Rumble Ponies. Over 25 starts, Tidwell went 11-6 with a 3.57 ERA and 153 strikeouts over 116 innings.
References
External links
Tennessee Volunteers bio*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tidwell, Blade
2001 births
Living people
Baseball pitchers
Baseball players from Tennessee
Florida Complex League Mets players
St. Lucie Mets players
Tennessee Volunteers baseball players
United States national baseball team players