An Interview with Greeneville Astros RHP Devonte German

When I met Greeneville Astros RHP Devonte German this past weekend, I will admit that I was surprised in more ways than one. Physically, he is more imposing a figure than some of the recent college drafted players on the team. And he impressed me with his emotional and intellectual maturity as well, traits that are often missing in 19-year olds.

Greeneville Manager Josh Bonifay agreed that German has surprised him somewhat as well, showing leadership in pitcher/catcher meetings, "For him being so young, he's actually one of the kids that talks a lot and he leads the meetings. It blows you back." Bonifay went on to praise German for the attention he pays to all aspects of the game.

And Bonifay likes German's projection as a pitcher as well, "I like Devonte. That's a young, big guy right there. He's got a good body. Got a real heavy fastball. We're working on his secondary pitches to develop those, but he's a kid that when he's in the zone that fastball is really heavy and he can put away hitters. He can blow it by them." Bonifay likes German's chances of success once he gets better use of his secondary pitches and sees his strong, and hopefully, durable body as a big asset.

Devonte German - July 2014

Photo by Jayne Hansen

German barely got his feet wet after being drafted in the 11th round in 2013 and the results of those first few outings were mostly forgettable, but this season is starting off much better for him. According to German, "The biggest difference between last year and and this year is I got to put in more time. I was able to get my body ready for the season sooner instead of playing my high school season, taking time off because of the draft and then jumping right back into it. Some muscles [were] tired and just not really in shape and then this year, I had a whole year to get ready for the season."

In explaining his pitch repertoire to me, he said, " I throw a fastball, a breaking ball that either breaks like a curve or a slider sometimes and a change up. My fastball is normally between 90 and 94. Change up is 82 to 86 and my slider's about 84 to 85. My slider would be my out pitch."

German talked about what he has accomplished so far during the relatively new season, "I feel like I've made a lot of improvements from last year to this year with how my body moves off the mound, how my pitches come out of my hand and throwing more strikes. Being able to compete with a lot of these guys who are older than me, coming from college and just being able to be competitive in my second year out of high school. To get to the next level as a pitcher, German is working on "being able to throw my fastball consistently hard down in the zone."

German didn't pitch while I was in Greeneville so I asked him what I would see if I had the chance to see him on the mound. "You'll see a calm demeanor, not really letting things bother me. I give it my all every pitch.. I'm going to make them beat me with my best stuff."

I asked Bonifay the same question and he responded, "Somebody who's not afraid to attack hitters. He will go after you. He's like a bulldog. He gets on the mound and he works. He's very young. A lot of young guys are timid and afraid, but he attacks hitters and gets after them."

I moved on to ask him some of my questions that serve to help me get to know some of the other players as well. Who has a pitch he'd like to steal? "If I had to steal a pitch, it would be [Jose] Montero's splitter. His splitter's one of the nastiest ones I've ever seen." What Astros hitter would he least like to face? "Probably Fontana because he draws a lot of walks. He's going to raise your pitch count up really fast."

When I asked about any Astros minor league fielders he liked having behind him in the field, German responded that, although he's only played with him a couple of times, he's impressed by 2B Tony Kemp, "Some plays he made up the middle I haven't seen made before so I'd like him to be behind me."

Who on the team makes him laugh? "There's a lot of guys that are really funny. Someone who might surprise you is Keegan Yuhl. He's a really funny guy. He can get you laughing."

In response to my question about what he'd do without baseball, German said, "If I couldn't play baseball, I'd probably be playing football in college." He definitely looks the part.

One of my final questions was one I always ask. Can you tell me something about yourself that most people don't know and might be surprised to hear. His response made me laugh out loud, "I'm actually a putt-putt champion. I'm pretty good. My putting game's on point. I can't drive, but I can putt."

It turns out that the other thing about Devonte that surprised me is how funny he is. He made me laugh out loud a couple of times. His photobomb in this picture of Aaron Greenwood and Dean Deetz is, like his putting game, on point.

Photo by Jayne Hansen

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Thank you for your time, Devonte, and the best of luck as the season continues. I can sincerely say that it was a pleasure getting to know you a little better.