Lefty Payton Tolle worked on baseball’s newest most popular pitch while at the JetBlue Park complex in Fort Myers after the Red Sox drafted him in the second round out of TCU in July.
“We started working on a sweeper grip,” Tolle said. “To me, that’s the new pitch in baseball. Everybody wants to learn how to throw a sweeper and throw it well because it can be a really effective pitch.”
Tolle is now the top prospect from Boston’s 2024 draft class still in the system after the Red Sox traded outfielder Braden Montgomery (12th overall pick) to the White Sox in the Garrett Crochet deal last week.
Boston selected Tolle 50th overall and signed him to a $2 million bonus, a tick higher than the $1.846 million slot value. He entered the organization with a four-pitch mix (fastball, slider, changeup, curveball), above-average extension and the size of a prototypical workhorse starter at 6-foot-6, 270 pounds. MassLive recently named him one of nine Red Sox prospects who could break out in 2025 and earn a spot on Baseball America’s Top 100 list.
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Tolle also experimented with different changeup grips while in Fort Myers.
“It can be trial and error with some grips and trying to figure out what works for me, what works for my arm slot, arm angle, how it’s going to play with my fastball,” Tolle said. “But sweeper and the changeup were the points of emphasis this summer.”
Tolle said his slider sort of “went through an identity crisis” during his final year at TCU. He basically was trying to figure out how wanted it to play.
“Either throw it harder and have a tighter break to it or we can take a few miles an hour off and throw it in the 81-82 (mph) range but having a lot more depth, a lot more movement on it,” Tolle said. “So during the season, I was trying to figure out what to do with it. And then whenever I got down there (Fort Myers) they were like, ‘Let’s work on the sweeper. We’re going to work on the slider another day later on. But as of right now, just work on that sweeper.’”
Tolle said he threw his fastball almost 75% of the time at TCU where he posted a 3.21 ERA and 1.16 WHIP in 14 starts (81 ⅓ innings) last spring. He had a 37.1% strikeout percentage (125 strikeouts, 337 batters faced). He primarily throws a four-seamer.
“Try to get it to ride,” he said. “I want that top of the zone with the good ride action to it.”
He throws the fastball 90-96 mph but he said he “likes to rock around that 91-93 mph range.”
“Whenever I get going this season, I want it to be up to 94, 95, 96,” he said.
His above-average extension makes the fastball look harder to batters.
“I think I’m throwing it close to a foot further than the average,” Tolle said. “So I think that helps a lot. So I like throwing it the top of the zone, kind of a lower slot, lower release point. It kind of makes it a difficult place for hitters to pick up I feel like. I like to get the swing and misses on fastballs up. And the other thing I like to do is having that long extension to be able to get on hitters. I feel like going inside on guys can be effective for me as well.”
Tolle also learned a curveball at TCU, where he transferred for his final collegiate season after two years at Wichita State.
“It was an effective pitch for us whenever we didn’t have a good feel for the slider,” he said. “I think there was one start where I just wasn’t quite getting that bite on the slider so I started throwing the curveball more. It comes out a whole lot slower and more loopy. I would try to throw it around 75 mph and it would make the fastball that was probably rocking around 91 (mph) look a lot faster.”
Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said back in July that Tolle is “every bit of 6-foot-6.”
“Big, projectable body,” Breslow said. “And he’s got some unique release traits and some characters that we really like.”
Tolle weighed in Friday at 270 pounds. He certainly is the size of a prototypical workhorse starter.
“In college, I always wanted to be the guy. I want you to stick me out there until I look like I’m about to pass out,” he said. “I like going out there. I think I threw one start this past year at 138 pitches. I want to be out there. I want to be out there affecting the game as much as I can.”
The season (and his professional debut) can’t come soon enough.
“I’m ready to start competing again,” Tolle said. “I’m ready to start playing in games again. Being in Fort Myers is great but I’m ready to play some games and watch baseball again from the dugout. … I need a little bit of a competitive outlet going. So I think that’s what I’m most excited for.”
