Spencer Arrighetti

{{Infobox baseball biography

|name = Spencer Arrighetti

|team = Houston Astros

|number = 41

|position = Pitcher

|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|2000|1|2}}

|birth_place = Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.

|bats = Right

|throws = Right

|debutleague = MLB

|debutdate = April 10

|debutyear = 2024

|debutteam = Houston Astros

|statleague = MLB

|statyear = April 2, 2025

|stat1label = Win–loss record

|stat1value = 8–13

|stat2label = Earned run average

|stat2value = 4.41

|stat3label = Strikeouts

|stat3value = 176

|teams =

Houston Astros ({{mlby|2024}}–present)

|awards =

}}

Spencer Zane Arrighetti (born January 2, 2000) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2024.

Amateur career

Arrighetti attended Cinco Ranch High School in Katy, Texas, and played college baseball at TCU, Navarro College, and Louisiana.{{cite web | last=Foote | first=Kevin | title=Armed with new-found confidence, Spencer Arrighetti ready to shine for Cajuns | website=The Advocate | date=February 24, 2021 | url=https://www.theadvocate.com/acadiana/sports/ul_lafayette/article_c4e2f21c-76e5-11eb-a362-43e9c11d2e9c.html | access-date=October 27, 2024}} As a freshman at TCU, Arrighetti made 16 appearances (1 start), striking out 19 batters across 17 innings pitched.{{Cite web |title=Spencer Arrighetti - Baseball |url=https://gofrogs.com/sports/baseball/roster/spencer-arrighetti/5690 |access-date=August 10, 2024 |website=TCU Athletics |language=en}} In 2020, Arrighetti transferred to Navarro College, where he made four starts, pitching to a 2–2 win-loss record and 4.26 earned run average (ERA) with 30 strikeouts.{{Cite web |title=Region 14 Athletics |url=https://njcaaregion14.com/sports/bsb/2019-20/players/spencerarrighettinl6x |access-date=August 10, 2024 |website=Region 14 Athletics |language=en}} That same year, he played collegiate summer baseball for the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters of the Northwoods League.

As a junior, Arrighetti transferred to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. In 2021, he led the Ragin' Cajuns with 83.2 innings pitched, posting a 7–6 record with a 3.12 ERA and a team-high 91 strikeouts.{{Cite web |title=Cajuns Baseball Alum Arrighetti Called Up By Astros |url=https://ragincajuns.com/news/2024/4/10/cajuns-baseball-alum-arrighetti-called-up-by-astros |access-date=August 10, 2024 |website=Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns |language=en}}

Professional career

=Draft and minor leagues (2021–2023)=

Arrighetti was drafted by the Houston Astros in the sixth round of the 2021 Major League Baseball draft.{{cite news | url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/texas-sports-nation/astros/article/Astros-draft-Cinco-Ranch-pitch-Spencer-Arrighetti-16309600.php | title=Astros draft former Cinco Ranch pitcher Spencer Arrighetti | newspaper=Houston Chronicle | date=July 12, 2021 | last1=Rome | first1=Chandler }}{{cite web | url=https://www.theadvocate.com/acadiana/sports/ul_lafayette/article_8c9f3d60-e365-11eb-97ff-dbc689b08473.html | title=UL's Arrighetti, Cooke punctuate turnaround seasons by getting drafted on day two of MLB draft | date=July 12, 2021 }} He made his professional debut that same year with the Rookie-level Florida Complex League Astros before being promoted to the Single-A Fayetteville Woodpeckers. Arrighetti started 2022 with the High-A Asheville Tourists before his promotion to the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks.{{cite news | url=https://www.si.com/mlb/astros/prospects/two-houston-astros-prospects-receive-promotion-corpus-christi-hooks | title=Pair of Astros Prospects Receive Promotion to Corpus Christi | newspaper=Sports Illustrated Inside the Astros }} Between the two clubs, he made 27 appearances (17 starts), posting a 7–6 record with a 4.73 ERA and 152 strikeouts over 106²⁄₃ innings. Arrighetti split the 2023 season between the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks and the Triple-A Sugar Land Space Cowboys. Following the season, Arrighetti was named the Houston Astros' 2023 Minor League Pitcher of the Year.{{Cite web |date=April 4, 2024 |title=Astros Pitching Prospect Spencer Arrighetti Is All in With Analytics |url=https://blogs.fangraphs.com/astros-pitching-prospect-spencer-arrighetti-is-all-in-with-analytics/ |access-date=August 10, 2024 |website=FanGraphs Baseball}}{{Cite web |last=Vann |first=Leah |date=March 19, 2024 |title=Astros' pitching prospect hopes resilience pays off with a rookie debut |url=https://www.chron.com/sports/astros/article/astros-spencer-arrighetti-callup-19071557.php |website=Chron.}}

=Major League rookie season (2024)=

Arrighetti began the 2024 season with Triple-A Sugar Land where he made two starts, posting a 2.16 ERA in 8¹⁄₃ innings.{{Cite magazine |date=April 11, 2024 |title=Houston Astros Top Pitching Prospect Rocked in MLB Debut |url=https://www.si.com/mlb/astros/news/houston-astros-top-pitching-prospect-rocked-in-mlb-debut-matt9 |access-date=August 10, 2024 |magazine=Sports Illustrated |language=en-US}} The Astros promoted him to the major leagues on April 10, 2024, and he made his major league debut that night.{{Cite web |date=April 10, 2024 |title=Aching Astros call up pitching prospect Arrighetti |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39913861/astros-call-top-pitching-prospect-spencer-arrighetti |access-date=June 27, 2024 |website=ESPN.com|agency=Associated Press}} He allowed seven runs across three innings and struck out three batters against the Kansas City Royals. He achieved his first major league win on May 13, 2024, after allowing two runs over five innings to the Oakland Athletics in a 9–2 final.{{cite news |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401569091 |title=Alex Bregman homers twice, drives in 4 runs as Astros pound Athletics 9–2 |work=ESPN.com |agency=Associated Press |date=May 13, 2024 |access-date=August 24, 2024}} Arrighetti recorded 10 strikeouts in a major league game for the first time on June 26 in a 7–1 victory over the Colorado Rockies.{{cite news |last=McTaggart |first=Brian |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/spencer-arrighetti-strikes-out-10-as-astros-reach-500 |title=Astros hit target set in Mexico, reach .500 for first time: Arrighetti sets personal mark with 10 K's for Houston, which wins season-high 7th in a row |work=MLB.com |date=June 26, 2024 |access-date=August 24, 2024}}

On August 4, 2024, Arrighetti struck out 12 batters in the 1–0 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.{{Cite web |last=Peredes Hernández |first=Perla |date=August 4, 2024 |title=12-K day reflects Spencer Arrighetti's increasing belief in his stuff |url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/sports/astros/article/spencer-arrighetti-12-strikeouts-19619509.php |website=Houston Chronicle |access-date=August 10, 2024}} In his next start, against the Boston Red Sox, he struck out a career-high 13 batters across seven innings in the 5–4 win.{{Cite web |title=Astros' Spencer Arrighetti tosses 7 strong innings & racks up 13 strikeouts against the Red Sox |url=https://www.foxsports.com/watch/fmc-59enizh0iw6jzrxu |access-date=August 10, 2024 |website=FOX Sports |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Spencer Arrighetti racks up career-high 13 K's {{!}} October 8, 2024 |url=https://www.mlb.com/video/spencer-arrighetti-k-s-13 |access-date=August 10, 2024 |website=MLB.com |language=en}} Those performances made Arrighetti the first rookie in American League (AL) history to strike out 12 batters each in consecutive starts.{{cite magazine |last=Maher |first=Tyler |url=https://www.si.com/mlb/astros/news/can-houston-astros-extend-winning-streak-on-friday-vs-white-sox |title=Houston Astros pitchers shine in record-setting sweep of Red Sox |magazine=Sports Illustrated |date=August 12, 2024 |access-date=August 17, 2024}} On August 28, Arrighetti took a no-hitter into seventh inning versus the Philadelphia Phillies, and had a career-high {{frac|7|2|3}} shutout innings with 11 strikeouts to lead a 10–0 win.{{cite news |last=McTaggart |first=Brian |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/spencer-arrighetti-yordan-alvarez-lead-astros-to-win |title=Alvarez hits 3 HRs, Arrighetti flirts with no-no ... and Altuve steals home?! |work=MLB.com |date=August 28, 2024 |access-date=August 28, 2024}} For the month of August, he posted a 1.95 ERA, 0.90 walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP), and 47 strikeouts over {{frac|32|1|3}} innings, thus being recognized as AL Rookie of the Month.{{cite news |last=Sepe-Chepuru |first=Shanthi |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-monthly-award-winners-for-august-2024 |title=Here are MLB's 8 top performers from August |work=MLB.com |date=September 3, 2024 |access-date=September 3, 2024}}

In a contest versus the San Diego Padres on September 16, 2024, Arrighetti retired prospective 3-time batting champion Luis Arráez on a strikeout for the first time in 141 plate appearances, the longest such streak in the major leagues since Juan Pierre resisted 147 in 2004.{{cite news |last=McTaggart |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/spencer-arrighetti-grinds-through-five-innings-vs-padres |title=Arrighetti can hang his hat on rare K of batting champ |work=MLB.com |date=September 16, 2024 |access-date=October 14, 2024}}

During Arrighetti's rookie campaign, his efforts evolved into an integral piece of the Astros' starting rotation, during which he pitched 29 appearances, starting 28 and produced a 4.53 ERA, 7–13 W–L, and 171 strikeouts over 145 innings. His 13 losses were sixth-most in the AL and 65 BB were 7th-most.{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/a/arrigsp01.shtml |title=Spencer Arrighetti stats, height, weight, position, rookie status & more |work=Baseball-Reference.com |access-date=October 15, 2024}} Following the regular season, he was named the Houston Astros Rookie of the Year by the Houston chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA).{{cite tweet |last=McTaggart |first=Brian |author-link= |user=brianmctaggart |number=1841139580352835934 |date=October 1, 2024 |title=The Houston Chapter of the Baseball Writers' Associations of America has announced the 2024 Astros award winners |script-title= |trans-title= |language=en |retweet= |location=Houston |access-date=October 7, 2024 |link= |quote= |ref=}}

Awards

class="wikitable" \|+ Awards won by Spencer Arrighetti
Award !Category !Result / Section !{{Tooltip\|No.\|Numvber of times won}} !Year !{{Tooltip\|Ref.\|Reference}}
rowspan="2" \|Houston Astros
colspan="2" \|Rookie of the Year \|style="text-align:center;"\| 1 \|style="text-align:center;"\| 2024 \|style="text-align:center;"\|

class="wikitable"

|+ Awards won by Spencer Arrighetti

Award

!Category

!Result /
Section

!{{Tooltip|No.|Numvber of times won}}

!Year

!{{Tooltip|Ref.|Reference}}

rowspan="2" |Houston Astros

colspan="2" |Rookie of the Year

|style="text-align:center;"| 1

|style="text-align:center;"| 2024