Honeywell: Teammates' support 'a big deal'

As he faced hitters for the first time this spring on Saturday morning, Brent Honeywell Jr. felt like his stuff showed up. It meant even more to him that so many of his teammates did, too.

Honeywell’s back-field live batting practice session at Charlotte Sports Park drew quite a crowd, with Rays manager Kevin Cash observing that “most of our entire camp was out there watching.” Coaches and teammates understood the significance of the moment for Honeywell, the 25-year-old right-hander who has undergone four elbow surgeries since he last pitched in a game on Sept. 3, 2017.

“It was a big deal. That was probably the biggest part of yesterday for me, honestly, was seeing all the guys out there ready to watch me pitch,” Honeywell said Sunday morning. “That one hit me right in the heart a little bit.”

And by all accounts, Honeywell put on quite a show to reward his teammates’ show of support. It hadn’t been that long since he last pitched against his teammates, as he did so as part of Tampa Bay’s postseason player pool in October. He said he only felt “serviceable” at that point, though -- capable of pitching if needed despite the discomfort in his arm. But it had been a while, Honeywell said, since he felt the way he did on Saturday.

Cash said his fastball sat at 95 mph, up from 90-93 mph at the alternate training site last year. Honeywell was pleased with the “jump” on his fastball and the fact that he could throw it by hitters. Right-hander Michael Wacha said Honeywell generated a lot of swinging strikes with the “nasty” offspeed pitches he threw to catcher Chris Betts.

“The hop on the fastball was a little better, and the stuff was probably as crisp as it's been in three years,” Honeywell said. “The reaction that I'm looking for is the reaction that I was getting back when I know that my stuff was really, really good. I was getting kind of the same reactions.

“That kind of just brought it to a head a little bit and said, like, ‘Yeah, you're starting to get back to what you used to do.’”

There is no denying Honeywell’s talent. He ranked among MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects each year from 2016-19 for a reason, and he would have already established himself in the Majors by now if not for a series of injuries -- Tommy John surgery in February 2018, a broken bone in ’19, a nerve decompression operation in May 2020 and a minor arthroscopic cleanup procedure in December.

That context, as well as Honeywell’s work ethic and reputation as an excellent teammate, inspired a lot of interest Saturday morning throughout the Rays’ Spring Training complex.

“It was very, very smooth,” said Wacha, who threw three-plus innings in an intrasquad game on Saturday. “I've gotten to know Honey a little bit over the past few weeks. He was one of the first people I met whenever I walked in here. Great dude, and I'm looking forward to seeing what he's got out there. He seems like a pretty good talent, for sure.”

“There's a lot of people pulling for Brent to get that opportunity to be healthy and contribute in whatever capacity,” Cash added.

It seems likely that, as long as he stays healthy, Honeywell’s time with the Rays will come soon enough. Saturday’s live BP session was a step in the right direction. At some point, he’d like to take another long-awaited step by facing hitters wearing a different jersey.

Honeywell said he would like to pitch in a Grapefruit League game, and he believes getting back in a competitive atmosphere will be beneficial for him. Cash said it’s “pretty unlikely” that will happen given the build-up plan the Rays have laid out for him and the amount of time remaining in Spring Training, even though he said Honeywell looked ready for the challenge on Saturday with the way he pitched.

“I looked pretty sharp. That's the best my stuff's looked in a while, and I mean, I feel like it could pitch anywhere, honestly,” Honeywell said. “I want to pitch in some Spring Training games, but if there's not enough time, there's just not enough time. Who knows where I'm at with progression -- like, I don't really know, because we're kind of just moving at the beat of this thing.”

Whenever that day comes, whether it’s later this month or later this year, you can bet a lot of people will show up for it -- and for him.

“They've been in my corner the whole time, and they've been pulling for me,” Honeywell said. “I can't thank this club enough for what they've done for me.”