Heritage grad Saalfrank called up to Arizona Diamondbacks

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WPTA) - Andrew Saalfrank has made it to ‘The Show.’

The Arizona Diamondbacks called up the lefty pitcher to the Major League level on Monday.

Saalfrank was a star pitcher at Heritage High School, earning all-state honors in 2015 and 2016. He had a career record of 26-7 in high school, with a 1.67 ERA and a school record 429 strikeouts in 218.1 innings.

He then played three seasons at Indiana. in 2019, Saalfrank went 8-1 with a 2.84 ERA and 98 strikeouts.

The Diamondbacks selected Saalfrank win the sixth round of the 2019 MLB Draft. He began his pro career later that year.

Saalfrank suffered some serious setbacks after that. The pandemic wiped out the entire 2020 Minor League baseball season. Then an arm injury took Saalfrank out for all of 2021.

He returned to pitching in 2022, now working exclusively out of the bullpen. Saalffrank started that year at High-A Hilsboro. Since then he’s climbed through the ranks off the Arizona system, reaching Triple-A Reno back in June of this year.

In 2023, Saalfrank has gone 8-2 with a 2.53 ERA and 93 strikeouts in 64 innings of work.

The 26-year-old now joins an Arizona team that’s tied for the final Wild Card spot in the National League.

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