Reece
Usselman

Usselman, 6-foot-3, 175-pounds, was dominant in his start in Game 1 of the Canadian Futures Showcase. The Oregeon commit shows elite command being able to spot all of his pitches down in the zone whenever he wants. Nothing is straight and the LHP produces a ton of soft contact and uncomfortable swings. Usselman is one of the top pitchers in Canada’s ‘23 class.

Usselman (‘23 Oregon) has been one of the top arms for this Canadian squad for the past several trips and was their most reliable arm at the World Cup. He dominated Netherlands in his first start, going 5.1 shutout innings, allowing just one hit and no walks, along with five strikeouts. His second start against Italy, the B.C. native went 6.1 innings, allowing three runs and punching out six.

He didn’t allow any extra-base hits in his 11.2 innings and nearly struck out three times as many as he walked. The left-hander works with quality stuff and is a candidate to break out when he heads to Oregon next fall. 

Stat Line: 2 GS | 11.2 IP | 1.80 ERA | 7 H | 3 R | 4 BB | 11 K | 0 XBH | .175 AVG

Our staff got a look at Usselman earlier this month in B.C. and while it wasn’t the best we’ve seen his stuff this year, he appeared to redeem himself with Team Canada on the Dominican Trip. Usselman appeared in three games, working 4 or more innings each time out. He punched out 16 hitters and walked just six over 13 innings of work, also allowing 12 hits. The armside run on his fastball makes him difficult to hit, especially when his velo is in the upper 80s. A left-hander with some interesting characteristics on the mound who could be ready to breakout during his time with the Ducks in the PAC12.
Stat line: 13.0 IP (3 app.) | 12 H | 6 R | 4 ER | 6 BB | 16 K | HR

We got our second look this year at 2022 Oregon commit Reece Usselman and he dazzled the first time out in Arizona with Langley Blaze on the Pro Tour. He worked three innings against Chandler Gilbert and was racking up the swings and misses/strikeouts on his fastball that sat 86-88 with some nasty arm side run. It was an impressive outing that saw a few curveballs with sharp, late break for swings/misses.

This past week at the Best of the West he sat 84-86 with the fastball against a good hitting Ontario Blue Jays lineup. While the fastball wasn't as effective this time out, Usselman began to rely on the curveball that sat 67-69. The pitch helped him through the outing with the ability to locate it for strikes. Also saw several changeups at 74-75. Usselman showed to ability to battle through a start and remain effective, while not having his best stuff.