Threshers Spotlight: Brandon Leibrandt

Before Brandon Leibrandt landed on the disabled list, the lefty had flourished as one of the top starting pitchers in the Florida State League.

Following his start at Palm Beach on May 23, Leibrandt ranked 11th in the league in ERA at 2.29, third in strikeouts with 52, first in WHIP at 0.88, and seventh with a .203 opponent average.

At that point, Leibrandt had pitched six or more innings and permitted three runs or less in all but one outing this year. Two weeks later, the 22-year old was placed on the disabled list for the first time in his professional career.

Now, the southpaw is back after a month on the shelf, and reclaimed his place in the Threshers rotation on July 7 with four innings of one-run ball against Lakeland.

Leibrandt, the son of former Major League pitcher Charlie Leibrandt, is in his first full season of professional baseball, having been drafted by the Phillies in the sixth round out of Florida State University in 2014.

"I couldn't have been happier," Leibrandt says of being drafted by the Phillies. "I was at home with my mom and dad and my brother, I got the call and heard it on TV, and it was a great experience.

"I was ready to go right then and there."

Despite pitching in only six games during his junior year at FSU, Leibrandt had done more than enough to impress.

A native of Alpharetta, Georgia, Leibrandt chose Florida State due to its proximity and storied success. He was originally drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 48th round out of Marist High School, but Leibrandt elected to continue on into the collegiate ranks and pitch for Florida State.

"It was close to home and when I visited it had great facilities, great tradition," Leibrandt says, "The aura of the fan base, just something you want to be apart of, and that was three of the greatest years of my life. I'm very happy with my decision."

Leibrandt made an immediate impact in the Seminoles rotation. As a freshman in 2012, he earned the nod in the season opener against Hofstra, becoming the first freshman in Seminoles history to earn the start on opening day. Leibrandt remained the ace throughout the season, serving as Florida State's Friday night starter.

He went 8-3 with a 2.82 ERA in 19 starts that year, helping lead the Seminoles all the way to the College World Series. Leibrandt made two starts against Arizona and, while the outcome was not favorable for FSU, it was certainly an unforgettable experience for the young pitcher.

"You grow up watching college baseball and you think, 'Maybe one day I could be a part of that', and you know (when) it actually happens it's just kind of surreal," Leibrandt says. "It was definitely a great experience being there."

Despite falling short of a championship, that 2012 Florida State roster was packed with talent, including current Toronto Blue Jays infielder Devon Travis. Along with Leibrandt, two other FSU pitchers from that squad are currently pitching in the Florida State League, in Lakeland's Scott Sitz and Palm Beach's Luke Weaver.

Leibrandt relished the opportunity to play alongside guys like Sitz and Weaver, an environment in which the young pitchers could compete and learn from each other on their way to developing into professional hurlers.

"Each time out we were trying to one-up each other, we had a little game like who would win the week, who had the best start, and it only made us better," Leibrandt says.

"Very competitive group, but we're always rooting for each other no matter what. It's great to see them out there now, catch up with them before the games, you know always keeping up on their box scores and hoping they're doing well."

Leibrandt has been surrounded by baseball talent from the very beginning. His father Charlie, also a left-handed pitcher, was a ninth round draft pick of the Cincinnati Reds in 1978, and went on to pitch 14 seasons in the Major Leagues for the Reds, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves, and Texas Rangers from 1979 to 1993. Brandon's brother Brodie also pitched collegiately as a left-handed hurler at Columbus State.

While Leibrandt did not necessarily grow up knowing that baseball would be his calling, he developed a passion and talent for the game which he has ridden all the way to the professional ranks.

"It was one of those things where I liked playing it too, and I was fortunate enough to be good at it enough to where I could continue on at each level," Leibrandt says. "But it wasn't anything like, 'I have to play baseball, I have to play in college,' or 'I have to play in the minors,' just kind of something that, the love that's kind of continually grown over the years."

Leibrandt acknowledges that, while frustrating, his injuries have still served to help him develop mentally.

"It definitely helped with patience," he says of missing time in college. "You know, the minors you've got to have a lot of patience, you don't necessarily know what your timeline is or anything like that, so you've got to just control what you can control."