Austin Wright became the first member of the 2015 Windy City ThunderBolts to be signed by a major league organization as he was picked up by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday.
Wright, a Chicago area native who joined the ThunderBolts just before the 2015 campaign, compiled a 5-11 record and a 4.46 ERA while making 19 starts.
After getting off to a shaky start, Wright proved himself an effective Frontier League pitcher in the second half of the season. Between the start of July and the end of August he posted a 3.78 ERA. He also increased his strikeout numbers and decreased his walks as the season went along. After walking 7.9 batters per nine innings over his first six starts, he lowered that number to 3.2 over his final 13. He struck out 47 hitters during his last 39.1 innings, covering six starts to finish seventh in the league with an even 100.
Wright will be getting his second chance in affiliated ball. He was originally drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2011 out of the University of Mississippi and went 23-17 with a 4.26 ERA in his four years in their system.
He is the seventh Windy City pitcher since the start of 2012 to be signed by the Diamondbacks and will join former ThunderBolt hurlers Blayne Weller and Markus Solbach in the Arizona system.
