Jordan Jankowski

Jordan Jankowski was a record-setting high-school power hitter in Western Pennsylvania, but a full-time turn to pitching in college opened his path to the pros. Taken by the Houston Astros in the 34th round of the June 2012 draft out of Catawba College, an NCAA Division II school in Salisbury, North Carolina, Jankowski reached the majors in 2017, appearing in three games with the Astros, notching his only major-league win in relief on a wild Sunday in Minneapolis, and earning a World Series ring.

Jankowski, the son of Ronald and Lisa Jankowski, was born on May 17, 1989.1 His father owned a bar in Pittsburgh, and his mother worked there as a bartender.2 Jordan Jankowski grew up in Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood and started playing baseball at age 5.3 By age 12, he was a member of two Little League teams and an American Athletic League team, playing in what he estimated as 120 games that spring and summer.4

“My dad would take me to the field probably six days a week to make sure that I was putting the work in,” Jankowski remembered in 2020.5 In the winter, Jankowski practiced his swing on a soft-toss station in the basement of his family’s home.6

“Before I was allowed to play any video games or hang out with my friends, I would take like 250 swings per day in my basement,” he said.7 “My dad’s attitude was, ‘If you want to be good at anything, you have to put your work in first.’”8

Jankowski’s biggest headlines at Peters Township High School came from his bat; a catcher, he hit 36 home runs over four seasons and drove in 132 runs.9 In one game as a junior, he hit four home runs – with a potential fifth homer clearing the fence but going foul.10

He also drew acclaim as a pitcher, racking up a 15-4 record in his sophomore through senior seasons.11 At Peters Township, Jankowski played on a state runner-up team in 2005, a team that finished its regular season undefeated in 2006, and back-to-back Western Pennsylvania-wide championship teams in 2007 and 2008.12

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette selected him as its high-school baseball Player of the Year after his senior season in 2008 and concluded that his lifetime homer total was the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League’s (WPIAL) all-time record.13

“He just loved to swing the bat,” Joe Maize, Jankowski’s high-school coach, remembered.14 “Unbelievable bat speed. I haven’t seen too many high school kids who had bat speed like he had.”

Schools from the Big Ten, Big East, and Southeastern Conferences were interested in Jankowski, but many wanted him as a pitcher only.15 Jankowski was not ready to give up catching, and he signed with Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, a member of the Mid-America Conference.16 He kept his college commitment after the Astros selected him as a catcher in the 34th round of the June draft in 2008.

With future major leaguer Adam Eaton as a teammate at Miami University, Jankowski split time between pitching and catching during his freshman year. He distinguished himself most as a pitcher, finishing with a 6-1 record and a team-high five saves.17

Jankowski remained Miami’s closer in 2010 and became the team’s main designated hitter.18 He recorded 10 saves, good for second in the Mid-America Conference, and hit eight home runs.

“As a hitter I think like a pitcher,” Jankowski said in May 2010. “And as a pitcher I think like a hitter.”19

After the 2010 season, Jankowski transferred to Catawba. As of 2023, he was one of only two Catawba alumni to reach the majors in the twenty-first century.20

“I was playing in a summer league … and one of my teammates went to Catawba,” Jankowski recounted in a 2015 interview. “I felt that if I was going to become a pitcher I wanted to go south to get more work in and to take better care of my arm. I talked to the coach there and I didn’t have to sit out a year, so I decided to transfer.”21

At this point a starting pitcher, he led the South Atlantic Conference in strikeouts per nine innings with 11.12 and earned first-team all-conference honors in 2011.22

“You develop at different times in your life as an athlete,” Jankowski said in 2020. “I think I plateaued as a hitter and I kind of took off as a pitcher at a weird time. Most people do that when they’re younger. It happened to me when I was in college, really.”23

During Jankowski’s time at Catawba, a family member introduced him to his future wife – a Pittsburgh-area native also named Jordan.24

“Most of my family call me ‘J.J.’ and call her ‘Jordan,’” Jankowski said in a 2023 interview.25 As of 2023, they had three sons and a daughter.26

Jankowski went undrafted and returned to Catawba in 2012 for his final season of college eligibility. Catawba had an outstanding team, eventually finishing fourth in the NCAA Division II College World Series.27 Pitching mostly as a starter, Jankowski had a 9-2 record, a 3.79 ERA, and 126 strikeouts in 90⅓ innings.28 He was named the South Atlantic Conference’s co-Pitcher of the Year and selected to the all-conference first team as a starting pitcher.29

The Astros were the only team to invite Jankowski to a predraft workout in 2012, four years after selecting him out of high school,30 but their nearest tryout – in Atlanta – was at the same time as Catawba’s conference tournament.31 With time running out before the June draft, one of Houston’s area scouts suggested that Jankowski come to another Astros tryout in the Los Angeles area to throw a bullpen session.32

Jankowski told Catawba coach Jim Gantt he was going to make the trip to California33 on a travel day for Catawba before the tournament.34 Two hours later, as Jankowski recounted in a 2023 interview, Gantt kicked him off the team.35

“His attitude was ‘If you’re not all-in, you’re off the team,’” Jankowski said.36

Jankowski’s college career was over, but he had made an impression on the Astros, who selected him in the 34th round – the same as in 2008 – that June. In 2017 Bobby Heck, who was Houston’s scouting director from 2007 through 2012,37 told the Houston Chronicle that Jankowski most likely would have been drafted without going to the workout, but that flying to California significantly boosted his chances with the Astros.38

“You could see he was passionate,” Heck remembered. “The guy wants to play. You go across the country and put his eligibility with his team in peril, I think that says a little bit about how much he wanted to play professional baseball.”39

Jankowski signed with the Astros for $2,000: the typical $1,000 offered to seniors selected in the later rounds, plus another $1,000 for travel expenses.40 He reported to Greenville of the short-season Appalachian League, where his teammates included the Astros’ two first-round draft selections, shortstop Carlos Correa and pitcher Lance McCullers.

Pitching in relief in Greenville, Jankowski led the team with 23 appearances; his four saves tied for the team lead. He praised Greenville pitching coach Héctor Mercado, who had pitched in the major leagues for the Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies, for “putting in my head that I have to pitch inside.”41

Jankowski moved up to Quad Cities River Bandits and the Class-A Midwest League in 2013. As a River Bandit, he started in about half of his 26 appearances as part of a tandem pitching system and recorded a 2.61 ERA in 89⅔ innings. His performance earned him a spot in the Midwest League All-Star Game, alongside teammates Correa and McCullers.42

“He took it by the horns and made himself better,” said Quad Cities pitching coach Dave Borkowski, who had a seven-season big-league career.43

“All my pitching coaches going up were awesome,” Jankowski said. “Before Dave Borkowski, I had shied away from contact, but he was the one who taught me to pitch to contact.”44

A Houston Chronicle profile of the Astros’ farm system in June 2013 listed Jankowski with Correa, McCullers, and Teoscar Hernández – all future major-league All-Stars – as top players on the team.45

After reaching the High-A California League during the 2013 season, Jankowski – who completed his college degree in health administration with Pittsburgh’s Robert Morris University during the 2013-14 offseason46 – continued to advance through the Astros system. He spent 2014 in Double A with Corpus Christi of the Texas League, where his pitching coach was longtime major-league reliever Doug Brocail.47

“I made my biggest leap in the minors with Doug Brocail,” Jankowski remembered. “He pushed me to my limits and instilled in me that I was better than the competition. More than a coach, he was a good friend.”48

The Astros made Jankowski a nonroster invitee to spring training in 2015, then again in 2016.49 He pitched in Triple A with Fresno of the Pacific Coast League in both seasons, working almost exclusively in relief. In 2015 Jankowski did not allow a single home run in 62⅓ innings pitched; he was the only reliever in the PCL who pitched more than 50 innings or made more than 40 appearances without yielding a homer.50

His pitching coach in Fresno was Dyar Miller, who was at the end of a five-decade career in professional baseball.

“Dyar Miller was cool,” Jankowski said. “When you’re in Triple A, you can get a little bit frustrated [being so close to the majors]. He made it more fun and got rid of all the stress.”51

While in Fresno in 2016, Jankowski taught teammate Brad Peacock how to throw a sweeping slider, a pitch that Peacock deployed prominently during his 2017 big-league breakthrough with the Astros.52

“I had a slider going into [2016], but it was getting crushed,” Peacock said in 2017. “I’d just try to throw it hard, but it really wasn’t moving much. I kind of just said, ‘I need something new,’ and I asked one of my buddies who had a good slider on the team.”53

“Peacock was one of my best friends,” Jankowski recounted in 2023. “We got to talking and messing around with grips. “One thing I loved doing was messing with people’s grips and helping my teammates. It was more the hard work that he put in, rather than what I taught him.”54

Again a nonroster invitee to Astros spring training in 2017, Jankowski was, as the Houston Chronicle noted, “a dark-horse candidate for a September promotion last year but never got the call. He projects to return to Class AAA.”55 He was back in Fresno’s bullpen when the 2017 season started.

“I knew I had some pretty good years, and I was wondering what I needed to do to get to the next step,” Jankowski remembered. “Everyone said just to be patient.”56

With a 1.42 ERA through his first 19 innings pitched at Fresno, Jankowski received the call to the majors on May 22, 2017.57 The Astros were running away with the American League West, but they needed another pitcher with starter Dallas Keuchel sidelined with a pinched nerve in his neck and Ashur Tolliver having gone four innings in relief a day earlier.58

Jankowski learned about his promotion in the aftermath of a poor performance for the Fresno club. After Grizzlies manager Tony DeFrancesco finished chewing out his team, he informed them that Jankowski was going to the majors.

“They all mobbed me at my locker,” Jankowski said. “I couldn’t even breathe. They were all jumping on top of me. It was pretty cool.”59

“It was a lot of guys on the team who I had played with for three years. I think they realized that I needed a shot.”60

Jankowski made his big-league debut at Houston’s Minute Maid Park on May 24, 2017, a week after his 28th birthday. He entered in the ninth inning, with the Astros trailing the Detroit Tigers, 4-2. He fanned the first two batters he faced, Mikie Mahtook and Andrew Romine, but allowed a triple to Tyler Collins, then a home run to José Iglesias on a full-count pitch, a homer that barely reached the close-target Crawford Boxes in left field.

“I remember the real tough at-bat I had with Iglesias,” Jankowski remembered in 2023. “I got back to my room and saw it on SportsCenter. They called it up on Statcast and said there was a 99.7 percent chance it would not have been a home run anywhere else – and that this was the 0.3 percent!”61

Jankowski regrouped to strike out Ian Kinsler for the third out. Television cameras found his wife in the stands and broadcast images of her emotive responses to Jankowski’s pitching.62

Before Jankowski appeared in another game, the Astros informed him on May 26 that he was returning to Fresno, in anticipation of Keuchel returning from the disabled list.63 But another injury to a Houston starter – this time, Charlie Morton – led to Jankowski’s rapid recall on May 28.64

“I landed in Fresno – and then had to catch a flight to Minneapolis,” Jankowski said. “I missed the first flight to Minneapolis, so I got in late at night.”65

A day later, on Memorial Day, he was in the bullpen at Minneapolis’s Target Field as Peacock, who had joined the rotation after Keuchel’s injury, faced the Twins. Peacock started strongly, shutting out the Twins on one hit through four innings, but Minnesota rallied for three runs in the fifth to take a 3-2 lead. With one on and two outs, Houston manager A.J. Hinch summoned Jankowski from the bullpen. “I had to eat as many innings as I could at that point, just to help the team.”66

Jankowski faced 13 batters over the next 2⅓ innings. By the time he had thrown his final pitch of the afternoon, he had allowed five hits, including home runs to Miguel Sano and former Fresno teammate Robbie Grossman, and the Twins had a seemingly commanding 8-2 lead after seven innings.

Houston’s offense then flashed the firepower that led the majors in runs scored, battering three Twins pitchers for 11 runs in the eighth, then tacking on three more in the ninth. When the dust had cleared, the Astros had a 16-8 victory, their fifth in a row, and Jankowski, as pitcher of record for the 11-run outburst, was credited with the win.

“It was definitely crazy,” Jankowski said after getting the win. “It was a cool experience. I’m just glad we won.”67

The Astros, seeking a fresh arm after Jankowski’s 46 pitches, optioned him to Fresno after the game.68 He returned to the majors on June 24 when Peacock went on the paternity list.69 Once the weekend was over, Jankowski was back in Triple A without making a major-league appearance.70

He made it back to Houston one last time, when the Astros put relievers Tony Sipp and Michael Feliz on the disabled list on August 1. He pitched a scoreless ninth inning a day later in the Astros’ 3-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays, catching Logan Morrison looking for the third out.

On August 14, the Astros faced a catching crisis with Brian McCann and Evan Gattis on the disabled list. They added Max Stassi to their 40-man roster, which meant having to clear a spot. Jankowski was designated for assignment.

The Los Angeles Dodgers claimed Jankowski on waivers on August 20 and assigned him to Triple-A Oklahoma City.

But on September 3, Los Angeles designated him for assignment. Jankowski was on the sidelines in October when his two professional organizations played in the World Series. The Astros’ seven-game win gave him a World Series ring.

Jankowski went to spring training with the Dodgers in 2018 but was released in March. The Los Angeles Angels signed him as a free agent, then released him in May after 15 appearances with an 8.68 ERA at Triple-A Salt Lake.

Jankowski retired from affiliated baseball at that point, returning to Pittsburgh to work as a realtor.

“I’m still competitive,” Jankowski said in 2020. “When I got out of baseball I came home and wasn’t sure what was next for me. So I got my real estate license and everything just took off. I really like real estate. It’s different than sports, but it’s still very competitive. I don’t know which one is more stressful.”71

He returned to action in 2020 in an independent league near Pittsburgh, hosted by the Frontier League’s Washington Wild Things during the COVID pandemic, before ending his professional career for good.72

“They called me and asked if I wanted to close,” Jankowski remembered in 2023. “My son was 3, and he had never seen me play. I hurt my arm in the first game and tried to pitch through it. It was still cool, playing against some guys who had been in the minors.”73

As of 2023, Jankowski’s 36 high-school home runs remain an unofficial Western Pennsylvania record, even more than notable players like Donora High School’s Stan Musial and Ken Griffey, Wampum High School’s Dick Allen, Upper St. Clair High School’s Sean Casey, and Pittsburgh Central Catholic’s Dan Marino, who was drafted by the Kansas City Royals out of high school before devoting himself to football full-time.74

“I didn’t even know it was a thing [when I was in high school], but it’s definitely cool to know that,” Jankowski said. “It’s funny that the most prolific home run hitter in the WPIAL didn’t even take one at-bat professionally.”75

Sources

The author thanks Jordan Jankowski for discussing his life and baseball career in a telephone interview on June 19, 2023. In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Reference.com and Retrosheet.org for pertinent information.

Photo credit: Jordan Jankowski, courtesy of Miami University Athletic Communications.

Notes

1 “Jordan Jankowski,” MiamiRedhawks.com, accessed March 10, 2023, https://miamiredhawks.com/sports/baseball/roster/jordan-jankowski/121.

2 Telephone interview with Jordan Jankowski, June 19, 2023.

3 Steve Rotstein, “Unofficial Home Run Champion,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 15, 2020: LX-5.

4 Rotstein.

5 Rotstein.

6 Telephone interview with Jordan Jankowski, June 19, 2023, hereafter Jankowski interview.

7 Rotstein.

8 Jankowski interview.

9 Rotstein.

10 Mike White, “Peters Twp. Junior Missed 5-Homer Record by a Foot,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, April 29, 2007: C-12.

11 Jankowski was 6-0 as a sophomore in 2006, 4-3 as a junior in 2007, and 6-1 as a senior in 2008. Chris Adamski, “Division I Colleges Taking a Look at Peters Junior,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 29, 2007: S-8; “All-Stars: Washington,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 24, 2007: W-5; “All-Area: The Best in High School Baseball and Softball for the 2008 Season,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 22, 2008: D-8.

12 Mike White, “Different Year, Same Ending in Title Game: Peters Township Falls for Second Year in a Row,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 18, 2005: C-9: David Assad, “Peters’ Perfect Season Pops: Top Seed Stumbles, But ’07 Hopes High,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 28, 2006: W-6; Chris Adamski, “WPIAL Champion Peters Simply Has No Regrets,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 14, 2007: S-9; Chris Adamski, “Peters Bids Adieu to Excellent Senior Class,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 15, 2008: W-6.

13 “All-Area: The Best in High School Baseball and Softball for the 2008 Season”; Mike White, “JJ = HR: With a Record-Shattering 36 Career Home Runs, Peters Township’s Jordan Jankowski Is the WPIAL’s Sultan of Swat,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 18, 2008: D-10.

14 Rotstein.

15 Pete Conrad, “Bullpen Ace a Big Hit at Plate, Too,” Hamilton (Ohio) Journal News, May 7, 2010: B1.

16 Conrad.

17 Jordan Jankowski, The Baseball Cube, accessed July 12, 2023, https://www.thebaseballcube.com/content/player/143072/.

18 Conrad.

19 Conrad.

20 Jerry Sands, who appeared in 156 games with four teams from 2011 through 2016, is the other. Nine other players from Catawba, most notably six-time All-Star Johnny Temple, have also reached the majors.

21 “Jordan Jankowski: Story and Interview,” ChasingMLBDreams.com, January 26, 2015, https://chasingmlbdreams.com/2015/01/26/jordan-jankowski-story-and-interview/.

22 “2011 SAC Baseball All-Conference Team, Award Winners Announced,” TheSAC.com, April 19, 2011, https://www.thesac.com/sports/bsb/2010-11/releases/a2571.html.

23 Rotstein.

24 Jankowski interview.

25 Jankowski interview.

26 Jankowski interview.

27 “Jim Gantt: Head Baseball Coach,” 2013 Catawba College Baseball Media Guide: 2.

28 “2012 Statistics,” 2013 Catawba College Baseball Media Guide: 21.

29 “College NCAA Division II All SAC Teams,” Knoxville News-Sentinel, April 19, 2012: 2C.

30 Jake Kaplan, “Pitcher Jordan Jankowski Took Unique Path to Astros,” Houston Chronicle, May 26, 2017: C2.

31 Jankowski interview.

32 Jankowski interview.

33 Jankowski interview.

34 Kaplan, “Pitcher Jordan Jankowski Took Unique Path to Astros.”

35Jankowski interview.

36 Jankowski interview. In 2017 the Houston Chronicle reported that Gantt said the decision to kick Jankowski off the team was made “because NCAA rules at the time stipulated a college player lost his eligibility if he worked out for a professional team before his college season ended.” Kaplan, “Pitcher Jordan Jankowski Took Unique Path to Astr

os.”

37 Jose de Jesus Ortiz, “Astros Report,” Houston Chronicle, August 12, 2012: C6.

38 Kaplan, “Pitcher Jordan Jankowski Took Unique Path to Astros.”

39 Kaplan, “Pitcher Jordan Jankowski Took Unique Path to Astros.”

40 Kaplan, “Pitcher Jordan Jankowski Took Unique Path to Astros.”

41 Jankowski interview. Mercado appeared in 112 games with the Reds and Phillies from 2000 through 2003.

42 Daniel Makarewicz, “Bandits’ Jankowski Finds All-Star Touch,” Rock Island (Illinois) Argus, June 17, 2013: D1.

43 Makarewicz, “Bandits’ Jankowski Finds All-Star Touch.”

44 Jankowski interview.

45 Brian T. Smith, “Stockpile of Seeds Bearing Fruit on the Farm,” Houston Chronicle, June 23, 2013: C1.

46 Daniel Makarewicz, “Back to School for River Bandits’ Hurlers,” Rock Island Argus, July 8, 2013: D1.

47 Brocail appeared in 626 major-league games – all but 42 in relief – with the San Diego Padres, Detroit Tigers, Texas Rangers, and Astros from 1992 through 2009.

48 Jankowski interview.

49 Jose de Jesus Ortiz, “Correa ‘100 Percent’ Ready,” Houston Chronicle, January 14, 2015: C3; “Bregman Invited to Astros’ Camp,” Houston Chronicle, January 2, 2016: C9.

50 Angel Moreno, “Bullpen Key to PCL Title Run,” Fresno Bee, August 23, 2015: 5C.

51 Jankowski interview.

52 Jake Kaplan, “Health, Slider Key to Peacock’s Emergence,” Houston Chronicle, July 25, 2017: C1.

53 Kevin Santo, “Astros Pitchers Are the Kings of Ks, But Can They Avoid Dangerous Curves in October,” USA Today, July 25, 2017, https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2017/07/25/astros-fastballs-mlb-strikeout-leaders-brad-peacock-slider/508813001/.

54 Jankowski interview.

55 “Non-Roster Invitees,” Houston Chronicle, February 10, 2017: TEXAS SPORTS NATION, 31.

56 Jankowski interview.

57 Jake Kaplan, “Jankowski Called to Majors,” Houston Chronicle, May 23, 2017: C5.

58 Kaplan, “Jankowski Called to Majors.”

59 Rotstein.

60 Jankowski interview.

61 Jankowski interview.

62 Matt Young, “Jordan Jankowski’s #1 Fan? Jordan Jankowski: Astros Pitcher’s Wife Shows a Wave of Emotions as He Makes His Debut,” Houston Chronicle, May 26, 2017: A2.

63 Jake Kaplan, “Anticipate Keuchel, McCann Playing Today,” Houston Chronicle, May 27, 2017: C3.

64 Hunter Atkins, “Right Lat Strain Sends Morton to Disabled List,” Houston Chronicle, May 29, 2017: C3.

65Jankowski interview.

66 Jankowski interview.

67 Jake Kaplan and Hunter Atkins, “Astros Report: Gonzalez Extends His Very Merry May,” Houston Chronicle, May 30, 2017: C5.

68 Jake Kaplan, “8 Years After Signing, Guduan Makes Debut,” Houston Chronicle, June 1, 2017: C2.

69 Jake Kaplan, “Peacock Goes on Paternity Leave List, Martes to Start Series Finale,” Houston Chronicle, June 25, 2017: C5.

70 Jake Kaplan, “Keuchel’s Return Likely to Come After Break,” Houston Chronicle, June 26, 2017: C3.

71 “Dugan, “Numbers Game.”

72 Jankowski appeared in six games for the Steel City Slammin’ Sammies, who competed in a four-team league with the Wild Things, Baseball Brilliance Sox, and Road Warrior Black Sox. Chris Dugan, “Numbers Game: Jankowski Making More Pitches to Home,” Observer-Reporter (Pennsylvania), July 14, 2020, https://observer-reporter.com/sports/pro_sports/wild_things/numbers-game-jankowski-making-more-pitches-to-home/article_8ea4cc9c-c610-11ea-8ece-b7142e8f1e8a.html.

73 Jankowski interview.

74 Steve Hecht, “Royals to Share Marino with Pitt,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 6, 1979: 30; Steve Hecht, “NCAA Ruling Spurs Marino to Choose Pitt over Pros,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 28, 1979: 10.

75 Rotstein.