Former Fire Pitcher Bermudez Soaring Through Astros' System

SUGAR LAND, Texas- Southeastern University baseball alum Jonathan Bermudez has always had incredible control on the mound as a left-handed pitcher. His name is etched all over the Fire record books for that very reason. It was his largely his command on the mound in 2018 that led to him gaining the attention of the Houston Astros, who drafted him in the 23^rd round of the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft.
 
However, when the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 ushered in, Bermudez was one of hundreds of minor league baseball players who were left feeling as if they had little to no control or command over what was next for them. However, Bermudez took this opportunity to surround him with some key influences, work harder than he ever had, and has now propelled his name into the conversation of one of the rising prospects in the Astros' organization.
 
Bermudez was the pitching staff ace for the 2018 Southeastern team that etched its name into Fire Athletics' history. That season, the Fire went a perfect 8-0 in the national postseason, including an unbeaten run in the Avista-NAIA World Series in Lewiston, Idaho to capture the first NAIA National Championship of any sport in program history. The 2018 campaign was also a historic one for Bermudez individually, as he was named the NAIA and Sun Conference Pitcher of the Year, set the single-season program record for wins (15), and struck out a program record 153 batters in 110.2 innings pitched.
 
 
After being drafted by the Astros as a junior, Bermudez played his rookie ball in the former Gulf Coast League (Now Florida Complex League). In 2019, he started out the year in the Astro's Extended Spring Training before being sent to the Quad City River Bandits, the former Astros' Low A affiliate, where he impressed enough to earn an opportunity to pitch out of the bullpen for Houston's Double A affiliate, the Corpus Christi Hooks. Although brief, Bermudez still impressed in his first stint with the Hooks, striking out 14 over nine innings in five relief appearances. Ultimately, Jonathan was sent back to Quad City to end the 2019 season, where he finished the season 6-1 with 79 strikeouts in 68 innings tossed.
 
 
Jonathan's first full season in the Astros' organization went well enough for him to anticipate getting to start the 2020 season in High A for Houston. However, less than two weeks into Spring Training, Bermudez and the rest of his teammates were sent home after the minor league season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time Bermudez saw many of his friends, teammates, and fellow professionals released from their contracts and although Jonny was not one of those released, he still had to face the uncertainty of what was next for him.
 
"The first couple months were tough," shared Bermudez. "Things were shut down back in Puerto Rico where my family is so I couldn't go see them and I wasn't sure where to go. We were supposed to be playing games and instead we were just waiting."
In the waiting, Bermudez decided to move to Dallas to start offering pitching lessons to youth at D-Bat East Dallas, a premier baseball and softball training facility which Jonathan also trained at himself when he wasn't giving lessons. Bermudez quickly built a strong cliental in the area which helped not only with income, but with connections. One of the connections he made was with a high school catcher he asked to catch a bullpen for him one day. The catcher told him about a Sunday men's league his father ran and invited Bermudez to participate. Eager to get back on the mound in any type of real game environment, Jonny eagerly accepted the invitation.
 
"I would get up at 8:00 a.m. every Sunday morning like I was in little league and go out to the field to play," commented Bermudez.
 
However, this Sunday recreational league proved to be leaps and bounds more competitive than little league, as it featured a plethora of former major/minor league baseball players from around the world. Bermudez credits the competitiveness of the league as playing a major part in making him better.
 
"I learned so much and it built my confidence pitching against guys who had made it to the show," recalled Jonathan. "There was so much talent but also guys who had a lot of valuable experiences and stories for me to hear from their time as professionals."
 
Another immensely valuable connection Bermudez made in Dallas while giving lessons was Omar Washington, a pitching coach himself, who played in the MLB for the Philadelphia Phillies and the Boston Red Sox. Washington is the Director of Citius USA, one of the foremost minority youth baseball academies in the nation. Omar took an interest in Bermudez and saw his potential as a professional pitcher and started working with Jonny back in October of 2020.
 
"He focused on my mechanics. He told me that I had the stuff, but I needed to make it more consistent," remarked Bermudez. "I was out there every day with him throwing into a net and I noticed that as my delivery was becoming more consistent, my velocity was also getting higher."
 
This relationship between Washington and Bermudez has led to lasting and impactful professional and personal relationship, as Jonny made the decision in 2020 to sign Washington as his agent.
 
"He is like a second father to me, we talk every day and get along so well," stated Jonny. "He is a really good guy and knows what it takes to make it in the bigs. He has helped me so much."
 
By the time Spring Training 2021 rolled around, Bermudez was feeling confident about the adjustments and work he had put in the offseason, and it showed even in his first bullpen in front of some of the Astros' minor league coaches.
 
"I was light's out and hitting every spot," emphasized Bermudez. "The coaches were like: "Who is this guy? This is not the same guy we saw in 2019."
 
Bermudez' offseason adjustments translated into live game action, as he struck out 35 batters in 15 innings of work. Jonny's performance earned him a return trip to Corpus Christi to start the season in Double A with the Hooks, a goal he had made for himself during the offseason.
 
"I had told myself I wanted to skip High A and go straight to Double A to start the season," shared Bermudez. "To see my name on the Hooks' roster was surreal."
 
Bermudez got off to a torrid start for Hooks in the month of May, compiling a 2-2 record, 2.66 ERA, and striking out an astounding 39 batters in 23.2 innings pitched. Jonny's performance bolstered his place in the Hooks' starting rotation, where has made 18 starts this season.
 
Bermudez also earned the trust of his teammates as their primary choice for a quality haircut, as he has become the unofficial team barber.
 
"I get to the clubhouse early a lot of times so I can give some of my teammates haircuts," commented Bermudez. "It started out with just a couple guys and has grown.
 
All in all, Bermudez has struck out 106 hitters in just 78.2 innings of work this season, a strikeout total that ranks second amongst all pitchers at the MILB Double A level.
 
Jonny's dynamic season earned him another remarkable promotion just this past Wednesday on August 18, as he was promoted to the Astros' Triple A affiliate, the Sugar Land Skeeters, just one promotion away from joining the major league club.
 
Bermudez did not have to wait long to make his debut in Sugar Land, entering the top of the fourth inning last night with the Skeeters trailing the Oklahoma City Dodgers 11-6. Bermudez was dominant in his AAA debut, allowing just one hit, one walk, and striking out seven over four scoreless innings as the Skeeters would rally to defeat the Dodgers 12-11.
 
During all the incredible strides Bermudez is making in the Astro's minor league system, Jonny has not forgotten about his time with the Fire. He keeps in touch with several former Fire teammates, the Fire head coach Adrian Dinkel and assistant coach Erik Dahl, and his former pitching coach at Southeastern Julien Soucy, who is now the head coach at El Paso Community College.
 
From his time with the Southeastern University Fire to now being one promotion away from being a major league Houston Astro, Jonathan Bermudez has continued to progress his talents on the field. However, his relational strength, humility, and work ethic both on and off the field are still the same as Fire fans remember seeing on display at Ted A. Broer Stadium.
 
"I have learned you can only focus on the things that you can control, expressed Bermudez. "I have built great friendships with so many quality teammates and coaches so far. I am thankful where God has taken me and where He is leading me."