Prior struggles in first rehab start

[cubfan1955]

I for one don't care what his velocity is, if he's not hurt and he's getting the ball over the plate, he's an improvement over any of these other bozos they run out there (Hill, Ryu)...problem is, now that Glendon looked like Randy Johnson on Sunday, Baker will insert him into the rotation for another month, instead of letting Glendon do what he does best, which is fill in when a starter fails, like he did sunday. It was refreshing to see Dusty use a guy as he was intended...albeit forced...but he did it, and Glendon shined, because that's his position on the club.

 

Why do people think Glendon shined? He gave up 4 runs in 4 innings, didn't he? There's no way that qualifies as a good outing.

Yes, but only 3 were earned. :D

 

The only one that thinks he shined is Dusty who has said he earned the next start needed by the 5th starter due to the 9 K's he recorded.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

I for one don't care what his velocity is, if he's not hurt and he's getting the ball over the plate, he's an improvement over any of these other bozos they run out there (Hill, Ryu)...problem is, now that Glendon looked like Randy Johnson on Sunday, Baker will insert him into the rotation for another month, instead of letting Glendon do what he does best, which is fill in when a starter fails, like he did sunday. It was refreshing to see Dusty use a guy as he was intended...albeit forced...but he did it, and Glendon shined, because that's his position on the club.

 

Why do people think Glendon shined? He gave up 4 runs in 4 innings, didn't he? There's no way that qualifies as a good outing.

 

Because only 3 were earned? He only gave up 2 HR? His WHIP for the game was only 1.75? 9 K's or not, he was less than stellar.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

I for one don't care what his velocity is, if he's not hurt and he's getting the ball over the plate, he's an improvement over any of these other bozos they run out there (Hill, Ryu)...problem is, now that Glendon looked like Randy Johnson on Sunday, Baker will insert him into the rotation for another month, instead of letting Glendon do what he does best, which is fill in when a starter fails, like he did sunday. It was refreshing to see Dusty use a guy as he was intended...albeit forced...but he did it, and Glendon shined, because that's his position on the club.

 

Why do people think Glendon shined? He gave up 4 runs in 4 innings, didn't he? There's no way that qualifies as a good outing.

Yes, but only 3 were earned. :D

 

The only one that thinks he shined is Dusty who has said he earned the next start needed by the 5th starter due to the 9 K's he recorded.

 

Not exactly.

[cubfan1955]

I for one don't care what his velocity is, if he's not hurt and he's getting the ball over the plate, he's an improvement over any of these other bozos they run out there (Hill, Ryu)...problem is, now that Glendon looked like Randy Johnson on Sunday, Baker will insert him into the rotation for another month, instead of letting Glendon do what he does best, which is fill in when a starter fails, like he did sunday. It was refreshing to see Dusty use a guy as he was intended...albeit forced...but he did it, and Glendon shined, because that's his position on the club.

 

Why do people think Glendon shined? He gave up 4 runs in 4 innings, didn't he? There's no way that qualifies as a good outing.

Yes, but only 3 were earned. :D

 

The only one that thinks he shined is Dusty who has said he earned the next start needed by the 5th starter due to the 9 K's he recorded.

 

Not exactly.

Okay, maybe there are others but Dusty is the one that matters...unfortunately.

[Scott G. F.]

I'm just happy that he pitched. I could care less about the results in the box score.

 

 

Couldn't agree more. Of all seasons to get your staff healthy it's this one. Why not allow them to take the time and gear up for next season. Maybe win some games this year and gain some confidence. It was good to see Woody go out there and be smooth for the win. Get the other players not to force things and this team might climb out of the horror that is May. Getting back to .500 is not an impossible goal. It should be the goal for this team. That and getting healthy.

 

There's always trying to go for .500 before the break too.

 

Not saying it'll happen, and I'm not saying we're winning anything. I just refuse to play the "gear up for next year" game. I want to see us go on a hot streak.

 

 

I like your fight. Check back a couple of thread pages and look up 5 stages of a death of a season. You are in the denial phase. The current team might real off a couple here and there. Don't get me wrong I'm watching no matter what but I'll be looking for good games from Cedano, Murton and good pitching from the key long term players for the team.

 

The "Heal and Deal" phase of the season is upon us boys and girls.

[JGalt73]

From Will Carroll at BP:

 

Kerry Wood struck out everyone--including the peanut vendor and the visiting radio announcer--when he was in Peoria. “Unhittable,” one scout told me. That same scout saw Mark Prior pitch on Monday night and struggled to find words. He sighed and groaned before finally saying something I can’t print here. “There was nothing right with him. No velocity (a max of 90). No command. No movement. No missed bats. No consistency--his stride was never the same and his arm was slow. If he wasn’t Mark Prior, I’d say he was at the right level. I have no idea what happened to him.” Prior only went two innings before hitting his pitch count and now we’ll have to wait to see how he recovers. Not only did he show only a bit more velocity, but the absent control might be even more worrisome. Prior will have one more rehab start at Peoria, but at this stage, it might be time to think about slowing this down. One observer reminded me of another pitcher who lost it--Roy Halladay. It will be interesting to see if the Cubs can be as forward-looking as the Blue Jays once were.

[louisvillecub]

From Will Carroll at BP:

 

Kerry Wood struck out everyone--including the peanut vendor and the visiting radio announcer--when he was in Peoria. “Unhittable,” one scout told me. That same scout saw Mark Prior pitch on Monday night and struggled to find words. He sighed and groaned before finally saying something I can’t print here. “There was nothing right with him. No velocity (a max of 90). No command. No movement. No missed bats. No consistency--his stride was never the same and his arm was slow. If he wasn’t Mark Prior, I’d say he was at the right level. I have no idea what happened to him.” Prior only went two innings before hitting his pitch count and now we’ll have to wait to see how he recovers. Not only did he show only a bit more velocity, but the absent control might be even more worrisome. Prior will have one more rehab start at Peoria, but at this stage, it might be time to think about slowing this down. One observer reminded me of another pitcher who lost it--Roy Halladay. It will be interesting to see if the Cubs can be as forward-looking as the Blue Jays once were.

 

I thought he had no BB?

[David]

From Will Carroll at BP:

 

Kerry Wood struck out everyone--including the peanut vendor and the visiting radio announcer--when he was in Peoria. “Unhittable,” one scout told me. That same scout saw Mark Prior pitch on Monday night and struggled to find words. He sighed and groaned before finally saying something I can’t print here. “There was nothing right with him. No velocity (a max of 90). No command. No movement. No missed bats. No consistency--his stride was never the same and his arm was slow. If he wasn’t Mark Prior, I’d say he was at the right level. I have no idea what happened to him.” Prior only went two innings before hitting his pitch count and now we’ll have to wait to see how he recovers. Not only did he show only a bit more velocity, but the absent control might be even more worrisome. Prior will have one more rehab start at Peoria, but at this stage, it might be time to think about slowing this down. One observer reminded me of another pitcher who lost it--Roy Halladay. It will be interesting to see if the Cubs can be as forward-looking as the Blue Jays once were.

 

I thought he had no BB?

 

Could've been wild in the zone, not hitting his spots. That (along with the lack-luster stuff) would explain the way he got smacked around.

[Mark Priors Calves]

From Will Carroll at BP:

 

One observer reminded me of another pitcher who lost it--Roy Halladay. It will be interesting to see if the Cubs can be as forward-looking as the Blue Jays once were.

 

What problems did Roy Halladay have?

[cheapseats]

I think his velocity is a major concern. Reports from todays game had him in 86-89 range. This could mean he is holding back something or it could mean his shoulder needs to get stronger so he can be back to that 91-95 range. Looks like Prior will have to make 3 more starts in the minors because he lasted only 2 innings in todays game and obviously needs to regain his arm strength. It would not help the major league ball club if he can only pitch 4-5 innings each 5th day.

 

I'm going to agree with baseball7897 on this one.

 

From todays' Under The Knife (http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=5133):

 

Edit: I didn't realize Will Carroll's take on Prior had already been cited in this thread, but it's consistent with what Carroll has been writing about Prior for the last few days.

 

Kerry Wood struck out everyone...when he was in Peoria. “Unhittable,” one scout told me. That same scout saw Mark Prior pitch on Monday night and struggled to find words...“There was nothing right with him. No velocity (a max of 90). No command. No movement. No missed bats. No consistency--his stride was never the same and his arm was slow. If he wasn’t Mark Prior, I’d say he was at the right level. I have no idea what happened to him.”...Not only did he show only a bit more velocity, but the absent control might be even more worrisome...[A]t this stage, it might be time to think about slowing this down.

[cheapseats]

From Will Carroll at BP:

 

One observer reminded me of another pitcher who lost it--Roy Halladay. It will be interesting to see if the Cubs can be as forward-looking as the Blue Jays once were.

 

What problems did Roy Halladay have?

 

Halladay completely lost his mechanics. Toronto sent him down to the minors to rebuild his mechanics from scratch. Afterwards, he became the dominant pitcher that he now is (when healthy).

[Sammy Sofa]

That just convinces me that my hunch that the Cubs should effectively shut down Prior (in not pushing him back to the bigs) for 2006. Work to rebuild him into a dominant pitcher again so he and Z can be the dominant 1-2 punch they should be in the future. Don't make the same mistakes that were made with Wood. Screw 2006...it's hideous and over already in May. Think to the future. SAVE MARK PRIOR!!!

[Magnetic Curses]

From Will Carroll at BP:

 

One observer reminded me of another pitcher who lost it--Roy Halladay. It will be interesting to see if the Cubs can be as forward-looking as the Blue Jays once were.

 

What problems did Roy Halladay have?

 

Halladay completely lost his mechanics. Toronto sent him down to the minors to rebuild his mechanics from scratch. Afterwards, he became the dominant pitcher that he now is (when healthy).

 

yeah, halladay lowered his arm-slot and put some movement on his pitches. before, he was nearly coming over the top and had no movement to speak of.

 

i don't know if he specifically lost his mechanics as much as he wasn't able to overpower anyone in the big leagues with an arrow-straight fastball.

[burnt out cubbie fan]

So, I was at the game on monday. Needless to say, it was disheartening. The crowd was almost completely silent the whole time Prior was on the hill. It was kind of bizarre to be honest. He was around 87-88 the entire game with his fastball and threw almost nothing but it. I didn't have the best angle but he seemed to have decent command when he was in the zone but there were times when he throw a pitch that the catcher could just barely catch. He certainly didn't have the command we have seen from him in the past. I know that Mark said he isn't worried but I am.

[CuseCubFan69]

IMO last year I thought that Prior had very little movement on his pitches. Maybe I'm wrong but it seemed like a lot of hitters were able to fight off 2 strike counts that I hadn't seen fight off before.

[Soul]

I know it's disappointing, but let's just take a deep breath and relax a little bit.

 

Nobody knows what he was trying to do out there, and Prior's traditionally more of a pinpoint control guy than Wood, so I would expect Woody to dominate more than Prior at this point because Wood's stuff is more jumpy and loopy by default.

 

I really didn't expect Mark back until after the All-Star break. Looks like that's what will happen. The season's basically over in terms of a playoff run (I know some of you don't want to concede that yet, but it's pretty hard to deny) so there's no point rushing Prior back.

 

Also, I am of the belief that this is Prior's last shot with the Cubs. He needs to come back and produce for a long period of time before hitting the DL again. So we may as well let him take his time.

[NorthsideAvenger]

I think his velocity is a major concern. Reports from todays game had him in 86-89 range. This could mean he is holding back something or it could mean his shoulder needs to get stronger so he can be back to that 91-95 range. Looks like Prior will have to make 3 more starts in the minors because he lasted only 2 innings in todays game and obviously needs to regain his arm strength. It would not help the major league ball club if he can only pitch 4-5 innings each 5th day.

 

I'm going to agree with baseball7897 on this one.

 

From todays' Under The Knife (http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=5133):

 

Edit: I didn't realize Will Carroll's take on Prior had already been cited in this thread, but it's consistent with what Carroll has been writing about Prior for the last few days.

 

Kerry Wood struck out everyone...when he was in Peoria. “Unhittable,” one scout told me. That same scout saw Mark Prior pitch on Monday night and struggled to find words...“There was nothing right with him. No velocity (a max of 90). No command. No movement. No missed bats. No consistency--his stride was never the same and his arm was slow. If he wasn’t Mark Prior, I’d say he was at the right level. I have no idea what happened to him.”...Not only did he show only a bit more velocity, but the absent control might be even more worrisome...[A]t this stage, it might be time to think about slowing this down.

 

Again, if this is a problem after a few more starts, then YEAH it would be a concern. But Prior hadn't pitch in a regular game in MONTHS, and this was his first start. So, it is a bit disheartening, but.....time will tell....

[Brian]

Marky Mark responds to his critics

 

http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060530&content_id=1479906&vkey=news_chc&fext=.jsp&c_id=chc

[cubfan1955]

Marky Mark responds to his critics

 

http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060530&content_id=1479906&vkey=news_chc&fext=.jsp&c_id=chc

He typically throws in the mid-to-high 90s with ease

Since when did Prior throw in the upper 90's with ease?

[NorthsideAvenger]

Marky Mark responds to his critics

 

http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060530&content_id=1479906&vkey=news_chc&fext=.jsp&c_id=chc

He typically throws in the mid-to-high 90s with ease

Since when did Prior throw in the upper 90's with ease?

 

He's always been know to throw "mid 90s" with ease. But Prior is better and more comfortable in the 92-94 mph range.

[3finger]

From Will Carroll at BP:

 

One observer reminded me of another pitcher who lost it--Roy Halladay. It will be interesting to see if the Cubs can be as forward-looking as the Blue Jays once were.

 

What problems did Roy Halladay have?

 

Halladay completely lost his mechanics. Toronto sent him down to the minors to rebuild his mechanics from scratch. Afterwards, he became the dominant pitcher that he now is (when healthy).

 

yeah, halladay lowered his arm-slot and put some movement on his pitches. before, he was nearly coming over the top and had no movement to speak of.

 

i don't know if he specifically lost his mechanics as much as he wasn't able to overpower anyone in the big leagues with an arrow-straight fastball.

 

Here's what happened to Halladay. If this has happened to Prior we can forget about him for this year. I'm hoping/assuming that Carroll's source was exaggerating for effect.

[Sarcastic]

I think one start might not be quite enough to say that we need to shut him down and completely rebuild his mechanics for a year or two.

[baseball7897]

Heard on the radio today Prior will make another apperance for Peoria. Prior is scheduled to throw 65 pitches then should move up for a start in Iowa.

[cheapseats]

From Will Carroll's article in today's BP:

 

...Prior is appearing to grow frustrated with the handling of his rehab. The plan of three rehab starts is being questioned publicly by Dusty Baker, while Prior is trying to explain why he’s not where the public thinks he should be. Prior has a point on his velocity--that he often increases over the course of a game--but those who saw the start say that he looked fine, but that the ball doesn’t have the same explosion or late life that he normally shows. The worst of the problem for Prior isn’t the public, but the whispers from within the walls of Wrigley.

[srbin84]

Well, Cole Hamels is back and only in a matter of weeks after going on the DL with a shoulder strain. Why did it only take him around 3 weeks?