Minor League Discussion & Boxes 6-19-11

[Guest]

Also, the preseason blurb written by Boise's PBP guy mentioned Yao-Lin Wang operating primarily at 91-93.

[toonsterwu]

Wrong day, but do we have any idea how hard Wang, who pitched so well yesterday, throws?

 

The reports on Wang that I recall had him in the low 90's, 90-91 area. It's hard to imagine that he has substantially improved upon that, so I figure it's probably low 90's still.

 

The only reading I heard on Wang during the radio broadcast was 92.

 

Thanks, guys. 90-92 sounds good to me. NOthing special, but not inadequate either. A large fraction of the good pitchers in the majors don't really throw much harder than that very often. If Wang has control and knows how to pitch, he can be a meaningful big-league prospect with 92-mph velocity.

 

Of course, it may be that the radio 92 was the one flukish 4-seamer that read that high, and that the actual fastballs that he was using effectively were mostly 87-89 types, who knows.

 

And granted also that most of the guys who are getting big-leaguers out with 92-or-less velocity could throw harder than that when they were minor leaguers. If Z was a 20-year-old prospect given his current velocity, he wouldn't be the prospect he was back then when he threw 98.

 

Toonster, why do you say it's "hard to image that he has substantially improved" upon low 90's? I assume because he's short, listing at 6'0"? If he was 90-91 as a teenager, and now he's 20, apart from his limited height it seems fairly believable when guys add some speed when they turn 20, 21, and 22.

 

I think it's possible that he's improved (and if he can consistently hit 92/93, that would be an improvement, because to the best of my recollection, I don't recall seeing or hearing anyone talk about him consistently peaking that high in the past), but my point was that he's probably still sitting in the low 90's. I remember talking to someone abroad about him awhile ago, and he said that he didn't think there was much they could do to the delivery to improve upon his velocity as a starter (I mean, if he went to the pen, he could probably kick it up a bit) and that he didn't think the kid could handle that much more on the frame without overdoing it. Certainly, all speculation, but I'm not expecting him to kick it up to say, sit 93/94.

[craig]

...

I think it's possible that he's improved (and if he can consistently hit 92/93, that would be an improvement, because to the best of my recollection, I don't recall seeing or hearing anyone talk about him consistently peaking that high in the past), but my point was that he's probably still sitting in the low 90's. I remember talking to someone abroad about him awhile ago, and he said that he didn't think there was much they could do to the delivery to improve upon his velocity as a starter (I mean, if he went to the pen, he could probably kick it up a bit) and that he didn't think the kid could handle that much more on the frame without overdoing it. Certainly, all speculation, but I'm not expecting him to kick it up to say, sit 93/94.

 

Makes perfect sense. Obviously not many guys do sit 93/94, few do so with control and movement, and a guy can be a meaningful prospect without doing so.

 

But obviously the shorter the velocity, the better the movement, location, and breaking stuff need to be to make up for it.

[jumbo]

He's been good much more than he's been bad, I just chalk it up to the old "not having it today" addage......

 

On a side note though, I like that we've got some relievers in place that look like they're about ready to become major league fixtures for us. Between him, Rhoderick, and Kurcz, surely we wind up with 2 solid bullpen arms. Especially if you add Zych to that mix. If we can have a period where we've got 3-5 cheap, cost effective bullpen arms, it should help us immensely rounding out the major league squad without the Hendry specials like Grabow, Hawkins, etc......

 

What are some opinions on Carpenter? I love that he can light it up, but he doesn't seem to have had a lot of recent success. I imagine that him being up with the Cubs is to see what he's got before the decision on him sticking on the 40 man. Any thoughts on him?

[davell]

He's been good much more than he's been bad, I just chalk it up to the old "not having it today" addage......

 

On a side note though, I like that we've got some relievers in place that look like they're about ready to become major league fixtures for us. Between him, Rhoderick, and Kurcz, surely we wind up with 2 solid bullpen arms. Especially if you add Zych to that mix. If we can have a period where we've got 3-5 cheap, cost effective bullpen arms, it should help us immensely rounding out the major league squad without the Hendry specials like Grabow, Hawkins, etc......

 

What are some opinions on Carpenter? I love that he can light it up, but he doesn't seem to have had a lot of recent success. I imagine that him being up with the Cubs is to see what he's got before the decision on him sticking on the 40 man. Any thoughts on him?

 

 

He's kind of struggled ever since the Cubs put him in the pen, but I think it was the right move for him. He certainly can amp up the velo more now and seeing him for a much shorter period also helps out some with his command issues. For him to become an elite bullpen arm, that's going to be the hurdle he needs to jump. That said, I'm not all that worried about what his numbers looked like down in the minors this year. For all we know, the Cubs had told him to work on certain things, results be damned. The eye test tells me that he's not overmatched at the highest level though and we need all the help we can get. I think it's mainly just him getting comfortable in this role and then he'll be fine. I think he could wind up as a very nice setup guy for us longterm.

[jumbo]

He's been good much more than he's been bad, I just chalk it up to the old "not having it today" addage......

 

On a side note though, I like that we've got some relievers in place that look like they're about ready to become major league fixtures for us. Between him, Rhoderick, and Kurcz, surely we wind up with 2 solid bullpen arms. Especially if you add Zych to that mix. If we can have a period where we've got 3-5 cheap, cost effective bullpen arms, it should help us immensely rounding out the major league squad without the Hendry specials like Grabow, Hawkins, etc......

 

What are some opinions on Carpenter? I love that he can light it up, but he doesn't seem to have had a lot of recent success. I imagine that him being up with the Cubs is to see what he's got before the decision on him sticking on the 40 man. Any thoughts on him?

 

 

He's kind of struggled ever since the Cubs put him in the pen, but I think it was the right move for him. He certainly can amp up the velo more now and seeing him for a much shorter period also helps out some with his command issues. For him to become an elite bullpen arm, that's going to be the hurdle he needs to jump. That said, I'm not all that worried about what his numbers looked like down in the minors this year. For all we know, the Cubs had told him to work on certain things, results be damned. The eye test tells me that he's not overmatched at the highest level though and we need all the help we can get. I think it's mainly just him getting comfortable in this role and then he'll be fine. I think he could wind up as a very nice setup guy for us longterm.

 

 

Thanks

I think if he can fill the role that Cashner was slotted for last year as the 7th inning righty ahead of Marshall and Marmol that could be a great 7/8/9 pen. However, Cashner may be there next year, too.

Does anyone think that the Cubs will continue to try him as a starter or will he immediately be relegated to pen duty following his injury? Obviously it all depends on how his rehab goes, but just wondering what thoughts are now

[questionmarkgrace]

Daytona News-Journal's midseason grades - It's pretty much a fluff piece but there was this about Jae-Hoon Ha:

 

Jae-Hoon Ha has been nothing short of sensational in center field, and he personally deserves an A+. Scouts are raving about how much ground he covers and his arm strength.

 

This is awesome he seems to be hitting his stride both defensively and offensively this year. If he can stick at center like this article suggests he will be an incredibly valuable talent with the big club.

 

Flaherty is looking pretty solid too.