Minor League Discussion & Boxes 4-28-12

[Outshined_One]

Box Scores

 

Iowa lost 3-0 Box Score

 

CF B. Jackson 0/3, BB, 2 K

RF D. Sappelt 1/4

1B A. Rizzo 1/3, BB, K, E (5, throw)

2B A. Cardenas 0/3, BB

3B J. Vitters 1/3, 2B (3), K

SP C. Rusin 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K, 5-5 GO-FO

RP C. Coleman 2 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, HR, 4-1 GO-FO

 

Tennessee lost 6-4 Box Score

 

2B L. Watkins 0/4, BB

CF JH Ha 2/4, BB, RBI, CS (2)

3B M. Cerda 2/3, BB, R, 2B (3), E (3, throw)

RF M. Burgess 2/4, R, 3 RBI, 2B (4), HR (3)

SS E. Soto 0/2, BB

SP D. Beeler 5 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, WP, 9-1 GO-FO

RP C. Harman 1.2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, HR, 1-0 GO-FO

RP A. Cabrera 1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, HR, 2-1 GO-FO

 

Daytona won 7-2 Box Score

 

DH M. Szczur 1/4, 2 R, RBI, 2B (4), SB (12)

2B R. Torreyes 0/4

CF R. Silva 2/4, R, RBI, K, CS (4)

SS A. Alcantara 2/4, R, K, E (11, throw)

SP M. Loosen 2.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, Balk, HBP, 1-2 GO-FO

RP T. Zych 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, 4-1 GO-FO

 

Peoria lost 6-5 Box Score

 

2B Z. DeVoss 1/4, R, RBI, K

DH PC Chen 1/3, 2 BB, R

3B/SS W. Darvill 1/4, R

RF O. Zapata 0/4, K, Assist (3B)

SS M. Hernandez 0/4, K

SP J. Rosario 5.1 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 5-4 GO-FO

RP A. Reed 1.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, WP, 3-1 GO-FO

RP YL Wang 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, 1-0 GO-FO

[Guest]

Probable Starters

 

Iowa: RHP Casey Coleman (2-1, 3.80 ERA, 21.1 IP, 18 K, 10 BB)

Tennessee: RHP Dallas Beeler (0-0, 2.42 ERA, 22.1 IP, 12 K, 4 BB)

Daytona: RHP Matt Loosen (0-1, 11.57 ERA, 2.1 IP, 1 K, 5 BB)

Peoria: RHP Jose Rosario (1-3, 5.85 ERA, 20 IP, 12 K, 9 BB)

[ctcf]

So uh, what's gotten into Chris Rusin all of the sudden?

[ctcf]

Rusin on the night: 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K, 5/5 GO/FO on 80 pitches. ERA sits at 2.63

[Guest]

Vitters had a double. So did Szczur.

[Rob]

So uh, what's gotten into Chris Rusin all of the sudden?

 

Is this the part where I get all full of myself for ranking him higher than everybody else?

[toonsterwu]

So uh, what's gotten into Chris Rusin all of the sudden?

 

What do you mean? He's the same guy as he was, a plus control guy with average stuff. Unless there are reports of something different?

[Hairyducked Idiot]

MiLB Gameday says "Corey Patterson tripled on a fly ball to CF Brett Jackson."

 

There's an interesting pair to have their paths cross.

[Little Slide Rooter]

MiLB Gameday says "Corey Patterson tripled on a fly ball to CF Brett Jackson."

 

There's an interesting pair to have their paths cross.

 

Felix Pie was working the concession stand.

[Guest]

Shawon Dunston Jr hit a HR down at Fitch today:

 

Arizona Phil[/url]"]Starling Peralta got the start for the Cubs and had another strong outing, retiring nine of the first 11 men he faced (including four on strikeouts). He should be close to being ready to move up to Peoria.

 

With a number of pitchers having arrived over the past week or two from the Cubs Dominican Academy, there are hardly enough innings available for all of the pitchers at Extended Spring Training to get enough game work. Besides Peralta, RHRPs Roderik Pichardo and Pete Levitt and LHRP Sheldon McDonald appear to be ready to move up to Peoria (or possibly even Daytona), so I wouldn’t be surprised if the Cubs release some pitchers from their four full-season affiliates over the next week, if nothing else to relieve some of the congestion at EXST.

 

2B Pierre LePage (hamstring rehab) has been playing very well and appears to be 100%, and so he could be moved up at any time. But where would he go? He really doesn’t have the versatility to play multiple positions, and there is no opening for an everyday 2nd baseman (or even part-time 2B) at Peoria or Daytona at this time, unless the Cubs want to give Zeke DeVoss some OF reps at Peoria.

 

OF Xavier Batista probably should be at Peoria, too.

[Guest]

Cubs rehabbing starter Matt Loosen went 2.2 strong innings for the Cubs, allowing one run on two hits with two walks and three strikeouts. Loosen's fastball was consistently clocked in the low-to-mid 90s with his curveball on-point.

[toonsterwu]

out of curiosity, who's the Loosen comment from?

 

That does sound promising for Loosen, though.

[Guest]

out of curiosity, who's the Loosen comment from?

 

That does sound promising for Loosen, though.

 

Sorry, thought I had linked that. It's from the D-Cubs' website's writeup of today's game.

[jumbo]

A few questions on pitchers:

 

Chris Rusin: Is his upside a #4 starter? He's been locked in lately and I've been impressed, but not sure how he'll translate.

Alberto Cabrera: Potential closer? Set up? He's got 13k/11.2IP. Anyone know fastball velo in pen duty?

Brian Schlitter: When does he get back up to AAA or another chance in MLB? I assume this is just a short stop at A+ on his rehab tour.

Yao-Lin Wang/Austin Reed: Both guys are working relief almost exclusively. I had thought both were starting candidates before and hope this is just a numbers/roster crunch having them work out of the pen. Will these guys return to starting?

[toonsterwu]

my take:

 

Rusin - End of the rotation ceiling. If you want to say a "4" on a very good year, sure, I guess I can buy that. Average stuff, plus control.

 

Cabrera - Don't know what he's throwing this year yet, but he topped out in the mid-90's as a starter. I've always thought he had late inning potential, as he was still whipping a good breaking ball last year.

 

Schlitter - No freaking clue. With all the talk by AzPhil about guys needing to move out of XST to ease the congestion, guys like Schlitter, Ty'Relle Harris, and AJ Morris (when he's off the DL) strike me as the type of guys that could be cut to clear some space (along with some upper level guys).

 

Wang/Reed - Reed may be better suited to relief work, in all honesty, with his mechanics. It's hard to imagine that he can consistently maintain those mechanics for multiple innings. Wang's an interesting case. He really did well last year, and has had a good start to the year. On paper, he has solid stuff that seems to give him a shot as a starter, but so far, he's been in the Liria grouping - pen guys working 1-2 innings each time. The Concepcion call-up pushes Cruz into that grouping as well. Wang may simply need some guys to be pushed up before he gets a shot in extended innings. Or, it's possible that they simply view his ceiling as being average as a starter, and feel like keeping him in the pen is the best thing possible. There will be other high ceiling arms pushing for Peoria soon, such as Peralta.

[videographer]

I attended the Peoria vs. Fort Wayne game last night and here are a few thoughts:

 

I was impressed with Jose Rosario. Although the radar gun has never worked properly in Fort Wayne, Rosario showed a good FB with movement. His best off-speed pitch was a very effective change up. It has fade and sink and was fooling the Tin Cap hitters all evening. His breaking ball had more sweep than snap (could have been a result of cold windy conditions). He had trouble showing command in the strike zone. The Tin Caps pounding the pitches he left over the plate. Rosario shows a cool, competitive demeanor. He was visibly upset when a double steal by the Caps produced a steal of home.

 

Austin Reed is a big young man. I understand now why he has control problems; his FB has so much movement he has trouble controlling it in the strike zone. He throws a bit across his body and reminds me of pitchers from a few decades ago that would pitch with more movement than velocity.

 

Zeke DeVoss hit the ball solid all evening. He wore out the right side of the field. Good hitter, the ball sounds different off his bat.

 

Chen is a tall, wiry player that is patient at the plate. His swing has a flat, slap approach much like Hak Ju Lee except not as forceful. He and 3 or 4 teammates laid down bunts during the game. Small ball must be an emphasis with the team.

 

Marco Hernandez looks like a player. Very athletic in the field and at the plate. I read a comment here about his bat speed and that was evident last night. However, his swing at this time is not in sync. His hands do not follow his weight shift. This looks to be a correctable flaw. Once he figures it out, he should take off and be one of the players to watch.

 

Yaniel Cabezas did not impress me. His arm was not accurate and the Caps ran on him at will. On throws to home, Cabezas came way out front (dirt cut out) to field the ball. He showed no attempt to block the plate.

 

Easterling made two plays that showed his raw baseball abilities. First, he was picked off on a fake throw to third and first. He was on first and broke when the pitcher faked to third - dumb base running. Second, he made an outstanding diving catch on a ball hit to the gap. Easterling, playing CF, laid out full to grab the tailing line drive.

 

Oliver Zapata showed off a strong arm from RF by throwing out a running attempting to advance from 2nd to 3rd on a medium fly to the RF line. Zapata one-hopped a perfect strike to the 3B to get the runner by two strides. At the plate, Zapata hits off his front foot. His weight shift and hands get out of sync at times. There have been many good ML players who hit off their front foot, time will tell if Zapata is one.

 

Wes Darvill has the look of a ball player. He is tall and athletic. He played 3B and showed a solid, accurate arm. He also has excellent bat speed and an upper cut stroke.

 

Overall, the team looked disciplined and well coached, not always the case in the past. They gave a vibe of all business and every play had meaning. I will see Ben Wells today and Concepcion Monday morning at 11am.

[toonsterwu]

Interesting stuff videographer. That's as positive as I've heard anyone on Rosario's change-up.

 

Enjoy the games!

[PriortoTheoIhadWood]

Austin Reed is a big young man. I understand now why he has control problems; his FB has so much movement he has trouble controlling it in the strike zone. He throws a bit across his body and reminds me of pitchers from a few decades ago that would pitch with more movement than velocity.

 

Good to know he's still pitching...I liked him out of HS because he was a RH who threw a decent changeup.

 

Also, thanks for those notes.

[Guest]

Thanks, videographer!