Young arms show promise
Posted: Monday, May 12, 2008 4:20 PM
Sunday provided a chance to check on some members of the new wave of starting pitchers barreling into the game.
GREG REYNOLDS, the second player chosen in the 2006 draft, made his debut for Colorado. Working in pitcher-friendly Petco Park in San Diego, Reynolds displayed terrific movement on a low-90’s fastball as well as a willingness to change speeds. For five innings, he kept the light-hitting Padres at bay. One question: With only one strikeout, does Reynolds have strong swing-and-miss stuff? His final line: 5.2IP, 6H, 4ER, 2BB, 1K.
BRIAN BANNISTER of the Royals threw a two-hitter over eight innings at Baltimore. He is now 4-4 with a 3.75 ERA. Not bad for someone discarded by the Mets with the thought that he would be a soft-tossing lefty. The Royals made a terrific trade giving up Ambiorix Burgos for Bannister.
ANDY SONNANSTINE and JOHNNY CUETO had tough days. Cueto of the Reds had location problems as he surrendered home runs to Carlos Beltran and Ryan Church, part of a six-run Mets surge in 4.2 innings. Cueto has outstanding stuff but is searching for the consistency that characterizes top-line starters.
Sonnanstine, who is part of a Tampa Bay staff that may be finally reaching its potential, had a string of starts in late April where he limited hits -- the necessity for a pitcher who lives in the strike zone. But yesterday the Angels stung him for eight hits and five runs in five innings.
JONATHAN SANCHEZ of the Giants lost his control in the fourth and fifth innings of his start against Philadelphia. Sanchez, finally established as a starter, has shown flashes of brilliance, mainly with an 8-inning 4-hit 10 strikeout outing against Cincinnati in late April. But like Cueto he hasn’t found the consistency to maximize his first-rate stuff.
RICH HARDEN is not among the new wave of starters but he was on the hill yesterday, returning again from injury – something he has had to do far too often in his career. The righty had normal mid-90’s velocity (shame on A’s television for not displaying radar readings. These are a staple in every stadium and should be on television as well.
Harden worked through the first two innings with little drama but in the third and fourth frames his location wavered and the strong Texas lineup took advantage. Could stamina have been a cause? His final line: 90 pitches in 3.2 innings, 8H, 5ER, 4BB, 5K.
FIVE MORE SWINGS
1. IT WASN’T JUST YOUNG GUYS…Weird watching Troy Percival save a win against the Angels yesterday. Five years ago he closed out the Angels’ lone World Series win. Now after a brief retirement and carrying about 40 extra pounds, Percival has revived his career as the best Rays closer since Roberto Hernandez.
2. THEY ARRIVE FASTER EVERY YEAR…Reynolds was the ninth player from the 2006 draft’s first round to reach the majors. The top six picks are in the big leagues. An interesting watch will be tracking the first member of the 2007 draft’s first round to arrive.
3. THE MOST UNHERALDED HITTER THIS SEASON…may well be Cincinnati’s Jeff Keppinger. All he does is hit. He did so as a minor-leaguer in the Pittsburgh system and he hit .284 in a cameo role with the 2004 Mets. Injury and the presence of Jose Reyes and Kaz Matsui caused the Mets to conclude there was no future for Keppinger. They moved him to Kansas City and finally Cincinnati grabbed him last year. He has a .326 average over two years with the Reds but the question is whether he has sufficient range for long-term play at shortstop.
4. THE MOST UNHERALDED PITCHER THIS SEASON…may well be Carlos Marmol. The Cubs reliever has been flat filthy, with a 0.67 WHIP and 32 strikeouts in 24 innings. While committed to Kerry Wood as the closer, at some point the Cubs need to know if Marmol, who has conquered the eighth, can pitch the ninth.
5. NOT WHAT BARRY ZITO NEEDS…is to face Houston tonight with Roy Oswalt starting and Lance Berkman in the lineup. Berkman has just finished one of the hottest streaks in recent baseball history -- 19 hits in 25 at-bats, a run matched in the last 50 years only by Albert Pujols. The Astros are a season-best four games over .500 and have risen to fourth in the NL in runs scored. All this suggests a sterner challenge for Zito than he encountered in his recent return to the rotation when he faced Pittsburgh -- a start in which he allowed just two runs yet needed 99 pitches to complete five innings.
