[轉錄]Young Braves Arms
※ [本文轉錄自 Prospect 看板]
作者: Grant44 () 看板: Prospect
標題: Young Braves Arms
時間: Thu May 27 19:18:44 2004
When it comes to pitching depth, no organization is deeper than the Braves.
The Braves might not have many impact arms at the Triple-A level, but
looking beyond Richmond, you can easily see why losing righthanders Adam
Wainwright and Bubba Nelson in the offseason hasn't stolen much of the
pitching thunder.
Double-A Greenville's 15-30 overall record masks a prospect-laden staff,
with lefthander Dan Meyer leading the way. Meyer is 3-2, 2.38 in 34
innings with 42 strikeouts and only eight walks this season. The 6-
foot-3, 190-pound lefty has shown great command of his low-90s fastball
and plus changeup. His slider is in the 78-81 range and right now needs
further development.
"The big thing for Dan is commanding the fastball to go along with his
change, which he's done very well up to this point," farm director Dayton
Moore said. "He's got a hard-biting slider that he's going to have to use
more in game situations and mix it in to give hitters a different look."
Meyer endured a high ankle sprain while covering the plate on a passed
ball in his first start, but after missing two rounds in the rotation,
the supplemental first-rounder in 2001 out of James Madison hasn't looked
back.
"Initially, we expected him to miss a lot more time," Moore said. "But he's
had a history in his career of these types of sprains, so he bounced back
well and earlier than we expected."
Where Meyer has had early success, lefthander Macay McBride has struggled.
McBride is 0-6, 5.61 in 51 innings. His stuff appears to still be there,
but not nearly as consistent as it was last season. McBride has fanned 53
and walked 25.
"The thing with all pitchers is trusting what they have," Moore said. "He
still has the same stuff; it's just a matter of not giving in to hitters.
When you give in to hitters at that level, you're going to get hit. He
just needs to stay on the attack, which has always been a special trait
of his."
Moore said McBride might have been trying to be too fine, relying on hitting
spots more than being on the offensive on the mound.
"Kevin Millwood struggled with that--even once he got to the big leagues,"
Moore said. "Not everybody is a touch and feel guy. Millwood wasn't and
McBride isn't either. But this is a positive for him. It's the first time
he's faced any kind of adversity. He'll respond and be a better pitcher.
I still think he's going to have a great year. It's important for him to
go through this right now."
The Braves' talent on the mound is clearly evident in Myrtle Beach as well
--Pelicans hurlers have won four Carolina League pitcher of the week honors.
Righthanders Blaine Boyer, Jose Capellan and Anthony Lerew have all won the
award, with Boyer winning it twice.
Capellan's numbers have been outrageous this season. The 23-year-old
Dominican is 5-1, 1.94 with 62 strikeouts in 46 innings. While he can
hit triple digits on the radar gun, Capellan has been mainly working on
improving his secondary stuff this year. His curveball has been a plus
pitch and he's still working on mixing in a changeup for a third legitimate
option.
"He's mixing it in now and again and his confidence in it has grown from
where it was at the start of the season," Moore said. "It's important to
get all those pitches working together, but he's locating his breaking
ball well, and when you can do that with a plus-plus fastball, it's a
little easier to keep hitters off-balance."
Lerew, an 11th-round pick in 2001 out of Northern High in Wellsville, Pa.,
is quietly putting up solid numbers on a staff with Capellan, Boyer, and
Kyle Davies around him. He's 4-2, 3.00 with 50 strikeouts in 48 innings.
Working with a 91-93 mph fastball with good movement and late sinking
action, Lerew's changeup is nearly as effective as the fastball and
sometimes looks more like a splitter than a straight change. He's working
on developing a slider as a third option.
"His fastball is above-average with deception and great location," Moore
said. "He's needs to be more consistent with the slider and build his
trust in it in order to use it more. But if you don't throw it, it's
hard to trust it. He has outstanding poise and presence on the mound
and done really well at the high Class A level."
A level lower at low Class A Rome, stereotypical "little lefty" Chuck
James is putting on a show as well. James is 6-0, 1.50 with 50 punchouts
in 48 innings. The 6-foot, 170-pounder out of Chattahoochie Valley (Ala.)
Junior College works with his fastball around 89-91, but his change is far
and away his best pitch. James is also quickly becoming well-known in the
South Atlantic League for his toughness on the mound and his fearlessness
for throwing inside.
"He's a tremendous competitor," Moore said. "He moves the fastball in and
out all over the plate and just needs to get that third pitch moving. He's
not afraid of anything out there."
That third pitch is a slider, and while McBride might not be a "touch and
feel guy," James certainly is. He hits his spots, consistently moving all
three pitches around the zone.
"His stuff is incredibly deceptive, not overpowering, but he keeps hitters
guessing," Moore said. "He changes speeds well and does a nice job
disrupting hitters' timing. He has an attacking style and when you have
that kind of approach it's going to bode well for you."
The Braves' approach of stockpiling pitchers has worked for more than a
decade now. With the performance of many of their pitchers at lower levels,
it doesn't appear likely to end anytime soon.
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