?�Watching an elite prospect debut in The Show is one of the joys of baseball, and we'll get a treat when Atlanta's highly-touted Julio Teheran makes his debut Saturday at Philadelphia.
And one obvious question looms ? how long is Teheran going to be around?
Initially this was thought to be a one-night assignment, a spot start for the 20-year old to account for Atlanta's doubleheader earlier in the week. But with Derek Lowe a little dinged up ?�he was battling a foot blister during his terrific no-hit bid Friday ?�the Braves might need an extra body for longer than the weekend. The early assumption is that Lowe won't miss a turn due to this blister issue, but we'll see what the team says in a few days.
If nothing else, make sure you give Teheran a watch (7 pm EST). He's been glorified by all the normal prospect hounds and justly so, and he wasn't having any problems with Triple-A hitters this year (1.80 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 25 strikeouts against eight walks over 30 innings). ESPN's Keith Law ranked Teheran as the top pitching prospect to start 2011 and the No. 6 prospect overall. When Law says it's raining, get your umbrella.
Lowe's strong outing Friday foiled the Cliff Lee strikeout parade (7 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 16 K). Lee could have made a run at the strikeout record but he was already at 117 pitches; the Phillies wisely took him out, putting team goals above milestone chasing.
Sticking with Philly's rotation, Roy Oswalt has a sore back and was placed on the DL, though it was a retroactive move and he could be back as soon as next Friday. The temporary setback means we'll probably see Vance Worley for another start, even with Joe Blanton (elbow) just about ready.
?�The Eric Hosmer debut wasn't an explosive one but it was promising nonetheless. He walked in his first two appearances and added a stolen base before striking out in his final two trips; he saw 21 pitches in all out of the No. 6 slot. The final whiff came on a 3-2 pitch that looked off the plate, but the rookie didn't get the call.
Hosmer is exactly the type of player the Royals need, a take-and-rake modern hitter. And don't discount his ability on the bases; he stole 14-of-16 in the minors last year and legged out nine triples. Hosmer is also a quality defender, which means Billy Butler can go back to his natural position ? batter.�
?�Mark Melancon's first save chance was a walk in the park, an eight-pitch 1-2-3 inning at Pittsburgh. Melancon pounded the strike zone and got three-batted ball outs; a couple of the balls were soft liners, but nothing fell. Melancon certainly has a chance to settle into this gig and hold it for an extended period of time, no matter what happens with Brandon Lyon.
It will be interesting to see how the Astros handle the logjam in their outfield. Jason Bourgeois is on a 13-for-24 tear with seven steals over the last week; he collected three more knocks and another bag Friday. But there's no regular spot for Bourgeois now that Carlos Lee is back; Lee played first base Friday (going 2-for-4) but that's typically Brett Wallace's spot. The Astros aren't going to sit Michael Bourn or Hunter Pence, though they could get an occasional day off while the Bourgeois story is still playing.
You get the idea that Bourgeois will have to return to his fourth-outfielder role pretty soon unless someone gets hurt. There's nothing exciting about his career profile as a hitter but his wheels are impressive; he's rattled off 12 steals in a very limited amount of playing time. Bourgeois also has a tiny bit of second-base experience (four games for his MLB career); if the Astros get desperate, or creative, they could give him a tryout there.
Stauffer's 38 percent ownership tag looks a little light to me ? he's in the perfect park, after all, and in one of the safer divisions. We've seen plenty of plot twists through the years (Stauffer was drafted amidst a shoulder problem and he had labrum surgery in 2008), but we're still talking about a first-round pedigree here. I'm not going to worry when Stauffer goes to Milwaukee next week ? he's earned his way into the circle of trust.
? Michael Gehlken has been the dean of the Yahoo Friends & Family season thus far, holding down first place for just about the entire year. We realize that first place in our expert league is seen as a dubious prize by many of you ?�if you played in this group, you'd surely rampage to a victory while the rest of us schleps finished tied for last ?�but let's give Gehlken some props nonetheless.
Michael's mojo was especially working over the past 24 hours; he traded Kyle Farnsworth for Jaime Garcia on Thursday, then watched Garcia bedazzle the Brewers with a two-hit shutout Friday (1 BB, 8 K, just 102 pitches). Yuniesky Betancourt broke up the no-no with a clean single in the eighth, and Rickie Weeks added a wall double in the ninth that Matt Holliday played poorly (a clean hit, but a better fielder could have had it). Garcia was getting plenty of movement on his fastball, his curve was sharp, and his change generated a lot of awkward swings; here's your scouting video. Garcia got away with 10 fly-ball outs Friday but no need to fret; he's been an extreme ground-ball pitcher for his entire career. He's the genuine article.
? Not much has gone right for the Twins in 2011, so let's enjoy Trevor Plouffe's snappy debut at Boston (4-3-2-1, homer, steal, No. 2 slot). It's about time the team's first round pick from 2004 was heard from. Now that the balloons have been released, we'll throw some cold water on the story. Plouffe's minor-league profile doesn't inspire much confidence (his career in the minors slashes out to a mediocre .255/.317/.396), though he was off to a nifty 21-game start in Triple-A this year (.282/.344/.590, six homers).
It's more realistic to consider what Plouffe did in Triple-A last season, when he hit .244 with 15 homers and a .300 OBP. He never figured out how to run in the minors, succeeding on just 45-of-77 attempts. In medium and shallow mixers, you don't have to bother with a move here; let the story develop for a bit. Of course in AL-only leagues you have to take an aggressive tack, since any bat with a pulse ? and Plouffe is getting handed a shot at a starting job ? becomes a valuable commodity.
? Jonathan Broxton landed on the 15-day DL Friday, as expected, so it's open season for save-chasing in Los Angeles. Vicente Padilla seems like the logical chair for the committee but he's no sure thing by any means ? and Don Mattingly doesn't want to use Padilla on consecutive days. Hong-Chih Kuo and just-recalled Kenley Jansen got to work in non-leverage spots during Friday's loss at New York; Kuo struck out the only batter he faced, while Jansen struck out three in a scoreless but crazy inning (1 H, 1 BB, 24 pitches).
? The usual star-crossed players were central in Chicago's loss at Seattle: Gordon Beckham made a base-running blunder in the top of the eighth inning, and Matt Thornton allowed the deciding run in the bottom of the ninth. As a result, Phil Humber's start (7 IP, 3, H, 2 R, 3 BB, 4 K) went by the boards; it will be interesting to see what happens to the intriguing Humber (2.97 ERA, 0.95 WHIP) when Jake Peavy is ready to go.
Felix Hernandez was efficient if not dominant on the other side, using 108 pitches to go the route (5 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 6 K). Justin Smoak had an RBI double and a walk (he's up to .315) while Chone Figgins reached base twice and stole another bag (three this week, six for the year).
Rose Byrne Willa Ford Desiree Dymond Teri Polo Summer Altice
No comments:
Post a Comment