Adam Russell's
demotion to the Birmingham bullpen knocks one possibility out of the future starter conversation. It's long overdue -- after developing into
a dark-horse candidate for a bullpen spot in spring training, he's dealt with a loss in velocity, leading to a diminshing strikeout rate and fading overall effectiveness.
Although some may consider this change a failure on Russell's part, it could be a bonus. As you may be aware,
the Sox need bullpen help. On the other hand, they have a glut of candidates to choose from when filling the fifth starter role when a trade of Jose Contreras creates an opening (he types, fingers crossed).
I figure since there's nothing that interesting to talk about at the major-league level (unless
Juan Uribe's desires interest you that much), I'd open this up for discussion:
Gio Gonzalez: One thing that frustrates me about MiLB.com is that pitch counts are only recorded at the Triple-A level. I feel that's one thing that keeps us from getting a handle on his potential as a major-league starter.
There's nothing to dislike about his peripherals except his home run rate. He's only given up nine in 102 2/3 innings, but Birmingham's a big park. On the other hand, his ground ball rate has improved dramatically at no cost to his strikeout rate, so it seems like he could jump to a smaller park with few issues.
So really, the only thing keeping me from getting excited about Gonzalez is that total of innings pitched, which averages out to about 5 1/3 innings a start (5.37). For comparison's sake:
- Jack Egbert: 6.10
- Wes Whisler: 5.57
- Russell: 5.56
There are a lot of factors that go into this. He did have
one rain delay-shortened start on June 4 limiting him to 2 1/3 innings, and also since his strikeout rate dwarves those of any of the above, it intrinsically means he's going to throw more pitches. The organization could also be babying him more, since he's unquestionably
the prized pitching prospect.
On the other hand, for a small guy (5'11", 185, which seems generous) with
a maximum-effort delivery, I can see big-league hitters wearing him down early in the game if it is an efficiency-related issue -- especially in a smaller park. That's why I'd like to see him try at least half a season in Charlotte so he can get adjusted to one big change at a time.
Jack Egbert: Now here's a guy who seems fast-trackable. He's improved his strikeout rate every step along the minor-league way while keeping his walks level. He goes deep into games, he doesn't allow homers (only two this year), and he gets a lot of ground balls (nearly 2:1 GB/FB ratio this year).
The fact that he throws a seemingly very effective two-seamer should make him a good candidate to throw into the deep end. He won't be able to count on the strikeouts, but the sinker should keep him from getting
an Arnie Munoz-style case of whiplash.
It's only a matter of timing -- since Egbert isn't on the 40-man roster, it may not make sense to call him up ahead of schedule.
Speaking of Egbert, another fine performance from him tonight: 6 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, and most importantly, he induced 11 groundouts to only two flyouts.
Gavin Floyd: It's hard to gauge how much
his one start against Minnesota meant this year. He didn't look all that sharp in
his Charlotte start prior to his call-up, so he could've been in a rut of sorts.
He rebounded by striking out 10 over eight innings his last time around, and his overall numbers (3.12 ERA, 96 K in 106 2/3 IP) make him worth an extended look. His reliance on the curveball will mean a lot of flyballs (and consequently, a lot of homers in the Cell), but he has the kind of stuff that can allow him to work around it.
Plus, unlike Egbert, he will be out of options next year and he's already on the 40-man roster, so they may as well pretend that it's his job to lose.
Charlie Haeger: I had big-time reservations about making a knuckleballer a key member of the bullpen, but so far, Haeger has acquitted himself well to the role. Aside from
his rough initiation against Baltimore, he's gotten the job done in consecutive outings, throwing consecutive innings.
When you add in his relief numbers from last year, it seems like the Sox could possibly have something:
18 2/3 IP, 12 H, 3 ER, 9 BB, 17 K
Of course, the ease with which runners can steal on him and the higher probability of a passed ball make him undesirable in one-run games, but if the Sox have a pitcher who won't need to be stretched out for a spot start, they may as well keep him where he is.
Nick Masset: My
feelings regarding Masset are abundantly clear, but Kenny Williams
still thinks he has a future as a starter:
"Nick still hasn't shown us what we scouted. There's more in there.
"There's more velocity, more break to the breaking ball, more downward
action and more sink. So, what happened between this offseason, whether
it's fatigue or winter ball or whatever, we have to get a handle on it
and start asking some real questions."
Maybe that's true, but I read his words with the tone of somebody who can't find his keys. "I put them right there!" he says, pointing to a spot where there are no keys.
Lance Broadway: He still has a lot of work to do, considering that his BB:K ratio is near 1:1 and he's not getting all that many ground balls.
Andy Sisco: Dead weight, as far as I can tell.
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Minor league round-up:- Charlotte 15, Buffalo 6
- Ryan Sweeney hit two more homers, making it four over the last four games, and drove in five runs. Small park or not, at least it means he's driving the ball more.
- Danny Richar went 3-for-5 with a homer, three RBI and three runs scored.
- Scott Podsednik, beginning his rehab stint, went 2-for-5 and committed an error. Darin Erstad went 1-for-3 with an RBI and two strikeouts.
- Heath Phillips gave up all six runs over five innings, but only two were earned. Masset closed out the game with two perfect innings.
- Birmingham 6, Chattanooga 2
- See Egbert's line above.
- Fernando Hernandez pitched two scoreless innings in relief. He's allowed only four runs over his last 20 innings (10 outings), striking out 21 opposed to four walks and 13 hits.
- Donny Lucy had a double and two RBI.
- Charleston 10, Kannapolis 0
- Justin Edwards was knocked out in the fourth inning after giving up six runs (five earned) on six hits and four walks. He owns an 8.85 ERA in July.
- Brandon Allen went 2-for-4. Chris Carter went 0-for-4, and has only one hit over his last 16 at-bats.
- Winston-Salem PPD