Lakewood BlueClaws Weekly Report (4/14 – 4/19)

4. Lakewood

A week after being shown up by Delmarva at home in their opening series, the Lakewood BlueClaws took their show on the road with something to prove. And prove it they did, winning both their series against Lake County Captains and the Hagerstown Suns, going 4-2 on the week, and 5-2 on the roadtrip. The ‘Claws now sit at 6-5, third overall in the SAL Northern division, and two games back of the first-place Kannapolis Intimidators.

Monday was scheduled to have been the first game of their second series at home, facing the Captains again, however, Mother Nature decided to take pity on the BlueClaws and give them an unscheduled day off rather than making them play the full seventeen straight days their schedule had previously planned for them.

Tuesday, April 14

Lakewood 10
Lake County 3
W: Tyler Cloyd (1-1); L: J. Mahalic (0-1)

Eager to put the unsuccessful series against Delmarva fully behind them with a second straight win over the Lake County Captains, the BlueClaws handed the ball back to opening-day starter Tyler Cloyd. Unlike his previous start where Cloyd was afforded only one run to work with, the Lakewood offense had a huge game behind Cloyd, giving him more than enough cushion to lock the game down 10-3.

Cloyd was solid while pitching a rain-shortened complete game (the game was called in the top of the 7th inning with Lakewood batting). All in all, especially considering the rain, Cloyd had a very good game, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks in his six innings of work while striking out five.

Hagerstown held a 1-0 lead going into the top of the 3rd inning, where Lakewood took the lead in an inning that saw three walks, an error, a wild pitch and a wild pitch. Even with only two hits in the inning, off the bats of Leandro Castro and Travis D’Arnaud, Lakewood took a 4-1 lead, which turned out to be all they needed for the game. Lakewood would add two more runs to its lead in the 4th, with a 2-run single by Travis Mattair.  In the 5th, teh BlueClaws would extend the lead to 8-1 on a triple off the bat of Zach Collier that scored two more runs. Lakewood would tack on one more run in the inning  and one further run in the top of the 7th before the game was called. The score could have turned out even more lopsided in Lakewood’s favor had play been allowed to continue as Sebastian Valle was in scoring position on second base with no outs in the inning.

The best night offensively by the BlueClaws was had by Zach Collier. For the game, he went 2-2 with a double, a triple, one walk, three runs scored, two RBIs, and his third stolen base of the season. Jim Murphy also had a fantastic game, going 3-3 with a double, a walk, and a run scored. Finally, rounding out the key offensive contributers was Travis Mattair, Mattair singled in his only at-bat in the game, drew three walks, scored a run and drove in two RBIs.

Mattair Walk Count: 3

Wednesday, April 15

Lake County 4
Lakewood 2
W:M. McGuire (1-0); L: Jason Knapp (0-2)

Lakewood’s first bid for a series sweep is a game I’m sure fireballer Jason Knapp would rather forget. Lake County scored four runs off of Knapp in only 5.2 innings of work, though only two runs were earned after Knapp made a costly fielding error in the 2nd inning. His peripherals were actually pretty good, with a WHIP of 1.06 (5 hits, 1 walk over 5.2 innings) and six strikeouts, but he still was credited for the loss. On the plus side, after allowing all four runs early, Knapp retired the last eleven batters he faced. Growing pains are to be expected for an 18-year-old playing in Lakewood, and if this proves to be his worst start in April, then we’ll be forced to say that he had a pretty darn good first month.

On a night when Knapp could have used some help from the offense, Lakewood’s bats fell silent, only collecting two hits on six scattered runs. Their first run of the game came in the 4th, in an inning which did not see a Lakewood hit. The notable offensive performers on the night were Jim Murphy (2-3, 2 BB), Anthony Gose (2-5, R, 2B, RBI), and Jesus Villegas Andino (2-4, R). Mattair also bears mention for collecting four more walks, which tied a Lakewood BlueClaws record.

The Lakewood outfield flashed some nice defensive ability as both LF Leandro Castro and CF Anthony Gose had nice outfield assists (Castro to second base, Gose to third). Gose also collected his fifth steal of the year.

Mattair Walk Count: 7

Thursday, April 16

Lakewood 11
Hagerstown 9
W: B.J. Rosenberg (1-0); L: C. Peralta (1-1); SV: Justin DeFratus (1)

One thing is certain: Lakewood did not win this game due to its defense. Due to four fielding errors charged to Lakewood fielders (Roth, Mattair, Jeremy Hamilton, and Castro) only two of the nine runs scored by Hagerstown were actually credited as earned runs.

It is nearly impossible to accurately judge the night that Robert Roth had. Not only should Roth have retired the first three batters he faced, only to commit an error and allow the second batter to reach base, but after Hagerstown had scored its first two runs in the first, the next batter should have been out as well, if not for a costly error by 3B Travis Mattair. In the end, four unearned runs of damage were done in that first inning, and all that can really be said is that hopefully Roth learned a lesson that he cannot allow errors to affect him mentally. The night as  awhole was not kind to Roth, who allowed six runs, two earned on eight hits and a walk through five innings, only striking out two batters.

The BlueClaws paid back their fielding debts in full with their offense. Down early in a 5-0 hole, the BlueClaws had battled back to take a 7-6 lead by the fifth inning. Unfortunately, defense seemed to have cost them the game in the 8th, with another three runs caused by errors. In the top of the ninth, the BlueClaws offense went to work. With one out, Mattair singled to begin the rally and went to third on the next play, a Jim Murphy single. A Sebastian Valle double drove home the two runs needed to tie the game. After B.J. Rosenberg held the Suns silent in the bottom of the 9th, Lakewood came alive again in the 10th with two outs. After Travis Mattair walked to load the bases, a clutch two-run single by Harold Garcia put the BlueClaws ahead 11-9. A scoreless inning by Justin DeFratus ensured that those two runs would be the deciding factor.

Offensive standouts were Jim Murphy (3-5, 2 RBI), Jeremy Hamilton (2-4, R, BB, SB), Sebastian Valle (3-4, 2B, BB, 2 RBI), and Travis Mattair (2-3, 3 R, 2B, RBI, 3 BB)

Mattair Walk Count: 10

Friday, April 17

Lakewood 5
Hagerstown 4
W: Jonathan Velasquez (3-0); L: D. Slovak (1-1)

Jusus Sanchez held his own in his second professional starting appearance. He wasn’t special, but he got the job done, only allowing three runs in five innings on five hits, three walks and two strikeouts. Jonathan Velasquez continued his strong relief work, allowing one run in his four innings of work. At age 23, one would believe that Velasquez will be in line for a promotion by midseason at the latest if he continues to pitch the way he has been.

As with the last game, it would take some clutch late-game performances to net the win for Lakewood, but they ultimately came through, scoring a run in the eighth to tie the game at three all and winning the game in the ninth with two more runs. Hamilton, Murphy and D’Arnaud each were 2-4 in the game, D’Arnaud and Hamilton also collected RBIs (one for D’Arnaud, two for Hamilton). For the only time all week,reach Travis Mattair failed to reach base safely. In fact, no BlueClaw had a walk in the game.

Mattair Walk Count: 10

Saturday, April 18

Lakewood 6
Hagerstown 4
W: Jacob Diekman (1-0); L: J. Phillabaum (0-1); SV: Ryan Bergh (2)

After a disastrous start to the 2009 season from Jacob Diekman, he rebounded nicely, pictching a solid five innings and earning the win. It wasn’t pretty at times, as the Suns colleced six hits and two walks off Diekman in his five innings, but he struck out six and 0nly allowed three runs, two earned.

It was a weird offensive night for the BlueClaws who were outhit on the night 10-5 by Hagerstown but still managed to outscore the Suns 6-4. The six runs on five hits was helped out in a big way by the fact that the BlueClaws were walked a total of eight times (Valle walked three times, Murphy and Collier walked two times each, and Garcia walked once; oddly enough, Mattair did not have a walk). The player of the game was D’Arby Myers, who, in his first action of the week went 2-4 with a 2-RBI HR.

Mattair Walk Count: 10

Sunday, April 19

Hagerstown 5
Lakewood 4
W: C. Peralta (2-1); L: Esmelvin Jimenez (0-1); SV: O. Rodriquez (1)

Another good start from Tyler Cloyd wasted, only this time the blame rested more on the relief pitching than the offense. Cloyd had his third straight good start (5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 5 K). He hasn’t had one utterly fantastic start yet, but he has been consisently good thus far. Unfortunately, the bullpen, which had been good all week, blew the BlueClaws second chance for their first series sweep of the season, letting up three runs in three innings.

Hector Garcia collected two more hits, going 2-5 with a triple, two runs scored and an RBI. Anthony Gose, hitting in the two-hole, had two hits of his own, going 2-4 with a run scored and an RBI.

Mattair Walk Count: 13

Prospects of the Week

Each week, I’ll select five players, made up of any combination of pitchers and position players as the “Prospects of the week”, based on their performances throughout the week.

1. Travis Mattair, 3B
Mattair struggled in most offensive areas of the game last season at Lakewood, but one area that he targeted in the offseason, according to interviews, was his patience. And did that work ever pay off this week. Mattair had only 15 at-bats in 28 plate appearances due to a grand total of 13 walks on the week. In a single week – 6 games, he drew a third as many walks as he drew in all 129 games of the 2008 season. And when he wasn’t being thrown balls, he hit the ball at an average of .333. With a .643 OBP and .467 Slugging Average on the week, his OPS was an outstanding 1.110.

2. Jim Murphy, 1B/DH
Murphy maintains the same spot he owned last week, and really wasn’t the 2nd best performer. He’s more like 1A to Mattair’s 1. Murphy may not have walked as much as Mattair (though he still walked a respectable five times), he went 10-21 on the week for a .476 average and 1.101 OPS. The only couple things at the moment that you could ask him to improve would be his power, as nine of the ten hits were singles and the other a double, and his patience, as he struck out five times this week.

3. Anthony Gose, CF
Gose is still a VERY raw player, but he did have a good week. In almost thirty at-bats (the next-closest player had 22), Gose hit at a clip of .276 with six steals. He also flashed a bit of gap power, counting two doubles among his eight hits for the week. There is, however, a major flaw in his game, although one that can hopefully be corrected with time – patience. He struck out four times this week and is the only every-day player to not register a single walk.

4. Tyler Cloyd, SP
Cloyd had two good, consistent starts, allowing five runs in eleven innings of work, while striking out ten and maintaining a 1.09 WHIP

5. Sebastian Valle, C
Valle, one of the youngest players on the team, made the most out of the three games he played in this week, going 4-9 with a double, four RBI and four walks.

Runners-Up
– D’Arby Myers, OF – Played in two games, had a HR
– Jeremy Hamilton, 1B – Played sparingly, but hit .333 this week
– Jonathan Velasquez, SP – Notched another win this week, pitched four solid innings of relief work, has only allowed two runs all year so far

Dishonorable Mention
– Troy Hanzawa – The former Williamsport standout had a horrid week, only hitting twice in nineteen at-bats and striking out nine times

League Leaders
– Jim Murphy is 2nd in the SAL with a .424 batting average and 6th in Slugging Percentage
– Travis Mattair (.540) and Jim Murphy (.525) are 1st and 2nd, respectively, in the SAL in OBP
– Murphy (1.070) is 2nd and Mattair (.940) is 10th in the SAL in OPS
– Travis D’Arnaud is 4th in the league in RBIS with 9
– Mattair leads the league by far and way (the next highest total is 10) in walks with 16
– Anthony Gose (9) leads the league while Harold Garcia (5) is T-4th, and Zach Collier (4) is T-6th in steals
– Tyler Cloyd is tied for the SAL lead in Innings Pitched with 17
– Jason Knapp is 2nd in the SAL with 16 strikeouts while teammate Tyler Cloyd is fifth with 14
– Cloyd is one of only two pitchers who have pitched a complete game (both games were rain-shortened)
– Jonathan Velasquez is tied for the SAL lead in wins with 3

117 thoughts on “Lakewood BlueClaws Weekly Report (4/14 – 4/19)”

  1. Of course the president of the Travis Mattair fan club will be posting after what is hopefully his breakout week.

    It will be really interesting to watch how his season unfolds – what if he becomes more of a high obp singles hitter? Will there be complaints of him not being a power hitter at a power position? He might possibly be on track for a Bill Mueller-type career, which would be okay by me.

    Nice write up again, Romano. Actually, all of the correspondents have been off to really hot starts. If they keep it up, they should all get bumped up a level.

    – Jeff

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  2. good write up. thanks for your hard work.

    mattair is a really interesting prospect. it is certainly early, but i don’t recall ever seeing someone with the kind of lines that he gets. his babip must be through the roof. it will be interesting to see if he maintains this patience all season. but a great start.

    i also think that you nailed it on Knapp. his bad inning is actually a great thing to see. he seemed to keep his composure and limit the damage. great to see for a kid.

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  4. I thought I was the president of the Mattair fan club:)

    Good to hear he is starting out the season better than last year.

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  5. im assuming the valle will be sent down to Williamsport once the season starts, keeping D’Arnauld in Lakewood. It appears however that they are both hitting at the moment and are capable of handling the level. I think they both need time to play every day so it might be advantageous to push Travis up a level and see how he does in clearwater while we challenge Valle in Lakewood.

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  6. Rodeo – Valle and D’Arnaud have both been seeing time at DH

    Phil – there might be multiple fan clubs. Maybe we should look into a merger. I could step down as president and become the Bandwagon Driver. Although now that I think about it Mattair wouldn’t need to ride on a bandwagon – he would just walk to wherever he is going. (Thank you, I’ll be here all week. Take care of your waitresses)

    – Jeff

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  8. I just want to thank you for the report, It is very much appreciate , it gives us a feel for what is really going on. Not just stats to judge the players, It must take you a lot of time and effort to do this ,all the reports have been great .thanks

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  10. Interesting to see if Mattair can keep up that sort of ability to draw walks without developing more power. I’d imagine that will be challenged significantly as he moves up through the system. I’d like to see him in Clearwater by mid-summer, considering that Overbeck is about to turn 23 and should not be a roadblock to Mattair’s development.

    Maybe now we can hear less about Hanzawa as a prospect? No offense to the guy, and to people here, but a 23 year old SS in low-A ball who can’t hit is not much of a prospect. Especially considering we have a 19-year old SS in high-A (albeit one who can’t really hit either).

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  11. Mattair I think is still just 20 years old. He’s a big kid who hadn’t faced much high-level competition before entering pro ball. The power will come, and I’m beyond thrilled at the patience he’s shown just far.

    I’ll add my voice to the praise for the affiliate write-ups–really strong work, and much appreciated.

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  14. Check that he just struck out the side in the 4th. 9K’s in 4 innings. When Drabek moves to AA, Knapp needs to go to high A and be challenged.

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  15. 18 years old and in High A…how often does that happen? I wonder how his secondary pitches are progessing. He might be simply overpowering less experienced hitters with his great fastball.

    Anyone been to any of his starts?

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  20. Yikes. I’m thinking that he is probably just dominating the competition, as NEPP pointed out. I’d like to hear a report on his other pitches too. Still, if he keeps it up, he might be forcing the Phils to make a decision on him. Hopefully, they’ll be watching his pitch count and innings totals closely.

    It seems like all of the sudden, we’ve got quite a rich farm system now.

    – Jeff

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  21. Excellent write-up. I’ll echo the other posters and say that all of the on field reports this year have been outstanding. Much appreciated.

    Any word on Kyle Slate ?

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  23. What’s even more telling is that he has managed to do this without walking a single batter. He has also generated 4-2 GB to FB outs. His control must be spot on. Anyway to tell if these are swinging or looking strikeouts?

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  24. Blueclaw blog reports Knapp ties the record:

    12:35: Strikeout number 14 for Knapp…ties Robinson Tejeda’s single-game record from 2001. Still man on 2nd, 2 out, 0-0 in the 7th.

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  31. Blog:
    12:44: Knapp out after 7: 0 R, 1 H, 0 BB, 3 HBP, 14 K…no decision…0-0 top 8, Bergh on for Lakewood.

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  35. Jason Knapp – alright!!!!

    I was starting to get concerned they were going to leave him in there too long. That’s amazing for an 18-year old.

    Let’s see if he can keep this up for a while, but if he can, you’re looking at a potential big league star.

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  36. Very nice contest. Seems like anymore than one more start
    at this level is a waste of time for Knapp. The old administration seemed to work on the theory that if you repeat 2nd grade enough you will be a rocket scientist

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  37. Great start by Knapp but lets not move up to AA already guys, he’s only 18.

    Still, considering he hit three guys and struck out 14 I’d have to think a lot of guys were batting scared with that heat.

    I really consider it 4 walks including the HBP.

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  38. no wheels… it is all depending on his breakdown of pitches. Yeah his fastball is obviously ready for a jump. but how were his secondary pitches? if they are looking sharp too and he was getting guys out on them then awesome. but if he isnt throwing them well and relying on his fastball, it spells disaster in the higher levels. Before he moves up we need to make sure his off speed stuff is keeping up.

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  39. This is uber prospect territory for Knapp, if he keeps this up he will be in High A by June. At 18.

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  40. I have herd some talk about him as a closer but I don’t know why. Does anyone who holds that opinion want to enlighten me?
    Of corse this is besides the reason that he throws gas because there are good starters who do that to

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  41. Great reporting. Wow, made my lunch break.

    Has to be a confidence builder for Knapp. Let him get a few dominant starts in using his fastball, and then have him work on his other stuff. He’ll know he’s capable of dominating with the fastball which should allow him some level of comfort to throw the other pitches. If he’s still able to dominate while mixing up the pitches, then I’d feel comfortable moving him up.

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  42. Right now Knapp has to be considered among the top five minor league prospect starters. Carrasco, Drabek, Worley, Stutes, and Knapp are my top five. Savery and Yande are the top lefty starters but they would be in my second starter prospects tier with Carpenter, Kendrick and Roth/Sampson.

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  43. My guess is that they will be very consevative with him and I can’t blame them. I’d be surprised if he’s called up before July. He’s 18 – they need to give him time to learn and make sure he’s ready.

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  44. Statistically, the value of a great starting pitcher greatly exceeds the value of a closer. I think you try him out as a starter and then have him close if that’s truly necessary.
    Often, closers are guys who run out of steam after an inning or two or who have good velocity, but not a lot of pitches.

    All of that having been said, there are not a lot of people who have the mental toughness to be good closers, so it’s something a team has to think about with a young flamethrower.

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  45. the thing that i like the most about this game is that this is his rebound game after a poor outing. it shows his mental makeup. he came out mowing people down.

    he is special!

    but i don’t see them moving him up until mid season.

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  46. Thebestrbevr21 – talk about being a closer could only be tied to his secondary pitches. you really need 3-4 good to very good pitches to make it through a line up 3 times. so anyone suggesting he is a closer is concerned about his secondary pitches. but he is 18, so i don’t see them making a call on that for a while. he will get more than enough oportunity to start. they need to stretch him out anyway.

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  47. dcwildcat53 Says:

    no wheels… it is all depending on his breakdown of pitches. Yeah his fastball is obviously ready for a jump. but how were his secondary pitches? if they are looking sharp too and he was getting guys out on them then awesome. but if he isnt throwing them well and relying on his fastball, it spells disaster in the higher levels. Before he moves up we need to make sure his off speed stuff is keeping up
    I get your point but he cant develop off speed at that level
    1. he will relay on heat
    2. How can u know his off speed is good against these kids
    my humble thought are higher level but fewer innings til later say August

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  49. me too but he is like man pitching little league. A lot depends on if the big team turns it around especially agains the Marlins. A bad season will accerate minor league movement.

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  50. Don’t know if its accurate but he is 3,98 against lefthanders maybe he doesn’t have the good breaking ball yet or changeup.

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  51. Guys,

    Was at the game today…Knapp was great! You have to get over here to see him soon before he goes to Clearwater.

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  52. The season that the big league club is experiencing does not have any affect on minor league players that are not pushing for playing time already. So, yes, the fortunes of the Phillies could affect Lou Marson, Jason Donald, and Carlos Carrasco. But, they certainly should not affect a player’s development in A ball. What, the Phils lose a game or two and every prospect gets promoted? That would be a tad shortsighted and foolish.

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  53. Also, my general feelings towards Knapp are that we should not save a spot for him in the hall quite yet. If I remember correctly, the big knock on Knapp coming out of high school was his secondary pitches, or his lack of secondary pitches. We all knew he had a big fastball, and I am just a bit worried that he is simply overpowering A- hitters with one pitch. A scouting report from someone who has seen him pitch would be very helpful.

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  54. Carraco get promoted some one from reading fills his slot
    someone from Clearwater goes to Reading, guess what
    happens next!

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  55. Nowheels, players should not be promoted based on vacancies, players should be promoted when the organization feels that a different level of play would be beneficial in the development of said player. That is why minor league filler exists, so that prospects are not rushed to fill random, meaningless roster spots on various minor league teams.

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  58. good luck to knapp but did someone say he broke the immortal robinson tejada,s record.give the kid time guys who throw 97 with nothing else usually wind up nowhere. joe savery is not as polished as bruce ruffin hes not a mlb pitcher.

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  59. Ole Robbie T the poster boy for incompent ptiching coach
    changing what got a player to the bigs. They couldnt stand that he was a high ball pitcher.
    I would give Savery til midseason then think about a switch

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  60. I think the speculation that Knapp would wind up a closer was based on his wind-up. Maybe that’s been fixed, but he was kind of stiff legged, and it was thought that would limit his innings.

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  61. This is COMPLETELY unrelated, but its interesting that they had Zagurski pitch the first inning in Clearwater today before Drabek’s start…. 1 ip, 0 hits, 1 SO… not a bad start to a comeback I guess.

    Lets see who wins the Kyle Drabek-Dontrelle Willis showdown tonight!

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  63. carrasco 7ip 3h 3er 10k’s another great start, had a no hitter in the 6th then gave up all his runs in the 7th

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  64. CC still had the shutout 2outs in the seventh and someone went to the mound Then he gave up a single and a homer.
    What the was that conversation about???/

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  65. i know leave the guy alone when he is doing that well, anyways drabek is bringing the filth again, 6ip 4h 9ks 0er

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  66. Yea that is ridiculous… like the time Moyer had a no-hitter into the 6th and the ump went to the mound to inspect the ball- then he gave up a bunch of runs.

    And I guess it isn’t fair to talk about Drabek and CC’s starts and ignore Brummett’s 7ip, 5h,1bb,4k… not too shabby either.

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  70. As good as you has to feel about Drabek There is a saddness
    about Willis. He was the poster boy for the antipitchcount good ole boys (238 inn at 23) People make bad decisions and others suffer. do you think we are still rated 12 best minors???
    I still wonder why Rizzoti still isnt in the field more often
    Is he injured????

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  71. Or perhaps Willis simply was never that good. Many argued at the time that his one great season was a fluke…the biggest surprise is the extension the Tigers gave him.

    Between Drabek, CC and Knapp, its been a hell of a day for our prospects.

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  72. drabek needs to moved up to reading, I think if he completely dominates again after next start he should be moved

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  73. I’d give him till mid-May at the earliest to make sure this is real and its definitely warm in Reading…no hurry to promote him in April.

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  75. Drabek, Knapp, and Carrasco – hard throwing right-handers, all of them. That’s what I’m talking about! This is now getting extremely exciting. Don’t look for the team to keep Brett Myers around next year with these guys on the way.

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  76. Nepp Willis was shot b4 the Tigers made the deal. Baseball
    people make up all kinds of excuses after they screw up a player
    e.g. Koufax they talk about how bad his elbow was yet they pitched him over 300 innings one year.
    I also dont like the use of ice on a pitcher under 25. I find it strange to cut down circulation when the body needs to clean out a insulted arm

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  77. wow! nowheels, talk about adding insult to injury. I’m very excited about our top 5 pitchers though it’s early. I’m also a litle disappointed w/ how some of our top hitting prospects are doing though again way too early to judge. I forsee a jump to the top 5 from #12 if this(pitching) keeps up and hitters get on track.

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  78. Even Brummet had a good start. What a great day in the system.

    Gosh, I hope Zagurski gets back to the big club quickly. I’ve developed a hate for Jack Taschner.

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  79. hamels,myers,happ,carrasco,and drabek in 2010. willis has been overrated for 4 years. if you really watched and took away the crazy gyrations which good hitters do he had a number 1 that was straight and little else and than his arm was burned out.too many people bought the hype.

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  81. Heimueller’s been busy with all his talent. Saw him in Harrisburg watching Worley and Stutes Fri. and Sat. as they warmed up in the pen for their starts and yesterday he gives his views of Knapp in Lakewood comparing him to Hamels at this stage in his developement:
    http://www.app.com/article/20090421/SPORTS/90422010/1002
    After watching Knapp’s fastball hit the mid 90’s while his off-speed stuff registered in the low 70’s, Phillies pitching coordinator Gorman Heimueller said his domination of the opposition was similar to that of Cole Hamels who pitched for Lakewood in 2003.

    “But in a different way,” Heimueller said. “Cole did it with a lot of changeups. Jason did it with his fastball and mixed in his other pitchers. I enjoyed watching it.”

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  82. 2010 – Hamels, Moyer, Blanton, Happ, Carrasco (in no particular order, I think numbering starters is a bit overrated).

    I’ll take that.

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  83. RODEO
    I am sure Taschner will give you even more reason to
    “hate” him. Bad deal all around JJ is starting . Pauline is playing and we have a salary to pay. Maybe Houston needs another stiff.
    I like Stutes or Worley next year. Blanton leave me blah. He may have lost is rabbits foot

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  84. I totally agree that no one should be rushed. Obviously Happ is first in line at the big league level. Then Carrasco. As far as Drabek and Knapp are concerned. Give me three or four more dominating starts like that and you get moved up when we have a spot. If you really think about it, Knapp should finish the year at Clearwater at age 19. That would mean, barring injury or setback he should be in AA or ready for the show by the time he hits 22. That’s a pretty nice age to be ready for the bigs.

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  86. I thought Worley projected more as a Scot Shields type out of the bullpen? Which is a nice upside to have.

    The Blanton trade won us a World Series…its was worth it.

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  87. Nepp
    who is to say someone else would not of.. Anyway that was last year. We will know more two weeks from now when they play somebody
    I just revisited the Mattair page He is killing left handers 11abs and 20 plate appr. 11 walks I hope he is for real

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  89. Anyone who thinks Knapp can learn anything elso at this level
    is wrong. A couple more starts for exercise besides the boy
    is missing the good weather in Florida

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  90. So far, Anthony Gose is the biggest surprise to me in the early going. He’s opening my eyes. I wasn’t real high on him as a position player. I liked him as a pitcher. At Lakewood, he’s showing some things. He was 3 -4 yesterday with 2R and 2 dbls. He has an 8 game hitting streak and has hit in 11 of the 13 games he’s played in. He has been on base in every game although 1 of them was a on an error probably caused by his speed. He’s a threat to steal anywhere, anytime. He still only 18 (until August). He K’s a lot (10 in 57ABs). He only has 2 BBs. I’m hoping he can be more selective but this is a good start. We’ll see if the pitchers in the SAL exploit his weakness or he becomes more selective.

    Collier’s struggling though. He’s certainly NOT the biggest disappointment so far (Harman’s just killing me) He’s a month younger than Gose so I’d expect that. I wonder if he’ll go to Williamsport when the SS starts? Right now, I think that would be best. But the season is young and he can shift into a different gear.

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  92. I’m not unduly worried about Collier this early (just 49 PAs thus far). Yes, his strikeout rate (30.2%) is high, but his other peripherals indicate that his .163/.265/.302 line isn’t anything to fret over…

    71.4% XBH (5 of 7)
    12.2% BB
    .233 BABIP

    The best thing the organization can do is to continue to give him regular at bats. It’d be a great story if d’Arby Myers were able to turn it around, but he should not be taking at bats away from Collier.

    As for Gose… I’m happy with his early production, especially given the questions surrounding his bat last year. While I’d love to see the plate discipline stabilize (2:10 strikeout-to-walk is a bit discouraging), I’m heartened a bit by the .123 ISO, which I certainly expected to be lower. Not a bad start for an 18-year old in full season ball.

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  93. **Anyone who thinks Knapp can learn anything elso at this level is wrong.**

    yeah…i mean he already has 3 starts in A ball. he has seen it all at this point. what could he possibly learn? there aren’t scenarios he could face that he hasn’t already faced in his 18+ innings. he can get 4 plus pitches over at any time at any count…oh wait….

    look…i am a lifelong philly fan and i know our mentality all too well. but some times, it just is so rediculous that it is laughable. it is always one extreme or the other.

    i am extremely high on knapp. the regulars on this blog know that by my consistently positive comments on him. but he has a lot to learn and it is good for him to do so in a lower risk environment. it keeps his confidence high while he is learning. it allows him to focus on the process not the results, the oposite of which happens when you move a kid up to fast.

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  94. PP Fan how can he or his coaches judge what is good . Answer that question and i will cease.
    You make some good points but the opposite is also true
    inflated confidence may casue deflation later on.(known as a bid head) For every point there is a opposing view. If he dominates two or three more starts what is your view then???

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  95. Players typical spend a whole season per level for a reason. Knapp hasn’t even faced the same team twice! I’m a huge fan of Knapp- but temper the enthusiasm a little bit.

    Lets turn your question around, Nowheels… how can YOU judge whats good, considering you’ve never met Knapp or seen him pitch in person?!? All of your knowledge comes second hand from box scores and scouting reports, so to pretend that you have some knowledge that exceeds that of the coaches or the player himself is such incomprehensibly ridiculous! I can guarantee that his coaches know the best course of action better than you do.

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  98. Interesting – Velasquez is starting for Lakewood tonight whereas Diekman pitched in the pen the other night. Maybe they’re starting to think of Diekman more as a reliever…

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  100. D’Arnaud with a NICE game tonight – a double and a HR…hopefully this breaks him out of his slump

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  101. NoWheels, its easy for the coaches to judge how Knapp is doing.
    Is he throwing his secondary pitches for strikes?
    How’s his work ethic between starts?
    Is he taking what the coaches are teaching out on the field?

    The word on Knapp coming into the draft was that he had a big-time arm but a bad delivery. No doubt that is what they are concerned with, not if he is being challenged enough by opposing hitters.

    So now that the question has been answered, you can stop!!!

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  103. Nowheels,

    Yes, coaches make mistakes, but there is a reason that they are being paid the money to manage these players. Maybe you are right and he has nothing else to prove down here, but maybe the manager, pitching coach, whoever sees something that they’d have him work on before he moves up.

    Remember that he is an 18-year old, and more often than not, even the best 18-year-olds playing in their first season of full-season A ball have their ups and their downs. It isn’t like he has dominated each and every time he’s taken the mound. See above in my article for a prime example.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong, but you have to believe that the coaches know what they’re doing, even if that belief turns out to be foolish.

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  105. Can anybody tell me why Antonio – 2b at Lakewood – hit 280 last year at Clearwater and is now in Lakewood?

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  106. Can anybody tell me why Antonio – 2b at Lakewood – hit 280 last year at Clearwater and is now in Lakewood?

    Antoniato? Probably because he only collected two extra base hits in 189 plate appearances. He looks like an Orlando Guevara, an extra glove to bounce around from level to level depending on who needs an extra man at any given point.

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  107. I’m a big fan of knapp’s. I don’t think that he should be moved up yet. I could see him moving up to clearwater by the end of the year, but not yet. And he has a lot more to prove. He’s got three whole starts. sure, he’s been stellar in 2 of them, but not in all of them. he really needs more time before anyone makes a decision. And nowheels, please. you really need to stop posting this complete insanity. I mean, you seem to have the strangest ideas on this entire site. I enjoy reading some of your posts, but lately, you’ve been getting crazier and crazier. Look, give the Kid some time before we make him the next rodger clemens. he’s 18. and he has three starts in low a ball. it could turn out to be a total fluke.

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  108. PhillyFriar, D’Arby Myers is not taking away any at bats away from Collier. There is plenty of room for Myers, Collier and Gose.

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  111. **PP Fan how can he or his coaches judge what is good . Answer that question and i will cease.**

    because it is not about the results, it is about the process. it is about consistent mechanics on all pitches. about consistent location on all pitches. about consistent arm speed on all pitches. that is what coaches watch for. not stats.

    **You make some good points but the opposite is also true
    inflated confidence may casue deflation later on**

    that is just silly. you are really concerned about his head getting too big because he blows away A ballers? these guys know that they are far from the majors.

    seriously, did you ever play sports? i mean, your comments really make me think that you don’t know anything about sports and what it takes to be successful. it is not a race to the top. it is about having sound mechanics and confidence in those mechanics when you get there. it is about repitition and muscle memory so when the pressure situations occur, you maintain that confidence and throw the 3-2 change up with the bases loaded.

    i must admit, personally, i have felt the comments the past few days have been absolutely horrible. such wide swings on players in such a short period of time. i mean, we are all fans, but at least pretend that you understand how the system works.

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  112. Look i have my ideas you have yours mine are just as valid
    what the hell are you so senstive about. I find things you say very ordinary I dont demean you . btw do you really think Knapp will face a lot of 3-2 situtations with bases loaded in Lakewood . You just made my point thank you

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  113. well nowheels, the point is that its way to early to promote knapp. Over the last couple of days, you have been completely rediculus with your posts. It makes no sense to rush an 18. give him some real time, let him face a team twice, and the let his coaches decide when to move him. because they do, in fact, know more than you do.

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  114. Ill buy that Jpd . I have said twice around is fine. The point I am trying to make and people turn it around is going too slow isnt the answer either. Knapp hardly pitches from the stretch
    yet alone tough situations there isnt much learning curve there.
    Sorry i dont have blind faith in coaches that isnt even the point. Ask Atlee Hamaker next time you see him about coachs. Or Jason Vargas
    I have faith in Huppert completely He went a whole season without losing a pitcher

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  117. I can definatly see that pitching from the strecth might challenge him some more. I’m sorry that I said that about you. I agree that he probably won’t finish the year in lakewood, and a challenge would help him. as long as they don’t rush him.

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