CB touched on its yesterday, in that most successful relievers in the MLB were drafted as starters, but the Braves have been drafting relievers with that intention in mind recently and it has left them with some very interesting arms in the bullpen that could be ready to fill holes in just a year or two.
1. Craig Kimbrel B/T: R/R Born: 05/28/1988 Ht: 5'11" Wt: 205
Craig Kimbrel was another multiple attempt draftee of the Braves. They took him in the 33rd Rd in 2007 but failed to sign him. They again drafted him in 2008, this time in the 3rd Rd. and signed him for $391,000. He made his debut after signing and splitting time between Danville, Rome and Myrtle Beach. In 35 IP he struck out 53 batters and allowed only 1 ER while walking 15. Pretty sweet. In 2009 he split 49 games between every full season level posting a final line of 60 IP, 2.85 ERA, 30 H, 45 BB and 103 K.
The positives and negatives of Craig Kimbrel's games are pretty well documented. He led the entire minor leagues with 15.5 K per 9 innings. He also walked 6.8 per 9 innings. One of those numbers is really excited, the other is really frightening. Kimbrel's fastball sits in 93-95 MPH range and can touch 98 when he gets behind it. On top of his fastball being fast it also has plus movement, which contributes to some of the walks. He throws a plus slider which has improved markedly from the slurvy pitch he brought to the pro ranks, and mixes in a changeup from time to time though he rarely needed it this season.
Kimbrel has the stuff to be a top flight closer in the majors. He has allowed only 46 hits in 95 professional innings, given up only 2 HRs and struck out a mind bottling 159 batters. The big negative of course is the walks: 60 BB in those 95 innings is a bit on the high side. He was pretty terrible in Myrtle Beach at the beginning of the season but regained his control in Rome only to see his walks spike again in AA and the AFL. He has managed to remain an extremely effective pitcher despite the walks but that probably won't last against advanced competition. Expect him to start in AAA with a callup at some point in the year barring disastrous results in Gwinnett.
The fact is, most effective Major League relievers are converted starters. But, that's no reason to ignore the crop of pitchers performing primarily as relievers in the Braves' Minor League system, as the tops names are each not only talented but have succeeded as they've moved up the ladder.
6. Kevin Gunderson B/T: R/L Born: 9/16/1984 Ht: 5'10" Wt: 165
The nephew of former Major Leaguer Eric Gunderson, the diminutive lefty was drafted in the 5th round in 2006 after making a name for himself by leading Oregon State to a College World Series title by pitching effectively as both a starter and a reliever. Gunderson has only pitched out of the bullpen as a pro though, working his funky low 3/4 delivery for a 3.01 career ERA. After pitching the second half of 2008 with Mississippi, he returned to AA in 2009 and succeeded, collecting a 1-3 record, 2.55 ERA, and 1.31 WHIP in 49.1 innings.
When he was drafted it was believed that Gunderson would be able to move through the minor leagues quickly, but three and a half seasons later he's only played 2 games above AA. The good news is that he's remained effective throughout his career. While he doesn't have overpowering stuff, he still gets good movement on his fastball, good break on his slider, and, when he is able to harness it, his changeup is a weapon. Unfortunately, he didn't show much ability to negate lefthanded batters last season, allowing a .322 average against lefties compared to just a .211 average against righties.
Gunderson will likely be invited to Major League Spring Training with Atlanta to see if he can earn a bullpen spot, but he'll probably be spending the majority of 2010 with Gwinnett trying to refine his game. If he can continue to remain an effective reliever he'll certainly be looked at as a Major League option, but if he isn't able to get lefites out at a better rate he won't have much success at the highest levels.
I was sent this transcript by the media guy over at Sirius XM Radio's MLB Home Plate show. I thought it had some good quotes from Tom Glavine... he usually has good quotes when he's asked questions:
Yesterday, Nov. 19, on ‘SIRIUS XM’s MLB Home Plate’ channel, hosts Seth Everett and Jim Duquette spoke with Tom Glavine about his future plans and Bobby Cox’s pending retirement.
Host/Seth Everett: "Tell us about the way your season came to a close and what your thought process is as we hit November. Free agency signing period starts tomorrow. What is your attitude in terms of what you think your future is?"
Tom Glavine: "I honestly don’t know. I didn't like the way my season ended last year. It has been well talked about and well documented. Obviously I wasn't happy about it and I thought it should have gone differently than it did but it didn't. And that’s something on a personal level that I have to deal with and I have dealt with. I’m okay with it. I’m okay with it now. I’ve moved on. I don't know what the next chapter of life is for me. I'm not closing the door on playing next year but I really don't see myself at this point in time playing. I mean, a lot of things would have to change. I don't know what I am going to do next. Assuming I don't play, I don't know if it is going to be to get into the broadcasting side of the game or trying to get into a front office type situation with somebody and start learning that side of the game. I don't know. I see myself staying around the game a little bit that's for sure, but I’m not quite sure exactly what it is that I want to do. I've been home since June of last year and it’s actually been kinda nice being home, hanging out with my boys, and being a dad so I don't know how soon I want to get away from doing that."
Host/Jim Duquette: "Bobby Cox has announced that he is going to manage his last year in 2010. It’s hard to imagine him not being in that dugout beyond 2010. Your thoughts on his pending retirement?"
Glavine: "There are certain guys that you just don't ever expect not to see in that uniform or in that dugout anymore and Bobby is one of those guys. You look at the Braves and for so many years they had the stability of myself, and Smoltzy, and Maddux, and Chipper Jones now and all those guys you kind of knew from year to year were going to be there and slowly but surely, everybody has gone by the wayside. Bobby has kind of been the lasting guy. And I think a lot of people thought they would have to tear the uniform off him to get him out of the dugout. That'll be extremely strange for a lot of people when that day comes to look over there and not see Bobby yelling at the umpires anymore or cheering the guys on in the dugout. It's going to be a big adjustment, I think, for everyone involved with the organization but sooner or later you have to make those changes. I feel bad for the guy who has to come in after him because you know as much as everyone talks about, ‘Oh, he’s not filling Bobby's shoes’, that's exactly what everybody’s going to think he's doing and its going to be a tough assignment for whoever comes in after him."
SIRIUS XM’s MLB Home Plate channel is available to listeners nationwide on XM channel 175 and SIRIUS channel 210 with the "Best of XM" package.
I did not see that coming... no, wait, yes I did.
Today is the last day to set 40-man rosters to protect players from the Rule 5 draft later this month. Per Mark Bowman, the Braves added five pitchers, left-handers Lee Hyde, Jose Ortegano and Jonny Venters and right-handers Jeff Lyman and Kyle Coffield. Bowman has a writeup of each player here.
Lee Hyde and Jeff Lyman will be reviewed today and tomorrow respectively here as Talking Chop presents our top-10 Braves minor league relievers. I'm a personal fan of Hyde, and I think he'll be a solid bullpen contributor in a year or so. Lyman seems to be following the Blaine Boyer track, and Coffield and Venters could be on that starter to reliever track as well. Ortegano was ranked last week as the Braves third-best left-handed starting pitching prospect, and you can read a review here.
A notable player who was not added is outfielder Matt Young. If we give enough credit to the Braves for thinking all the way ahead to this day, then we may be able to understand why Young was kept in double-A for all but 7 games this year, for the second consecutive year -- they didn't want to expose him to this draft after having played at a higher level. Though it is highly unlikely that he would be taken.
Keith Law ranks the top-50 free agents at ESPN Insider. Some interesting notes:
Good overview of the free agents by Law, if you're an insider you should check it out.
I answered the best I could, though I think my opinions on some topics change daily. The one thing I do know is that the Braves have a lot of holes to fill once again this off-season.
From Ken Rosenthal, we learn that the Atlanta Braves have had what seems like several conversations with teams about trading starting pitcher Derek Lowe, but they have had little luck finding a taker:
The Braves' most extensive discussions concerning Lowe have been with the Brewers about a trade for outfielder Corey Hart, according to one source.
But the Brewers are not sure they would want Lowe even if the Braves included significant money in the deal, another source says.
Another team showing interest is the Angels:
The Angels, who showed interest in Lowe about a month ago, according to sources, could use him to replace Lackey in their rotation. The Braves, seeking a right-handed hitter, like Angels outfielder Juan Rivera.
Rosenthal also speculates that the White Sox could be a match for the Braves, in a possible swap for right-handed first baseman Paul Konerko, but no sources are cited for that rumor.
The rumor about the Brewers seems quite credible since Rosenthal mentions two different sources, and the Braves have long had eyes for Corey Hart (though I don't know why). Once John Lackey signs, the market for Lowe may open up, with those teams who lost out on Lackey willing to up their offer to get Lowe. The Braves could still reverse course and choose to deal Javier Vazquez, but for the moment it seems clear that they are focused on moving Lowe and his contract (even if they have to eat part of it).
[UPDATE 8:15pm]
Mr. Rumor Clarification (aka Mark Bowman) was quicker than he normally is in clarifying the above rumor. Here's Bowman:
The Braves see the Brewers as a potential suitor for Derek Lowe. But contrary to a report on FOXSports.com, they have never been interested in trading the veteran sinkerballer in exchange for Brewers outfielder Corey Hart.
Good. I feel the same way about Corey Hart. No thank you. Bowman reiterates an statement he made earlier in the off-season that the Brewers are primarily interested in Javier Vazquez. He also mentions that the Braves have strong interest in trying to match up Lowe with the Angels in a trade.
