Tuesday’s News & Notes

19 Commments

1. Keep me on record as saying that this Rochester team is going to be bad. Really bad.

   There were a lot of minor league free agent relief pitchers signed by the Nats this offseason, and they’re looking pretty rough so far.

   In AAA, Jesus Liranzo and Jose Mujica were diabolical, and Odalvi Javier was lucky to escape his jam without too much damage to his stat line.

   In A+, Dannel Diaz was atrocious. Where did this 26 year old Cuban come from?

   Meanwhile, a few of them started off well enough. Gerson Moreno was fine in AAA. Joel Peguero handled his one AA inning well enough, and Jose Ulloa was fine in A. Some new names to get familiar with…

   1. with a good start on City Isle Troop could get a shot at a spot in the rotation.

      Espino seems to be locked in for insurance purposes at this time but Abbott could supplant him as the first call up and open up another spot for a true prospect

      1. Fred MD your hunch telling you Troop could hop scotch to Bigs ?
         Looking forward to Cuevas this week .

         1. not sure he’s got that much potential but as spots open up in AAA I’d much rather see him pitch over older hangers-on/Milb free agent types. promote from within is my motto!

            1. I’ve always had some hope for Troop, although he struggled last season as they mostly used him as a starter. Like so many in the organization, he would seem like he would benefit from a permanent shift to a relief role. He turns 27 in July, so it’s his time to shine now.

   2. This campaign may take awhile to see which arms @ Fred stretch out into legit starters
      But a subject with a question which has not been touched upon
      Is MLB saving money with these six day stands versus series in one city fir three games then move into another for two or three ??

2. Notice the lefty once in LA system vis Mexico A Rodriguez is XST ?
   My biggest surprise so far ?
   JT Arruda AA tablesettet for Sens

   1. agree that they’re giving Arruda a shot to prove he’s a prospect. maybe the best plate discipline in their system. Jake Alu lite

3. One thing to keep an eye on: the strike out rate across the minors has spiked again this year. It’s at 10.8/9IP in AA and 11.0/9IP in A+, which is about 10% higher than last year. If you thought the guys in the majors swing and miss too much, they’re doing it almost 30% more often in the Sally League.

   Some victims of the swing problem: Will Frizzell (4 Ks in 4 ABs), JDLR (6 in 9 AB), James Wood (5 K in 9 AB), Jared McKenzie (5 K in 7 AB), and Brenner Cox (7 K in 9 AB).

   1. Lay Down Sally .. grab some pine lol

   2. It’s worth noting that some of those mentioned have been promoted aggressively. Frizzell had only 200 pro ABs before being sent to AA. Cox is a high school draftee who is just now committing to baseball full time. Considering that the Nats left several college draftees at Fburg for the full season last year, the quick promotions of McKenzie (and Lipscomb) seem aggressive as well.

      To me, the most concerning one at this point is JDLR. He should already be accustomed to this level, although he really struggled at it last year, in part due to injury. The aggressive move with him was adding him to the 40-man.

4. Just scanning the Sens roster before tonight’s home opener. I see Zach Brzykcy listed as Injured – full season.
   What’s going on there? TJ?

   1. Fore arm injury leads to TJ?

      1. Nats pichers and TJ surgeries…like clockwork.

         Sad to say but I fully expect one of Susanna, Lara or Rutledge to join the group

         1. That’s a bad vibe to put out there

            1. I certainly don’t wish it and i apologize for sounding mean, but my frustration with this org’s inability to keep pitchers healthy frustrates me to no end. I guess I’ve become too jaded

               A few is bad luck, but sadly it’s become a pattern here and no one seems to question it and do something about it.

               I pray I am wrong

   2. Zach B. suffered a “forearm strain” early in camp and was said to be out two to four weeks. Here we are about six weeks later. Perhaps he’s throwing in the FLA warmth. If healthy, he’s one with a legit shot at getting an MLB look this season.

5. If it’s any consolation, Nick, no MLB team is really good at keeping pitchers healthy, because pitching has always been very hard on the players and has only gotten harder as the league has worked to maximize velocity over the last 20-30 years. It’s easy to think that the Nats are bad at it because we keep close track of the pitchers in the organization. But it’s a chronic problem.

   1. John C. — Excellent point. I can’t remember ever reading about an organization with a good reputation for maintaining arm health. The Nats have tried to claim the moral high ground of being delicate with recovering arms, a reputation built mostly on the Stras recovery. Rizzo also has been quoted regularly as saying that he thinks the warranty on a TJ lasts about six or seven years, though. He knew he was on borrowed time with Stras’s second contract extension.

      I had some hope over the last five years or so as chatter about “spin rate” came into vogue that it might trump “velocity” and encourage teams to do more to teach guys how to actually pitch, with less speed and more movement, but I haven’t seen evidence of such a trend yet.

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