Showing posts with label Jackie Bradley. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jackie Bradley. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

August 5 for August 4 Update

I went to Brewster for a few innings Tuesday to watch Harwich starter Mike Gipson then went to Hyannis to watch Hyannis play Bourne.

Bourne won 7-4 in front of no Major League scouts but plenty of random locals playing with giveaway inflatable beach balls.

Gipson, a righthander from Florida Atlantic, had decent stuff but he threw an incredibly straight fastball and got hit pretty well by Brewster. Gipson is average height with a solid build at 6'1" 195. He throws with big effort and falls forward when he releases and falls way off the mound toward first. He threw a very good curveball with big downward break, and once every few times he threw it, it had devastating 12/6 movement. Gipson also threw a deceptive changeup with good tailing action in on righties. But hitters sat on his fastball and took advantage of it.

Over in Hyannis, righthander Alex Wimmers from Ohio State started for Bourne and looked very strong in four shutout innings. Wimmers is average height for a pitcher with a thin, athletic build at 6'2" 195. He has good arm action and throws fairly easily but he does fall off the mound toward first. Wimmers has a low 90's fastball he loves painting the outside corner with. He has an excellent curveball with big, sharp break, and a very good changeup with big movement that tails down and in on right-handed hitters. Wimmers' three-pitch combination is among the best in the Cape League, and he should be a high pick next June.

Hyannis left-handed starter Raul Torres from Faulkner was not as good. Torres is average height with a solid, athetlic build at 5'11" 190. He throws straight over the top with some effort and falls off the mound toward third base. Torres' fastball sat in the 84-87 mph range. He threw an average curveball that tended to hang up in the strike zone, and occasionally showed a changeup he didn't have much feel for. Torres is a temporary guy who is not really a professional prospect.

Among hitters, centerfielder Jackie Bradley, Jr. had a good day for Hyannis. After a slow start this summer, Bradley, Jr. has swung the bat very well the past few weeks and he can really do a lot of things well on the baseball field. He runs well, he's solid in the outfield and he has a strong arm. Bradley is also a good bunter. If he shows he can hit consistently for extended periods of time, he could be a guy to watch in the 2011 draft.

Bourne centerfielder Scott Woodward from Coastal Carolina also had a big game. He hit his first home run of the summer off the top of the right-centerfield fence and over, and showed off his very strong arm in the outfield. Woodward is also a plus runner.

First baseman Kyle Roller received some "M-V-P" chants from some Bourne fans when he hit a double to the wall in straightway centerfield. The kid can flat-out hit.

I plan to be at Cotuit on the last day of the regular season Wednesday.

AROUND THE LEAGUE

Falmouth 5 Wareham 4: First baseman Hunter Morris from Auburn went 2-for-4 with two RBIs for Falmouth. Rightfielder George Springer from UConn went 3-for-5 for Wareham.

Orleans 5 Chatham 1: Leftfielder Kevin Muno hit a grand slam from Orleans. Catcher Jacob Stallings from UNC went 3-for-4 with a home run for Chatham.

Y-D 9 Cotuit 8: Designated hitter Cameron Rupp from the University of Texas went 2-for-4 with two home runs and four RBIs for Cotuit. Catcher Ben McMahan from the University of Florida homered and third baseman Steve Chatwood from the University of San Diego went 2-for-4 with four RBIs for Y-D.

QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? E-Mail me at schimmeldbk@gmail.com

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Friday, July 17, 2009

July 17 for July 16 Update

I went to Hyannis on Thursday to watch Hyannis play Brewster. The skies threatened rain during most of batting practice, but aside from a very brief drizzle in the first few innings they played the game in dry conditions.

The Major League scout total was once again near 20, and this time the best non-baseball-related conversation I overheard was about how you can't find tins of tobacco at a reasonable price anywhere on the Cape.

Hyannis won 5-1 behind a great pitching effort from right-handed starter Tyler Wilson from the University of Virginia.

Wilson was dominant Thursday, and he took a no-hitter into the sixth inning. He ended up going seven and allowed no runs on two hits while striking out nine. Wilson is average height for a pitcher with a thin, athletic build at 6'2" 185, but you can tell he is a really good athlete and he brings an intense, competitive presence to the mound. Wilson throws easily with good arm action. Wilson's fastball sat in the 90-91 mph range, and he had really good command working both sides of the plate Thursday. His 81-82 mph slider had tight break but was just average, and he also threw a pretty good 78 mph changeup. Wilson competes, but he needs to have command like he did Thursday to be continually effective.

Brewster left-handed starter Sean Bierman from Vanderbilt looked good until the sixth inning when he got shelled for four of the five runs he allowed. Biermann is average height with a solid build at 6'0" 200. He gets good extension and throws easily but he has stiff arm action and he falls off the mound toward third base when he throws. Biermann's fastball sat mostly in the 87-89 mph range but crept up to 90 and 91 once or twice. He would fall into lapses where he would struggle with his control. Biermann also threw an average 74-76 mph curveball with sweeping break, and he spun an 80-82 mph slider that had kind of a cutter effect but was really just a subpar slider.

Right-handed reliever Dallas Gallant from Sam Houston State showed a good arm out of the bullpen for Hyannis. He's above-average height with a thin athletic build at 6'3" 185. He throws with some effort, and his fastball sat around 91 mph. He had a really good 75-77 mph curveball with sharp 3/8 break, and also showed an 82 mph slider that wasn't as good. Gallant was named an All-Star as Hyannis' closer, and he is one of the better relievers in the league.

Brewster centerfielder Jarrett Parker from the University of Virginia really impressed me during batting practice but then struggled in the game. Parker comes to the Cape as a highly-regarded prospect, but he's hit just .209 since he arrived a couple of weeks ago after the College World Series. Under the batting cage before the game, Parker showed a really smooth, easy swing and drove the ball to all fields. He launched a deep home run on one of his last few swings in BP. But in the game he just looked really uncomfortable at the plate and finished 0-for-3 with a walk, striking out twice. Parker is a good outfielder and an athletic kid with a good body, but he needs to apply his hitting ability to the games more consistently.

Hyannis rightfielder Jackie Bradley, Jr. from the University of South Carolina played really well Thursday. Bradley is undersized for a corner outfielder at 5'11" 178, and he was hitting just .195 coming into the game. But Bradley showed some really advanced hitting with his three-hit game Thursday. His first hit was a double to left-center when he stayed within himself and drove an outside fastball to the gap. His second hit he stayed back on a curveball away and just stuck his bat out and poked it to left for a single. In his final at-bat he showed really quick hands and turned on an inside fastball he drove down the rightfield line for a triple. Bradley has great speed as well.

AROUND THE LEAGUE:

Cotuit 8 Orleans 5: First baseman Tony Plagman from Georgia Tech homered for Cotuit, and left fielder Cory Vaughn from San Diego State and centerfielder Jeff Rowland from Georgia Tech, Cleveland's 21st round pick, each had two hits. Leftfielder Kevin Muno from the University of San Diego went 4-for-4 for Orleans.

Look for a SPECIAL COMMENT (I'm stealing that from Keith Olbermann) about Thursday's All-Star selections. Who got snubbed? Who shouldn't have gotten picked? That should be up sometime in the early afternoon.

QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? E-Mail me at schimmeldbk@gmail.com

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