I went to Harwich on Friday night, mainly to finally get a good look at three late-arriving hitters from College World Series teams--Virginia's Dan Grovatt and Phil Gosselin and North Carolina's Levi Michael. All three were impressive, and all three played a role in Harwich's 6-0 win over Chatham.
The Mariners have now won four games in a row, and quite possibly have the best lineup in the Cape League now that it is complete.
Grovatt, a rightfielder, was the best hitter of the group, and will almost certainly end up among the league leaders in hitting at the end of the season. He swings hard and doesn't allow himself to get cheated, yet he shows really good bat control and has good plate coverage. He is not afraid to go with pitches and use the whole field. Grovatt also has a strong arm in the outfield. He doesn't have great size at 6'1" 187, but he still has some room to fill out. He's a player that's going to hit for a high average and spray doubles into the gaps, but he isn't a big-time power guy.
Michael started at shortstop for Harwich, and really impressed me as a hard-nosed, scrappy athlete who is going to do what it takes to help his team win. Michael is undersized at 5'10" 175, but he's a switch-hitter who can drive the ball when he connects. He hits the ball hard, puts the ball on the ground, and is able to use his very good speed to make things happen. I clocked him rounding first base in 4.3 seconds from the left side of the plate. In the field Michael showed tremendous range up the middle and a strong arm for somebody his size. Michael is more naturally suited to play second base, but that is Gosselin's position too, and because Michael is the better athlete of the two and has a better arm he is playing short.
Gosselin is just a solid all-around player. He doesn't have any spectular tools, but he's pretty good everywhere. He has really good hands that do work for him both at the plate and in the field. They are quick enough for him to get around on good fastballs with the wood bat, and strong enough to allow him to fight off an inside pitch and get it into the outfield for a hit. Gosselin also plays a really good second base, as he has good footwork and really soft hands that make him excellent at turning the double play. He's pretty much exactly what you want in a second baseman.
Another Harwich hitter who stood out was centerfielder Trent Mummey from Auburn. He has really good speed and tries to make things happen at the top of the Mariners' batting order. He also has decent pop for a guy who is 5'11" 185, as he has very quick hands which generate good bat speed. Mummey is probably the Mariners' best hitter after Grovatt.
On the mound, Harwich right-handed starter Brett Bruening from Grayson Community College, the Yankees' 35th round pick, had a live arm but poor mechanics and he really struggled with his command and control. Breuning is tall with a big, projectable frame at 6'6" 210, and his fastball already sits in the 90-93 mph range, but he needs to learn how to harness his stuff. Bruening throws with slightly stiff arm action, throws across his body and falls off the mound toward first base. There were times his fastball dipped to the 87-88 mph range as he needed to take something off it to be able to throw strikes. He showed a 76-78 mph curveball with slurvy movement, and that was pretty much it for his secondary stuff.
Right-handed reliever Brian Dupra from Notre Dame showed he is one of the better relievers in the league again this summer, pitching for Harwich for the second consecutive season. Dupra has good size and a solid, athletic build at 6'3" 205, and he has a smooth motion until the end and throws with good arm action. He does buck his head upon release. Dupra throws a 91-93 mph fastball with good tail in on right-handed hitters, and also throws an 88-91 mph cutter that runs nicely the other way. He also has a good 79-81 mph slider with tight break. His repertoire is well-suited for the bullpen, and he thrives in that role in the summer.
Right-handed reliever Garrett Davis from North Carolina made his first appearance of the summer Friday night. Davis is big with a solid build at 6'4" 215, but he too has effort in his delivery as he also bucks his head upon release. He throws with good arm action, though, and has good command and is able to throw a lot of strikes. Davis showed an 86-88 mph fastball with glove-side run, and a 74 mph slider.
Right-handed reliever Glen Troyanowski from Florida Atlantic finished things up for Harwich, showing a 90-92 mph fastball and a 73-74 mph curveball with big, sweeping break. Troyanowski has a good arm, but at 6'1" 165, and already throwing with effort, Troyanowski is probably already just about maxed out.
Chatham trotted out to the mound a generally random assortment of mediocrity Friday night, as usually good right-handed starter Kaleb Fleck from Pittsburgh-Johnstown didn't have his best stuff and got pulled in the fourth inning. Right-handed reliever Parker Bangs from South Carolina, Pittsburgh's 46th round pick last month, was the best of Chatham's relievers, showing an 87-88 mph fastball with good late life and arm-side run. He also showed a decent slider with frisbee-like movement that he could throw for strikes. Bangs has good size and a big frame at 6'4" 210, but he tends to throw with all arm and doesn't get all he can out of his body.
AROUND THE LEAGUE:
Hyannis 3 Cotuit 3: Second baseman Chris Bisson from the University of Kentucky went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two stolen bases for Cotuit. First baseman Ryan Cuneo from the University of Delaware went 2-for-4 with two RBIs for Hyannis.
Orleans 8 Bewster 7: Orleans blew an early 7-0 lead then scored a run in the bottom of the ninth to beat Brewster. First baseman Jaren Matthews from Rutgers went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs, and leftfielder Jeremy Gould from Duke also homered for Orleans. Third baseman Harold Martinez from the University of Miami went 2-for-4 with two RBI for Brewster.
Wareham 6 Falmouth 4: Shortstop Derek Dietrich from Georgia Tech homered for Wareham. Rightfielder Ryan Jones from Wichita State went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored for Falmouth.
Bourne 1 Y-D 0: Leftfielder Stefen Romero from Oregon State hit his league-leading fourth home run for the only run of the game against Y-D left-handed starter Chris Sale from Florida Gulf Coast. Bourne right-handed starter Turner Phelps from James Madison pitched 5.1 shutout innings, allowing three hits and striking out four, and the Bourne bullpen threw 3.2 innings without allowing a hit.
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Showing posts with label Kaleb Fleck. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kaleb Fleck. Show all posts
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
June 27 for June 26 Update
I headed up to Chatham on Friday night to see the first-place Anglers take on Bourne. Chatham had to have played its worst game of the season, as it got shut out, had just four hits, and made four errors. Bourne won 4-0.
Chatham right-handed starter Kaleb Fleck from the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown started out strong but got progressively worse in each inning he pitched. Fleck had scouts buzzing in the first inning, but he started to lose his command and eventually left in the fifth inning down 1-0 after giving up a solo home run and loading the bases with nobody out. Fleck is average height for a pitcher and a little thin at 6'2 190, but he has an easy motion and throws with loose arm action. All of Fleck's pitches have good movement to the point where they appear to flutter into the zone. His fastball sat in the 90-92 mph range and had some tailing action in on right-handed hitters. He threw a decent 79-83 mph slider with frisbee-like movement, and threw an 82-84 mph changeup that also tailed in on righties.
Fleck was relieved by righthander Jesse Hahn from Virginia Tech, who probably had the best power arm I've seen so far. Hahn came in with the bases loaded and nobody out and escaped the jam without allowing a run. Hahn is tall with a thin, athletic build at 6'5" 195, and has a smooth motion and good arm action. He has a powerful leg kick, and gets good drive from his lower half. He throws downhill. In his first inning of work Hahn's fastball sat in the 94-95 mph range, and twice hit 96 on a few of the scouts' guns. His heater sat more in the 92-93 range in his second inning out of the pen, but it was still impressive. Hahn also showed a good 75-77 mph curveball with 3/8 break and an 82 mph changeup with downward motion. If he can throw his fastball with more consistency he could be a very good prospect as a reliever.
Bourne right-handed starter Turner Phelps from James Madison pitched well, throwing six shutout innings and allowing just two hits. At 6'3" 205 Phelps has a big frame but still has room to fill out. He tends to short arm the ball a little bit and he falls off toward first base when he throws. Phelps' fastball sat in just the 85-87 mph range, but he threw a good 73 mph curveball and a good 77 mph changeup. His secondary stuff was good enough for one American League scout to say "If his velo goes up I'd give him a look." Phelps threw a lot of strikes and mixed his pitches well. He also benefitted from a big, erratic strike zone.
Among the positon players, Bourne second baseman Pierre LePage from UConn stands out as a guy who really knows how to play. LePage gets everything out of his 5'8" 165-pound body, hustling on every single play. He made a couple of smart plays in the field, and covered a lot of ground on a ground ball to his left. He probably doesn't handle the bat well enough to be a legitimate prospect, but he is somebody that is certainly fun to watch.
On the other hand, leftfielder Jeff Schaus really struggled last night for Chatham. The athletic prospect was hitting .391 coming into the game, but he took two terrible swings in strikeouts in each of his first two at-bats, and looked ridiculous on a misplayed fly ball that allowed two runs to score. He did get a single in the ninth inning to finish 1-for-4, and I'll chalk the performance up to a bad day, but it was really striking to see Schaus struggle like that.
AROUND THE LEAGUE:
Harwich 3 Hyannis 0: right-handed starter Rob Gariano from Fairfield threw 5.1 shutout innings for Harwich, allowing four hits and striking out 11 in a game called in the sixth inning because of rain. Shortstop Chris Wade from the University of Kentucky and Florida's 11th-round draft pick and catcher Marcus Nidiffer from the University of Kentucky each had two hits for Harwich.
Y-D 3 Orleans 1: Rightfielder Jonathan Jones from Long Beach State went 3-for-5 and second baseman Blake Kelso from the University of Houston went 2-for-5 for Y-D. Right-handed reliever Tyler Burgoon from the University of Michigan pitched three hitless innings in relief for Y-D, striking out seven. Centerfielder Gary Brown from Cal St. Fullerton had the only two hits of the game for Orleans.
Brewster at Falmouth and Cotuit at Wareham were rained out.
Chatham right-handed starter Kaleb Fleck from the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown started out strong but got progressively worse in each inning he pitched. Fleck had scouts buzzing in the first inning, but he started to lose his command and eventually left in the fifth inning down 1-0 after giving up a solo home run and loading the bases with nobody out. Fleck is average height for a pitcher and a little thin at 6'2 190, but he has an easy motion and throws with loose arm action. All of Fleck's pitches have good movement to the point where they appear to flutter into the zone. His fastball sat in the 90-92 mph range and had some tailing action in on right-handed hitters. He threw a decent 79-83 mph slider with frisbee-like movement, and threw an 82-84 mph changeup that also tailed in on righties.
Fleck was relieved by righthander Jesse Hahn from Virginia Tech, who probably had the best power arm I've seen so far. Hahn came in with the bases loaded and nobody out and escaped the jam without allowing a run. Hahn is tall with a thin, athletic build at 6'5" 195, and has a smooth motion and good arm action. He has a powerful leg kick, and gets good drive from his lower half. He throws downhill. In his first inning of work Hahn's fastball sat in the 94-95 mph range, and twice hit 96 on a few of the scouts' guns. His heater sat more in the 92-93 range in his second inning out of the pen, but it was still impressive. Hahn also showed a good 75-77 mph curveball with 3/8 break and an 82 mph changeup with downward motion. If he can throw his fastball with more consistency he could be a very good prospect as a reliever.
Bourne right-handed starter Turner Phelps from James Madison pitched well, throwing six shutout innings and allowing just two hits. At 6'3" 205 Phelps has a big frame but still has room to fill out. He tends to short arm the ball a little bit and he falls off toward first base when he throws. Phelps' fastball sat in just the 85-87 mph range, but he threw a good 73 mph curveball and a good 77 mph changeup. His secondary stuff was good enough for one American League scout to say "If his velo goes up I'd give him a look." Phelps threw a lot of strikes and mixed his pitches well. He also benefitted from a big, erratic strike zone.
Among the positon players, Bourne second baseman Pierre LePage from UConn stands out as a guy who really knows how to play. LePage gets everything out of his 5'8" 165-pound body, hustling on every single play. He made a couple of smart plays in the field, and covered a lot of ground on a ground ball to his left. He probably doesn't handle the bat well enough to be a legitimate prospect, but he is somebody that is certainly fun to watch.
On the other hand, leftfielder Jeff Schaus really struggled last night for Chatham. The athletic prospect was hitting .391 coming into the game, but he took two terrible swings in strikeouts in each of his first two at-bats, and looked ridiculous on a misplayed fly ball that allowed two runs to score. He did get a single in the ninth inning to finish 1-for-4, and I'll chalk the performance up to a bad day, but it was really striking to see Schaus struggle like that.
AROUND THE LEAGUE:
Harwich 3 Hyannis 0: right-handed starter Rob Gariano from Fairfield threw 5.1 shutout innings for Harwich, allowing four hits and striking out 11 in a game called in the sixth inning because of rain. Shortstop Chris Wade from the University of Kentucky and Florida's 11th-round draft pick and catcher Marcus Nidiffer from the University of Kentucky each had two hits for Harwich.
Y-D 3 Orleans 1: Rightfielder Jonathan Jones from Long Beach State went 3-for-5 and second baseman Blake Kelso from the University of Houston went 2-for-5 for Y-D. Right-handed reliever Tyler Burgoon from the University of Michigan pitched three hitless innings in relief for Y-D, striking out seven. Centerfielder Gary Brown from Cal St. Fullerton had the only two hits of the game for Orleans.
Brewster at Falmouth and Cotuit at Wareham were rained out.
Monday, June 15, 2009
June 16 for June 15 Update
I went to Yarmouth-Dennis on Monday night to see Y-D face Chatham. It was another cold evening, and one man with a southern accent said "It's colder than a dead bird up here."
Chatham won 3-2 in front of three major league scouts in a game that barely got the full nine innings in before it got dark.
Chatham right-handed starter Kaleb Fleck was an interesting story to watch. Fleck goes to University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, and his collegiate season ended on April 26. He was visibly nervous on the mound and had some trouble finding consistency in his mechanics, throwing across his body and struggling with his release point. But Fleck's fastball sat mostly in the 90-91 range and occasionally touched 92. He showed occasional glimpses of a very good 80-82 mph slider, but he didn't always throw it the way he wanted to. Fleck also showed an 82 mph changeup. He ended up pitching five shutout innings, allowing just one hit.
An American League scout made an interesting observation about Chatham right-handed reliever Taylor Hill from Vanderbilt. "His mechanics remind me of Pedro Martinez," the scout said. "His performance does not." Hill had good size at 6'4", 220, but there was a lot of effort in his delivery and he kind of slinged the ball when he threw it. His fastball sat in the 90-91 mph range and he threw a decent 79-81 mph slider with sweeping movement.
The Anglers brought in righthander Russell Brewer, also from Vanderbilt, to pick up the save in the ninth. I really liked Brewer a lot when he closed games for Hyannis last summer, and he was exactly how I remembered him. His stuff is not that good, but he has excellent command and just consistently gets the job done. He's a little undersized at 6'0" 190, and his fastball tops out at 89 mph, but he hits his spots with it and makes hitters beat him. Brewer also throws a 75-76 mph slider that doesn't have very tight break but gets outs.
Y-D right-handed starter Scott Lyman from UC-Davis threw a great changeup, but he struggled with his control and didn't make it out of the fourth inning. Lyman is 6'3" with an athletic build, and he spins part of the way around in his motion a la Kevin Brown. He releases from almost straight over the top and there is effort in his delivery. Lyman's fastball sat mostly in the 90-91 range and once touched 92. He threw an 81 mph curveball with sweeping break and his best pitch was the 77-79 mph changeup that was really deceptive when he finished and a lot of hitters swung at and missed. But Lyman walked five and hit a batter and finished his day throwing some more in the bullpen.
Y-D right-handed reliever Matt Little from the University of Kentucky wasn't bad, but he was a max effort guy who had some balance issues as he fell way off toward third base upon his release. Little's two-seam fastball sat in the 87-89 mph range with some run in on right-handed hitters, and he occasionally dialed his four-seamer up to 91 or 92. He also threw a 77 mph slider with big frisbee-like movement that he could get hitters to chase out of the zone. He didn't always throw the slider well, though.
Among the hitters, Y-D shortstop Josh Rutledge from Alabama stood out during BP when he hit a few balls into the trees with his smooth right-handed swing. He also went 2-for-4 in the game, driving the ball to right field twice.
Y-D catcher Ben McMahan from Florida hit the ball hard a couple times in the game as well.
For Chatham, DH Nick Schwaner from the University of New Orleans impressed during batting practice. He keeps his hands in tight to the point where he is almost jamming himself, but he has quick hands and whips the bat through the zone to generate some pop. He went 2-for-4 in the game.
Left fielder Whit Merrifield from South Carolina, who played for Y-D last summer, scored the winning run for Chatham.
AROUND THE LEAGUE
Falmouth 4 Orleans 0: Tom Collier from San Jacinto struck out nine in six shutout innings for Falmouth
Brewster 2 Harwich 0: Mark Gormley from Brown pitched six shutout innings of relief, allowing one hit and striking out six to pick up the win for Brewster.
Bourne 2 Cotuit 2 in 10 innings: Bourne starter Stephen Porlier from Oklahoma allowed one run on two hits in six innings, and Cotuit starter Jake Buchanan from N.C. State allowed just two unearned runs in six innings on the mound.
Wareham 4 Hyannis 2: Wareham starter Blake Monar from Indiana allowed two unearned runs in his five innings pitched.
Chatham won 3-2 in front of three major league scouts in a game that barely got the full nine innings in before it got dark.
Chatham right-handed starter Kaleb Fleck was an interesting story to watch. Fleck goes to University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, and his collegiate season ended on April 26. He was visibly nervous on the mound and had some trouble finding consistency in his mechanics, throwing across his body and struggling with his release point. But Fleck's fastball sat mostly in the 90-91 range and occasionally touched 92. He showed occasional glimpses of a very good 80-82 mph slider, but he didn't always throw it the way he wanted to. Fleck also showed an 82 mph changeup. He ended up pitching five shutout innings, allowing just one hit.
An American League scout made an interesting observation about Chatham right-handed reliever Taylor Hill from Vanderbilt. "His mechanics remind me of Pedro Martinez," the scout said. "His performance does not." Hill had good size at 6'4", 220, but there was a lot of effort in his delivery and he kind of slinged the ball when he threw it. His fastball sat in the 90-91 mph range and he threw a decent 79-81 mph slider with sweeping movement.
The Anglers brought in righthander Russell Brewer, also from Vanderbilt, to pick up the save in the ninth. I really liked Brewer a lot when he closed games for Hyannis last summer, and he was exactly how I remembered him. His stuff is not that good, but he has excellent command and just consistently gets the job done. He's a little undersized at 6'0" 190, and his fastball tops out at 89 mph, but he hits his spots with it and makes hitters beat him. Brewer also throws a 75-76 mph slider that doesn't have very tight break but gets outs.
Y-D right-handed starter Scott Lyman from UC-Davis threw a great changeup, but he struggled with his control and didn't make it out of the fourth inning. Lyman is 6'3" with an athletic build, and he spins part of the way around in his motion a la Kevin Brown. He releases from almost straight over the top and there is effort in his delivery. Lyman's fastball sat mostly in the 90-91 range and once touched 92. He threw an 81 mph curveball with sweeping break and his best pitch was the 77-79 mph changeup that was really deceptive when he finished and a lot of hitters swung at and missed. But Lyman walked five and hit a batter and finished his day throwing some more in the bullpen.
Y-D right-handed reliever Matt Little from the University of Kentucky wasn't bad, but he was a max effort guy who had some balance issues as he fell way off toward third base upon his release. Little's two-seam fastball sat in the 87-89 mph range with some run in on right-handed hitters, and he occasionally dialed his four-seamer up to 91 or 92. He also threw a 77 mph slider with big frisbee-like movement that he could get hitters to chase out of the zone. He didn't always throw the slider well, though.
Among the hitters, Y-D shortstop Josh Rutledge from Alabama stood out during BP when he hit a few balls into the trees with his smooth right-handed swing. He also went 2-for-4 in the game, driving the ball to right field twice.
Y-D catcher Ben McMahan from Florida hit the ball hard a couple times in the game as well.
For Chatham, DH Nick Schwaner from the University of New Orleans impressed during batting practice. He keeps his hands in tight to the point where he is almost jamming himself, but he has quick hands and whips the bat through the zone to generate some pop. He went 2-for-4 in the game.
Left fielder Whit Merrifield from South Carolina, who played for Y-D last summer, scored the winning run for Chatham.
AROUND THE LEAGUE
Falmouth 4 Orleans 0: Tom Collier from San Jacinto struck out nine in six shutout innings for Falmouth
Brewster 2 Harwich 0: Mark Gormley from Brown pitched six shutout innings of relief, allowing one hit and striking out six to pick up the win for Brewster.
Bourne 2 Cotuit 2 in 10 innings: Bourne starter Stephen Porlier from Oklahoma allowed one run on two hits in six innings, and Cotuit starter Jake Buchanan from N.C. State allowed just two unearned runs in six innings on the mound.
Wareham 4 Hyannis 2: Wareham starter Blake Monar from Indiana allowed two unearned runs in his five innings pitched.
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