2 more max. If he continues to throw changeups/sinkers like he has, he isn't going to be anything more than a backend guy. There no value in that, there's value in 70 appearances of making hitters peed their pants.
Bard and Hansen in the same sentence? What?
Hansen was a total bust. He is a bigger bust than Andrew Miller. At least Miller seem to have figure it out now as a reliever. Hansen was unfixable.
The pitch has made Buchholz into a total joke. He had a dominant, deadly slider in 2010, then he went to the cutter club. Now he doesn't even have an advance breaking ball anymore.
I give him a couple more starts. If he doesn't work off his fastball, then he isn't going to be anything better than a backend starter. It's shocking he doesn't use his rising fastball to challenge hitters. I didn't see a single fastball that say "I dare you to hit" last night.
Back in college he was a power pitcher that throws 94-98 into the 7th inning. It is still there in him.
http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/prospect-hot-sheet/2012/2613423.html
http://oi47.tinypic.com/2rc0enq.jpg
Yeah I think he will be in AA by July.
Bard is not throwing enough fastball to get ahead. Who the hell toy around with a bunch of .200 slap hitters in the Phillies lineup with changeups and sliders all night when he has a 95+ fastball? And when he does throw the fastball, it is the sinker and not the rising type.