moonslav59

Can it be as simple as "They are just throwing harder and or 'spinning' the ball more, now?"

I really like Casas and think he's going to have a very nice season, but his most eye-popping stat line for 2022 was the 95 PAs. That number is way too small to know much of anything.

Prospects & Recently Graduated Prospects Who May See Action in 2023: 6 Post Prospects: Duran Crawford Winckowski Bello Wong Ort 8-10 Played in 2023 or Is Likely to Play in 2023 (w SP rankings): 2. Casas 4. Rafaela 6. Mata 8. Walter 13. Murphy 17. EValdez 23. Kelly 26. Hamilton 27. RFernandez 41. Broadway 48. OMosqueda 54. RFitzgerald 1-4 Long Shots/Late Season Call-Ups/2024: 1. Mayer 5. Yorke 14. Lugo 24. Abreu 33. Koss 35. Binelas 38. RHern 40. SScott 57. CShugart 60. VSantos We could see 15-20 or these guys, at some point, this season. Over half the constant number of the 26 man roster and maybe half the 40. (We may see over 35 players at the ML level and 50 on the 40 man roster over the course of the 2023 season.)

Not much surprising.

13. Chris Murphy Mechanics: Throws from a three-quarters arm slot, starting on the third base side of the rubber. Takes two small steps before a medium leg kick. Drives towards the plate with a big stride and gets good extension. Left leg kicks up on follow-through. Can tend to fall off towards third base post-delivery. Quick, compact arm action. Slight arm hook with some effort behind. Does not consistently finish delivery and can lose release point at times. Fastball: 90-93 mph. Tops out at 96 mph. Below-average command and control profile. Potential average Changeup: Potential above-average Curveball: Potential average Slider: Potential below-average Career Notes: Not drafted out of high school, but was recruited by several top Division-I colleges in California. Played for Brewster in the Cape Cod League in 2018, struggling with control issues. Had a fairly impressive junior season at San Diego despite walking more than 6 batters per 9 innings. Pitching crosschecker Chris Mears strongly advocated for the Red Sox to select Murphy in the 2019 Draft. Cut down on walks dramatically after signing, reportedly due to minor mechanical tweaks. Participated in the Fall Instructional League in 2019 and 2020. Posted extreme splits in 2021, dominating left-handed hitters (.401 OPS, 0 HR) but getting hit very hard by right-handers (.914 OPS, 21 HR), but this did not carry forward into 2022. Participated in the Fall Performance Program in 2021. Participated in 2022 Winter Warm-Up. Added to the 40-man roster in November 2022 to protect him from selection in the Rule 5 Draft. Participated in 2023 Rookie Development Program. Summary: Potential multi-inning relief arm. Ceiling of a back-end starter. Lacks a standout pitch, but has three averageish pitches and a fourth that can be effective when used on occasion. Needs to improve consistency with secondary pitches and command to allow him to work deeper into games and develop into a consistent starter. Chances of starting are better now than in the past now that he has shown he can consistently get right-handed hitters out, something he really struggled with coming into 2022. Showed inconsistent ability to miss bats in 2022 and will need to show more consistency there if he is to stick as a starter. 12. Wikelman Gonzalez: Mechanics: Throws from a three-quarters arm slot. Has streamlined delivery over the course of the 2022 season. Does not use a wind-up. Loose, quick arm. Rotational delivery. Medium leg kick. Stiff arm action with a stab behind. Inconsistent release point. Does not stay closed consistently and falls off hard to the first base side. Fastball: 93-96 mph. Tops out at 97 mph. Live arm. Will come out 95-96 mph, then settle in at 93-94 mph, topping out at 95 mph. Potential plus offering with refined command. Changeup: 86-89 mph. Deceptive arm speed. Flashes late, splitter-like drop where it falls off the table. Potential above-average offering. Curveball: 77-80 mph. Long, 11-to-5 break. Potential above-average offering. Slider: Potential average offering. Career Notes: Opening Day starter in the DSL in 2019. Participated in the Fall Instructional League in 2019 and 2020. Had a breakout 2021 season with a strong showing in the FCL and in Low-A, jumping from the back end of the SoxProspects rankings into the top 15 by season's end. Participated in the Fall Performance Program in 2021. Name was misspelled "Wilkelman" from his signing until April 2022 due to its pronunciation. Summary: Potential swingman capable of starting or providing length out of the bullpen. Ceiling of a mid-rotation starter. Wide-range of outcomes due to lack of consistency and where he is in the development process. Potential for three above-average-to-better pitches, but a long way to go to get there and must significantly improve command and control to reach his ceiling. Still learning how to pitch, but is not as raw as some comparable arms age-wise in the system. Has simplified his delivery, which had a lot of moving parts, which should make it easier for him to keep his arm in sync with the rest of his body. If command does not improve, that, along with his size and delivery, could push him to a short relief bullpen role.

Fun looking spring.

Here is an interesting rundown on league leading IP pitchers. 300+, 275+, 250+, 225+, 200+ 1920: 10, 18, 35, 56 1930: 0, 6, 14, 39 1940: 2, 8, 25, 31 1950: 2, 6, 26, 39 1960: 0, 3, 14, 33 1970: 4, 11, 27, 56 1980: 1, 7, 17, 56 1990: 0, 1, 17, 42 2000: 0, 1, 13, 37 2010: 0, 1, 7, 45 2022: 0, 0, 1, 8

Baltimore had 3 over 250. KC and Oak had 2. 17 pitchers went over 250 IP. 20 over 240 IP. 27 over 230 IP. 47 over 210 IP. 56 over 200 IP. BAL had 4 pitchers over 224 IP (top 31 in MLB.)

Throwing ping pong balls? Lol

Martin was a throwback, but really, many SPers were going 250+ IP in the years right before those Oakland years, and several others during that time went 250+, too.

ST'ing Start 7-0 BOS (+35 run diff) 10-2 KC (+33) 6-2 LAD (+9) 6-3 TOR (+15) 6-3 STL (+14) 7-4 NYY (+14) 7-4 CHC (+1) 5-3 HOU (+11) (4-5 TBR +21)

No, but why distract from the issue raised. Manning is not the scum Clemens was/is.

So, you're saying he aimed for the nub of the bat?

You mean MVP made a non-perfect post?

I've been to 10 different European nations in 4 trips, Brazil 3 times, all over Canada, lived in Mexico for 4 years, visited every state east of the Mississippi and maybe half of those west of the M, and take weeks long road trips every summer, but still I was told I need to get out more. I have yet to visit a talk show radio station. It's the last thing on my bucket list. I did come close to buying a radio station, once. Should that count?

Maybe visit a talkshow radio station.

Rafaela defensive clips... Red Sox prospect Ceddanne Rafaela critiques his own highlights WWW.MLB.COM FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Take any defensive cliché you prefer, and it applies to Ceddanne Rafaela. He’s a future Gold Glove contender. Water covers 71 percent of the Earth’s surface; he covers the remaining 29 percent. He’s a highlight reel all to himself. OK, that last one is true, and

First game- ready or not! Sounds like a great stradgedy.

I remember that play. The ball bounced towards Rico Petrocelli, who ran right by the ball to help Pole. Burleson went to get the ball in short LF or foul territory. That was a scary moment.

He did throw that broken bat at him. The funny thing was, reading his lips, he said to the ump, "I thought it was the ball!" (Like if the ball had come to him, he'd have throw that ball at Piazza as he ran to 1B. Maybe he thought they were playing kickball.)

The problem is, you need to get out more.

I’d put Wink and Crawford ahead of Mata, too. My point was only about Mata v Walter as SPers in early 2023. (I have both ahead of Murphy.) Man, we are already reaching down to #8 !

Agreed. We'd need way too many unexpected over-achievements to occur, if Sale gives us next to nothing. His salary is about 13% of the player budget, so it does hurt, if he keeps giving us nothing.

I wanted him re-signed and was happy we did it. I thought the contract amount reflected the idea that he might miss a year. $145M/4 would be worth it, if he was Chris Freakin' Sale in all 4 of them. $145M/5 seemed about right. I've not given up on him, but I'm not counting on much, either.

SP's Rankings and Rundowns: 15. Blaze Jordan: Hit: potential average Run: well below average Field: fringe-average at 3B/ potential above average at 1B Arm: above average Notes: Was well-known from a young age thanks to viral YouTube videos showing his power, such as one with nearly 1.5 million views in which he hit an alleged 500-foot home run at Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas at age 13. As a result, is still fairly well-known nationally and gets a number of endorsement deals. Won the High School Home Run Derby at the 2019 MLB All-Star Game. Recorded the highest exit velocity of any player at the 2019 World Wood Bat Championships (106.9 mph). Attended the same high school as Atlanta Braves third baseman Austin Riley. Was very young for his draft class after reclassifying in May 2019 from the 2021 class to the 2020 class. Committed to Mississippi State. Participated in the 2020 Fall Instructional League. Participated in the 2021 Fall Performance Program. Participated in the 2022 Winter Warm-Up. Was set to participate in the 2022 Fall Performance Program that was cancelled due to Hurricane Ian. Summary: Potential up-and-down bench bat. Ceiling of a bat-first regular, likely at first base. Really has to hit, as he is maxed out and has a tough potential profile as a right-right first baseman. A favorite of predictive models due to his age compared to his draft class, elite exit velocities, and bat speed. Needs to show he can hit advanced pitching in order to tap into his raw power, which is his best tool. Will have to watch conditioning. Ultimate defensive position is likely first base, but has a better chance to be able to play at least part time at third base now than when he signed. 14. Matthew Lugo: Hit: potential fringe average Run: average Field: potential average at 3B Arm: average Notes: Nephew of former MLB player Carlos Beltran, whose baseball academy he attended. Committed to University of Miami before being drafted. First overall pick in the 2019 draft in the Puerto Rican winter league. Participated in the Fall Instructional League in 2019 and 2020. Did not play in 2020 Puerto Rican winter league due to a wrist injury. Did not participate in the 2021 Puerto Rican winter league despite being announced as part of the Caguas roster. Participated in the 2021 Fall Performance Program. Participated in 2022 Winter Warm-Up. Was set to participate in the 2022 Fall Performance Program that was cancelled due to Hurricane Ian. Received a non-roster invitation to MLB spring training in 2023. Summary: Potential up-and-down utility player. Ceiling of a reserve infielder. Lacks a true carrying tool, but has several that grade in the 45-50 range. Bat took a step forward in 2022, but still needs to improve his approach, especially breaking balls. Needs to cut his chase rate and improve quality of contact to reach his potential at the plate. Given his defensive profile, will have to hit to reach his potential.