The biochemist with 4K in 2 shutout AFL innings yesterday. 11K/3BB/8H/1HR/7.2 IP down in AFL. Nothing spectacular, but not bad in a league with lots of scoring and not much pitching.
Bailey Horn weirder small-sample numbers. 6K/5BB/4H/0ER/9 IP. Some good BABIP luck going on there, I think, 6/5 K/BB not too hot.
I think the Cubs lefty-reliever pool is very thin. So it would be very helpful if one or both of these lefties emerged as usable big-league lefties on a winning team.
Herz and Luke Little may someday join the lefty-reliever pool. But whether either will have sufficient control remains to be seen.
In both cases I hope they resolve their control enough that they can remain in the rotation pool. My developmental hope for both guys is that they improve their control, that will help them whether they start or relieve. And partly my thought is that *IF* they can limit the command problems, as would be desirable for relief, might doing so perhaps also qualify them for rotation?
In Little's case, for example, I'm not sure we ever saw him pitch deep enough to get tired, or to get exposed on 2nd or 3rd time through? I don't think there were many/any where he was great for two innings, but then got tired and struggled? On days he was sharp he just dominated everybody; other days he wasn't and didn't. But *IF* he was hypothetically able to throw strikes more consistently, is there any reason to assume he wouldn't be strong enough to hold his stuff through 5 innings?
I'm kinda curious to see how he progresses next year. Will he still start? If so, will he be allowed to go deeper than 50 pitches? Will his control get better? Will his fastball any faster? Seems to me that *IF* Breslow could hypothetically get more control out of Little, who knows how good he might be?