Author Topic: On The Farm  (Read 324126 times)

CUBluejays

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1305 on: April 16, 2016, 09:52:25 pm »
Vogelbach has one homerun if that's who you are talking about.

Read a tweet wrong. My bad 1, 3 run HR.

Chris27

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1306 on: April 17, 2016, 04:47:09 pm »

davep

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1307 on: April 17, 2016, 06:50:14 pm »
Time to switch Dewees and Burks.

Chris27

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1308 on: April 17, 2016, 07:16:47 pm »

CUBluejays

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1309 on: April 18, 2016, 03:40:32 pm »
John Arguello ‏@CubsDen  39m39 minutes ago Mesa, AZ
Duane Underwood pitched 5 innings. 92-94 FB, T95, 77-78 CB, 85-86 CH. struggled in 1B w/ FB command, left it up, but breezed through next 4.

craig

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1310 on: April 18, 2016, 03:57:46 pm »
John Arguello ‏@CubsDen  39m39 minutes ago Mesa, AZ
Duane Underwood pitched 5 innings. 92-94 FB, T95, 77-78 CB, 85-86 CH. struggled in 1B w/ FB command, left it up, but breezed through next 4.

Good to hear. 

craig

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1311 on: April 18, 2016, 04:02:37 pm »
http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?gid=2016_04_17_souafx_ftwafx_1&t=g_box&sid=milb

Alzolay ended yesterday with a boring line:  6.1 innings, 3 runs, only 3 K's.  But the walk and two of the three hits came in the 7th, and a relievers let them all in.  Through the first 6 innings, he allowed one single and that was it.  I'm hopeful that he'll emerge as an interesting guy this season. 

CUBluejays

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1312 on: April 18, 2016, 04:53:45 pm »
Arguello thinks Underwood might be close to heading to AA.

He also had this to add

John Arguello ‏@CubsDen  1h1 hour ago Mesa, AZ
Nice outing also for 21 year old LHP Manuel Rondon, who was acquired for C Rafael Lopez. FB 92-93, T94, 77 CB. Threw strikes, 3 perfect IPs

Reb

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1313 on: April 18, 2016, 08:06:08 pm »
Ian Happ with huge game tonight.

Chris27

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craig

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1315 on: April 19, 2016, 07:14:16 am »
Nice April for Blackburn. I run in three starts.  He's obviously gotten kinda lucky with the BABIP, but 4 walks/18 innings, and 1.92 GO/AO gives you a chance, even without any K's. 

Happ is a crazy guy, going on these 4-K-per-night binges, but getting his hits in bunches.   .419 BABIP helps. 

craig

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1316 on: April 19, 2016, 08:52:40 am »
Post-surgery Ryan McNeil is interesting.  He's only appeared in three middle-relief games, 10K/1BB/8IP
9K/1BB over his 5.2 innings. 

Cubs don't have a lot of high-K guys, so he's kind of interesting in that regard.  We'll see whether it holds up beyond a couple of appearances.  He was K-per-inning guy last year too, first full year back from the surgery.  So, may be a real thing. 

His usage is kind of unusual (I think):  All of his appearances are 2+ innings, 3-innings max.  This is similar to last year, when he averaged 2 innings per appearance, and seemed to be on a very scheduled ≥3-day rotation.  I don't think he ever pitched last year with less than two days of rest.  His appearances this year have involved 3- and 5-days.  (Today will be 3rd day, so maybe he'll pitch tonight.) 

I've wondered whether they might have plans for him, and that last year was a controlled post-surgery usage, but that perhaps he'd get another shot at rotation.  Perhaps yes; but fair chance that he's just being developed for relief.  Arguello said that in camp, he threw everything pretty hard, didn't see anything less than 84.

For rotation candidates, they pretty heavily emphasize working on change up, so perhaps they've just decided that he's best served to just be a reliever and to become a good one. 

Arguello said he was seeing his fastball fairly routinely up in the 94-95 range, but that he was throwing a lot of high-80's cutters.  I imagine that's where the K's are coming. 

Watching Arrieta thriving on the cutter, and Lackey's cutter combined with his fastball being very effective, it's easy to imagine McNeil being able to ride a fastball/cutter combo to very good success.  Here's hoping. 

craig

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1317 on: April 19, 2016, 08:58:12 am »
With McNeil looking pretty interesting, with Underwood pitching well and seeming to be ready to come back, and with Blackburn coming off three-straight high-minors starts, it kind of shifts the look of the Almora draft. 

Pierce Johnson, Blackburn, Underwood, and McNeil were the four pitchers taken.  That hasn't seemed like a home-run draft thus far.  But it's interesting to think that perhaps one or maybe several of those guys are going to going to reach the majors eventually.  Possibly all four of them. 

CUBluejays

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1318 on: April 19, 2016, 10:06:21 am »
Conway is another pitcher that is interesting from that draft.

davep

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Re: On The Farm
« Reply #1319 on: April 19, 2016, 10:38:07 am »
And in addition to Almora, position players Rademacher is performing well in Tennessee and Crawford in Myrtle Beach.  Both have the potential to be at least role players in the MLB.

Over the years, the Cubs have had quite a few drafts where no one made it to the majors for more than a cup of coffee.