Chart Observations: PHI @ WAS (GM 2)

This game was called after 6 innings due to rain.

• Andrew Carpenter got a spot start for Philly and doesn't look to be much. He featured a 2-seam sinker at 86-91 (sat at 88-89), a slider at 83-86, a changeup at 82-83 and a splitter at 82-86 from a high 3/4 release. The splitter was his 2nd best pitch on this day and his slider was disappointing. He also showed some issues commanding his sinker and he needs to be able to spot this pitch to be successful. His upside is that of a middle of the rotation starter, as it isn't out of the realm of possibility for him to sit at 90-92 and to get another step-up in command. However, I think he winds up being a guy bouncing between AAA and the majors as his complimentary pitches really aren't good enough to complement a fastball in the high 80's.
• Daniel Cabrera used to have upside and command issues. Now he just has command issues. He has lost a lot of velocity, now sitting at 89-96 (and mostly at 92-93) and also showed a slider at 78-84 and a changeup at 77-85. He had zero idea where the changeup was going and also had a tendency to throw spinners as opposed to sliders. His slider no longer teases as a plus pitch, but is rather an average pitch when thrown well. Washington rescued him from the dumpster and may now be returning him. He really has no upside left at this point and is major league filler for a desperate organization at this point.
• Clay Condrey was 88-91 with his fastball, threw a cutter at 86 and showed a slider at 85-86. Solid middle reliever with his moving fastball and his ability to generate ground balls.
• Ron Villone was 87-88 with his fastball, 79-84 with his slider and 82 with his change. You know what you are going to get with him, as he has had command issues since he came up.

Off tomorrow (though have a baseball game) and return to work on Tuesday.

Sorry for these write ups being mainly pitchers, I just wanted to make sure I got the charts done well and didn't take time to make many notes about hitters due to time constraints.

Chart Observations: CIN @ SD

Yep, charted the 16 inning game from last night/this morning.

• Edinson Volquez started for the Reds and had some struggles with his command, especially with his fastball. He also appeared to be throwing a lot more offspeed stuff then he typically did. He left the game in the bottom of the 6th with a back injury, but it didn't appear to be serious. Volquez featured a fastball at 88-96, a changeup at 77-82, a curveball at 74-79 and a slider at 75-81.
• Josh Geer opposed him and is your prototypical finesse right hander. He features a fastball from 83-88 (usually sits at 86-88), a slider at 76-80 and a changeup at 73-76 from a 3/4 release point. His fastball is a 2-seamer that has very good downward movement and bite, but his command is only above average, resulting in him leaving hittable pitches available for hitters in the zone. In evaluating Geer, I think his upside is that of a back of the rotation starter and he is just an extra arm for a contender. His flyball arsenal may be able to play in the bullpen, but who knows?
• Mike Lincoln featured a fastball at 89-90 and a curveball at 77. He only faced 2 batters. Looked to me like an extra arm in the pen and not someone that is one that will put up big numbers.
• Arthur Rhodes featured a fastball at 91-93 and a slider at 81-82. Solid left-handed setup man as long as his velocity stays in the low 90's and his command doesn't take any further drops.
• David Weathers really struggled with his command again. He featured a fastball at 88-90, a slider at 82-85 and a changeup at 82-84. As I said before, he needs to watch out, as these command issues may be a career ender.
• Daniel Ray Herrera is a small (5-9) left hander who features a slider at 74-76, a fastball at 83 and what appeared to be a screwball at 66. He has a unique repetoire of pitches and seems to have enough to not have hitters focused on other pitches. Debatable if he can consistenly get out right handers due to less then ideal velocity, but at worst he is a quality LOOGY.
• Jared Burton featured a fastball at 90-92, a cutter at 90-92, a slider at 82-83 and a changeup at 80-83. Another guy who profiles as just a middle reliever, as he has only average command and none of his pitches are plus. His primary pitch is the cutter and it didn't have as much cut on it as it had previously last night.
• Micah Owings finished the game featuring a fastball at 85-91, a slider at 79-83 and a changeup at 76-80. He has a slight chance of a future as a reliever with his fastball-change combination, but even that is a stretch at this point.
• Joe Thatcher is a side arming LOOGY who struck out Laynce Nix with fastballs at 87-88 and a slider at 76. He appears to be a guy that will always be battling his command. He profiles very well as a LOOGY if he has command and is a AAA pitcher if he doesn't have command.
• Greg Burke made his big league debut last night. He featured an above average moving 2-seam fastball at 91-93 and threw one slider at 84 from a high 3/4 release. The one slider was average. His command appeared to be above average and his mechanics were fairly clean. This is his shot at sticking with a big league team.
• Cla Meredith's slider has lost a lot. He sat with a fastball at 85-87 and his slider was 76-80. What was once a plus pitch is now barely league average and his fastball isn't enough to serve as a ROOGY. He may be in for a long season as a sidearmer.
• Heath Bell went after guys with a fastball at 92-96 and a curveball at 79-82 from an over the top release. His curveball didn't have great bite and he struggled to command it. He is still a quality closer, but is likely in that 3rd tier of elite closers.
• Edward Mujica showed a fastball at 93-95, a slider at 81-82 and a split at 87. Both off-speed pitches are below average and he really can't command them. His ability to spot his fastball can only work for so long before teams sit solely on it and start gripping and ripping.
• Luke Gregerson featured a fastball at 89-92, a slider at 83-86 and a changeup at 78-84 from a low 3/4 release. Gregerson appears to just be another middle reliever with his moving 2-seam fastball. His 2-seamer is above average, but the slider and change are just average offerings and he also showed just average command. He profiles best as a middle reliever, but will likely always be battling to be on a roster.
• Luis Perdomo still tantalizes myself with his stuff. Last night, he featured a moving 2-seamer at 91-93 and a slider at 87-89. He will need to refine his command and become more consistent with his stuff to succeed.