8/9: ARI @ WAS

1) Yusmeiro Petit: 83 pitches. 8 strikes swinging. 5 Fastballs (2nd, 2 in 3rd, 2 in 4th), 3 on Curveballs (1st, 2nd, 4th)

• Petit came from an over the top release with a 12-6 curve with average depth, a fastball with a little run in on righties, a change with some fade from lefties, a 2-7 slider with some bite, a cutter with some cut and he will throw any pitch in any count.

1st: FB (86-89), CU (76-77), SL (76-78), CB (72-74), Cut (82-84)

2nd: FB (86-89), CU (77), SL (77), CB (73-75), Cut (82-84)

3rd: FB (86-89), CU (76-79), CB (73-75), Cut (79-82)

4th: FB (86-88), CU (76), CB (74-76), Cut (79-81)

2) J.D. Martin: 87 pitches. 4 strikes swinging. Fastball (3rd), Curveball (3rd), Cutter (3rd), Changeup (1st)

• Martin is a 6-4, 200 pound righty. The 26 year old has a big frame that can add more muscle everywhere. He is real long and lanky and came from a high 3/4 release. His change has good run in on lefties and some sink, a sharp 12-6 curve with average depth, a pretty straight 4-seam fastball and a cutter with some cut and a little sink. 4-A guy who really doesn't have the stuff to be a good # 5 starter in the majors.

1st: FB (86-88), Cut (85), CB (72), CU (80-82)

2nd: FB (85-88), Cut (84), CU (80)

3rd: FB (85-88), Cut (81-84), CB (71), CU (82)

4th: FB (85-88), Cut (81-84), CB (71-73), CU (80-82)

5th: FB (84-89), Cut (83-86), CB (70-71), CU (80)

3) Clay Zavada: 24 pitches. 1 strike swinging. Fastball (6th)

• Zavada came from a high 3/4 to 3/4 release and showed a change with some fade from righties with sink, a fastball with some run in on lefties and a 10-4 curve with solid depth.

5th: FB (88), CU (78-81)

6th: FB (87-89), CU (78-83), CB (70)

4) Leo Rosales: 21 pitches. 4 strikes swinging. Fastball (7th), 3 Changeups (2 in 6th, 7th)

• Rosales came from an over the top release with a change with good fade from lefties with good sink, a fastball with a little run in on righties and a 2-7 slider with some bite.

6th: FB (88-91), CU (78-81), SL (81)

7th: FB (87-89), CU (79-80)

5) Tyler Clippard: 11 pitches. 1 strike swinging. Changeup.

• Clippard came from an over the top release with a real violent delivery and showed a fastball with a little late run in on righties, a change with good fade form lefties with good late sink that he will throw to rightise and a 2-7 slider with some bite.

6th: FB (89-91), SL (80), CU (79-80)

6) Jason Bergmann: 9 pitches. 2 strikes swinging. Fastball, Slider.

• Bergmann came from a 3/4 release with a fastball with some run in on righties and a hard 2-7 slider that has cutter-like movement with okay bite.

6th: FB (91-93), SL (85-86)

7) Ron Villone: 13 pitches. 2 strikes swinging. Fastball, Changeup.

• Villone came from a high 3/4 release with a change with good fade from lefties with sink, a fastball with some run in on lefties and a 11-5 slider with good bite.

7th: FB (89-92), SL (79-85), CU (82-84)

8) Jorge Sosa: 22 pitches. 5 strikes swinging. 5 Sliders (2 in 7th, 8th, 2 in 9th)

• Sosa is a 6-2, 230 pound righty. The 32 year old has a medium frame that is maxed out with some bad weight. He came form a 3/4 release and showed a 2-7 slider with good bite and a fastball withs ome run in on righties and some sink.

7th: SL (84-85)

8th: SL (84-86), FB (90-91)

9th: SL (82-86), FB (90)

9) Scott Schoeneweis: 14 pitches. 0 strikes swinging.

• Scott came from a high 3/4 release and showed a fastball with a little run in on lefties and a 10-4 slider with some bite.

8th: FB (86-88), SL (76-78)

10) Blaine Boyer: 14 pitches. 2 strikes swinging. Fastball, Curveball.

• Boyer came from an over the top release and showed a sharp 12-6 curve with good depth, a 2-7 slider with okay bite, a change with good fade from lefties that he will throw to righties and a fastball with good run in on righties.

8th: FB (93-98), CB (83), SL (82-85), CU (86-87)

Score Observations (7/4 ARI @ COL): ARI Pitchers

1) Yusmeiro Petit: 55 pitches. 9 strikes swinging. 4 on Fastballs (1st, 2 in 2nd, 3rd), Slider (1st), 2 on Curves (2nd, 3rd), 2 on Changes (1st, 3rd)

• I have no idea how he generated that many swings and misses. Petit is a 6-1, 255 pound righty that has a maxed out medium frame with some bad weight in the mid section. The 24 year old comes from an over the top release. His fastball is a 2-seam with a little run and sink in on righties. His change has good sink and fade from lefties. His curve is a 12-6 pitch with good depth. His slider is a 2-7 pitch with some bite. He will throw 2-0 changes and will throw it to righties. Petit is a back of the rotation starter at best and needs to improve his command to reach that modest ceiling.

1st: FB (86-88), CB (74-76), SL (81-84), CU (78)

2nd: FB (86-88), CB (73-76), SL (80-82), CU (79)

3rd: FB (85-89), CB (75-76), SL (80-81), CU (78-79)

2) Blaine Boyer: 26 pitches. 1 strike swinging. Fastball (4th)

• The Blaine Boyer scenic tour has traveled to the west coast now. The 6-3, 215 pound righty has a medium frame that can add a little more muscle. The 27 year old comes from a 3/4 release. His fastball has some run in on righties with sink. His slider is a 2-7 pitch with some bite and his cutter has some cut. Still think he is a solid middle reliever, but he keeps making me look stupid.

4th: FB (92-96)

5th: FB (93-96), SL (80-83), Cut (86)

3) Juan Gutierrez: 31 pitches. 2 strikes swinging. Fastball (6th) and Slider (6th)

• Gutierrez comes from an over the top release and shows a pretty straight 4-seam fastball, a 12-6 curve with okay bite and a sharp 2-7 slider.

6th: FB (95-97), CB (80), SL (84-86)

7th: FB (93-95), CB (80-82), SL (82-85)

4) Scott Schoeneweis: 6 pitches. 1 strike swinging. Fastball

• He (I don't feel like trying to spell his name again) came from a 3/4 release with a fastball with some run in on rightesi and sharp 10-4 slider with good bite.

7th: FB (88-90), SL (80-83)

5) Clay Zavada: 28 pitches. 1 strike swinging. Changeup

• Zavada came from a high 3/4 release and showed a straight 4-seam fastball, a change with good fade from righties with sink and a big breaking 11-5 curve with good depth. Battled his command this outing.

8th: FB (87-90), CU (79-83), CB (72)

6) Tony Pena: 5 pitches. 1 strike swinging. Slider

• Pena came from an over the top release and showed a fastball with some run in on righties and a hard 2-7 slider with good bite.

8th: FB (95-96), SL (88-90)

7) Chad Qualls: 16 pitches. 0 strikes swinging.

• Qualls came from a high 3/4 release and showed a fastball with excellent run in on righties and a sharp 2-7 slider with good bite.

8th: SL (86-87)

9th: FB (90-93), SL (84-88)

STL @ PIT

Had an extra game tonight and for once it didn't go to extra innings or rain delay or both!

• Zach Duke started for the Pirates and looked magnificent. This is the 1st time I have actually watched him pitch and he looked good. Now, his stuff will never wow people, as his fastball was 87-91, his curveball from 69-74, his changeup was 78-82 and his slider was 84-85, which he only used against left handers, but when he is throwing his curveball for strikes, he is a quality middle of the rotation starter. He has a Jamie Moyer like motion from a high 3/4 release. His upside is that of a middle of the rotation starter, but I think he is more of a back-end guy unless he can consistenly throw his above average curveball for strikes, as the difference in velocity really screws with a hitter. His fastball is fringe average, his changeup is above average and his slider is a tick above average, so he doesn't have too many weapons when he struggles with his curve.
• Todd Wellemeyer underwent a transformation tonight from a FB-SL-CU pitcher to a FB-CUT-CU-SL-CB pitcher. It didn't look too good, as his cutter has good cut, but he was leaving it belt high. He sat at 88-93 with his fastball, 87-91 with the cutter, 80-84 with the changeup, 75-78 with his curveball and 77-80 with the slider. It is possible he has completely scrapped the slider for the cutter and these are really curveballs. Same opinion as before, solid back-of-rotation starter for a contender and will likely not post a sub 4 ERA again.
• Matt Capps made the 9th inning exciting, loading the bases before getting out of it without allowing a run (for what it's worth, 2nd straight game I have done where the bases got loaded in the 9th). He attacked hitters with a 4-seam fastball at 93-96, a slider at 85-86 and a changeup at 86-87. He still has the look of a frontline closer when he is throwing strikes, but his frame is one that doesn't look very athletic and you have to wonder how about his recent durability issues.
• Blaine Boyer went after guys with a fastball at 90-91, a curveball at 72-77 and a cutter at 83-85. Should still be a solid guy to have in a bullpen, just not one you want pitching with a lead.
• Trever Miller showed he can get out right-handers as well, as he featured a fastball at 85-87, his frisbee slider at 73-77 and a changeup at 81-85. Very useful pitcher with his command of his secondary pitches, just got to wonder how much longer he can keep doing this.
• Brad Thompson threw 2 innings and was sitting at 86-88 with his 2-seam fastball, 77-78 with his slider, 81-82 with his changeup and 75-78 with his curveball. No real plus offering and is a guy that just tries to mix speeds and get you to hit the ball on the ground. My opinion of him hasn't changed from before. When his service time starts making raises happen, he loses a lot of his value, as a lot of guys in AAA can do what he is being asked to do.
• Tyler Greene, a 6-2 190 pound 25 year old, got another start, this one at 3B. He is showing better to me, as this is the 3rd time I have seen him. He has average power (probably a little above average for a SS) and might be able to stick as a utility infielder who can play SS (and that is very valuable to Tony La Russa). Another con to Greene though is the fact that he was almost over-aggressive in his attempts to hit the 1st pitch fastball. He swung at the 1st pitch 3 times and looked very bad when Capps threw him a 1st pitch slider. If that report gets out and teams start feeding him off-speed, we will know for sure if he is a late-bloomer utility infielder Wilson Betemit style.
• Robinzon Diaz, a 5-11 220 pound 25 year old, is a catcher who is getting his first real legitimate chance at playing time. He doesn't appear to have an above average tool, as he has some power, but wouldn't hit more then 10 home runs as a regular. He is solid defensively, but isn't someone that will just shut down a running game. He has a squatty catcher frame and he features a slightly open stance where he is standing somewhat straight up. In my eyes, it's a coinflip between him and Jason Jaramillo for the backup job when Ryan Doumit returns. It may come down to options.
• Andy LaRoche, a 6-1 210 pound 25 year old, was the main major league ready guy (with Brandon Moss) that Pittsburgh got in the Jason Bay trade. LaRoche just doesn't profile very well to me. His frame is close to maxed out and he will never have more then average power for a 3rd basemen. He has a slightly open stance with a toe turn and he has shown a hole in his swing to inside fastballs when I have seen him. For a player known for his bat when he was coming up, it looks like it may need to be his defense to carry him. His bat may barely play at 3B.
• Colby Rasmus, a 6-2 200 pound 22 year old, came in when Ryan Ludwick appeared to pull a hamstring attempting to make a catch. Rasmus is St. Louis' top prospect and you can see what they like. I was skeptical of him, as he hadn't yet proven himself in AAA, but he has a slightly open stance with a nice swing that doesn't have any real apparent holes. He still has some strides to make with pitch recognition and his ability to hit left-handers, but he does look like a guy who can be a starting CF, though I think putting him as one of the top 10 prospects in baseball may be a little immature, as I don't know if anything about him screams All-Star. Looked like above average speed and didn't do anything either bad or great in CF.
• In addition to the comments I made earlier about Shane Robinson, he is 24 years old and has just an average (and may be below average) arm from center field. He played RF after Ludwick left, but his arm will not play there and that greatly reduces his value. He has a nice looking line drive swing and will need to fight to become a 4th OF in the mold of an Endy Chavez.

Tomorrow is a busy day for me, as I have 2 charts (1 of which is an extra), a baseball practice and the 8:05 SEA-TEX game featuring Jarrod Washburn and Brandon McCarthy.

Chart Observations: PIT @ STL

• Got to watch Todd Wellemeyer and he continued to show his plus command of all his pitches. He was primarily FB, SL, CU and mixed in a few curveballs. Hasn't faced the best lineups, but is a middle of the rotation starter for a contender (decent 3, strong 4).
• Ross Ohlendorf opposed him. Ohlendorf attacked hitters with a low to mid 90's sinker, low 80's slider and low 80's changeup. Nothing about him is above average (including his command) and is a protypical RH. His ceiling is that of a back-end starter for a contender, as if his command improves, he should have the stuff (and the ability to pitch to contact) to be a solid # 4 or # 5.
• Blaine Boyer retired the only batter he faced, Craig Monroe, with a diet of plus curveballs and average fastballs. Still think he is a solid middle guy.
• Trever Miller is a good LOOGY to have in the pen. He features a high 80's fastball and a frisbee slider in the mid 70's. No reason to think he can't keep having success.
• Evan Meek could throw 3 pitches or he could throw 5. No one is really sure. He throws a fastball in the mid 90's (93-95) that has a lot of cutting action, a cut fastball in the high 80's to low 90's, a slider in the mid 80's, a curveball in the mid 70's to low 80's and a changeup (which I didn't see). No one is sure if the breaking pitch is the same pitch (I thought it was) or if he throws only cutters or if the action on the ball is just natural. That being said, he has the future to be a back-end reliever. He needs to tighten a breaking ball, as his fastball is his only real plus pitch. Think the ceiling is a closer if he develops the breaking pitch further, but is more likely to settle in as a quality middle reliever.
• Shane Robinson made his major league debut as a pinch-hitter. He is a small guy (5-9, 160) with a small frame. I thought he was African-American, but he is white. He is known as a speedster with little power and I gathered that much from his stance. He has one of those stances with the bat resting on his shoulder until he triggers, where everything works to get himself ready. He takes the bat off his shoulder and cocks it and also strides. He will never have much power hitting that way. With a whole sample size of 1 AB, I think his ceiling is as a 4th OF who can CF (those are fairly valuable) but one that will struggle to hit above .250 and provide zero power. Maybe Robinson can learn from Skip Schumaker and make himself into a super-utility guy by learning 2B.

Got the Reds-Cardinals game tonight featuring Johnny Cueto and Joel Pineiro.

Sorry about no comment on the Reds-Brewers game, but here are some from what I remember (went out last night and didn't get back to the apartment until 230)

• Braden Looper showed an inability to command his stuff last night and when he struggles like that, he will get hit (even by a Reds lineup that had 2 of their 3 best hitters sitting due to the flu). He features a high 80's to low 90's sinker/fastball, a low 80's slider and a low 80's splitter.
• Micah Owings upside is that of a # 5 starter. Just not much left there to work with. I think he needs to start focusing on his hitting and become an OF.
• Mark DiFelice continues to baffle hitters and people who like radar gun readings, as he continues to get people out. He primarily throws a low 80's cutter and a low 80's changeup. Who knows if he can keep this up? He has excellent command (and good thing b/c he is going to need it once the scouting reports are out).
• Nick Masset flashed some of his old command problems, but looks like a very capable pitcher to bridge the gap to the Reds set-up core.
• Thought Dusty made a bad decision by leaving in Arthur Rhodes to face the right handers. Turns out I am a moron.

Chart Impressions: STL @ WAS

• It's amazing how good Washington's offense can make pitchers look. Let me preface these comments by saying I am a big Todd Wellemeyer fan and thought he was destined for good things once he came up with the Cubbies. However, he may have pitched over his head last season. He sat in the low 90's with a moving 2-seam fastball, featured a high 70's to mid 80's slider and a solid average changeup in the low 80's. In my mind, these were 3 average big league pitches. His command has shockingly advanced to the point where he can do this (if you would have seen him when he came up, you would be shocked too). I thought that he was a # 3, but after this outing, I think he is a back-end starter for a contender and a middle guy for a non-contender. Still a very useful pitcher, just not a guy who will likely be posting a sub 4 ERA again.
• Jordan Zimmermann is legit. He throws 2 types of fastballs, a 4-seamer in the low to mid 90's (92-95) and a 2-seamer with some excellent fade and sink and features primarily to LH's (87-89). Zimmermann also features 2 breaking pitches, a mid 80's slider and a high 70's to low 80's power curve. He is currently developing a changeup (I am 100 % convinced that we are charting his 2-seamer as his change right now, as his change in spring training was at 79, not 88), but even without it he profiles fairly well as, at worst, a middle of the rotation starter. This was the 2nd time I have charted an outing of his and my opinion hasn't changed. He will develop into a # 2 starter at worst. I feel his two breaking pitches complement his fastball very well and if he ever develops a changeup, you may be looking at an All-Star. Zimmermann's main issue right now is an inability to keep the ball down (especially the fastball), which leads to gopher balls. Very clean mechanics out of a high 3/4 release point. He works very fast and seems to do all the little things you like to see pitchers do.
• Jason Motte is a fastball, slider, splitter pitcher. The problem is that only one of these pitches is plus (a mid to high 90's fastball). I was a huge fan (even picked him as my ROY as I thought the Cards would do well and he would get the saves), but he isn't yet ready to be a closer. His slider is in the high 80's, but doesn't have a ton of break to it. His splitter moves like a hanging changeup in the mid 80's, which is probably a bad thing. However, he is very advanced when you remember he only started pitching in 2006 after being a catcher.
• Blaine Boyer should be solid. I like him and thought that the Cardinals got the better end of the trade. Boyer features a low 90's fastball, a mid 80's cutter (which he has developed this season) and a high 70's overhand curveball that serves as his out pitch. Solid middle reliever to have in a pen as long as he isn't overused.
• Logan Kensing is Exhibit A on why pitchers shouldn't be rushed to the majors. He features a low to mid 90's fastball and a low 80's slider. The only problem is that this is what he was when he got his first promotion in 2004 at 22 and after being drafted in 2003. Not saying he could have developed a 3rd pitch to be that starter some people thought he might be, but he never exactly got the opportunity either. Is Rick VandenHurk destined for the same fate?
• Saul Rivera was one of the most durable relievers for the last couple of years. He still features a nice repetoire of a high 80's to low 90's 2-seam fastball, a mid to high 80's cutter and a low to mid 80's slider, but it appears Manny Acta and the Nationals brass has lost confidence in him for the time being (and well deserved, as he had a very rough April). I think he will end up being okay the rest of the way.
• Joel Hanrahan is a very talented closer. Too bad he won't get many save chances. The fact Julian Tavarez is now closing games ahead of him is a very reactionary move in my opinion. Hanrahan fired 10 pitches, 10 strikes, with his mid to high 90's heater and mid to high 80's slider and retired the only 3 hitters he faced. A team like the Nats (who lets face it, aren't going to be competing) don't need to be devaluing their own assets for possible trades through these types of manuevers.
• Tyler Greene has apparently made it to the big leagues. The former 1st round pick out of Georgia Tech was an offensive shortstop coming out, but he stopped hitting in AA. He was off to a .280-.400-.408 start in the PCL (Heaven for Hitters is it's other name) to get the call-up, but he will likely get a chance to keep building up his AAA numbers. He has a good frame (6-2, 180) that can add a lot more muscle. The issue with that is that he is already only an average defensive SS from what I have read and if he keeps adding muscle he will need to move to 3rd to counteract the loss of range. He doesn't have the stick for third. He has a fairly straight up, open stance with a little bat wiggle in his set-up. Swing is a little long and struggled to hit both fastballs and off-speed stuff from the Nationals staff.
• The best hitter to watch is (shocker) Sir (If Sidney Ponson can be knighted, he should be too) Albert Pujols. I imagine this is what it was like to see guys like Babe Ruth, Willie Mays and Hank Aaron in their primes. Pujols can hit anything and hit it hard. After getting 2 straight hard hits off Zimmermann, Jesus Flores did not call a single 4-seam fastball, choosing instead to attack with sliders and 2-seamers. The funny part? Flores set up (for every one of the pitches in this AB and the AB's after that) about 6 inches off the outside corner. The Nats pitchers kept missing the spot and kept putting these pitches on the outside corner and Albert had some fun.
• The Nationals lineup was fairly unimpressive. Cristian Guzman is a 9 hole hitter (or 2 hole if he keeps his current streak up) hitting 1st. Nick Johnson, Ryan Zimmerman and Adam Dunn are legitimate hitters. Elijah Dukes is a 6th or 7th hitter, at this stage of his career, hitting 5th and being asked to help carry the offense. Jesus Flores is another of those who should be hitting 6th or 7th. Willie Harris and Anderson Hernandez should be bench players.
• Consider this a prediction of things to come (and you can see it starting to come to fruition), but after OBP and defense have been exhausted of means of getting the most bang for your buck, I look for the ability to play multiple positions start to be capitalized on more. I can forsee multiple super-utility players being available on 1 team and giving managers a lot of options for lineups and substitutions in-game. I can also see platooning come back into focus. If I were a GM of a small-market team, I would invest primarily in the draft and try and fill holes with lefty-righty combos at positions of weakness, as you can find good platoon players for about a million dollars (at most) each.

Got the Houston-Atlanta score at 340.

Went into work early to try and get the FLA-CHC chart (a lot of young pitchers throwing that I would like to see) but we were assigned charts. I may take this game home after my score (b/c it's Saturday night and I have no life) and let you know what I think of pitchers like Graham Taylor, Hayden Penn as a reliever, Burke Badenhop, Jeff Samardzija and David Patton.