DRaysBay: An SB Nation Community

Navigation: Jump to content areas:



Sports blogs for fans, by fans.
Around SBN: Steve McNair Found Shot to Death


Great insight on Price's AAA start...

Follow the link below to get a detailed description of Price's first AAA outing.  SOunds btter then his line indicated in my opinion.  Sounds like a lot of balls found the holes, and he wasnt pitching in ideal conditions either.  Good to see his FB was reaching 96mph as a starter, and he made lefties look foolish apparently.  Imagine 94-97 coming out of the pen for the Rays....

 

http://www.immaculateinning.com/2008/08/david-price-aaa-debut.html

3 recs | Comment 29 comments

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

Display:

What impresses me

is changing speed, location, and pitches. He is not just throwing fastballs with the occasional breaking ball. He has confidence in all his pitches and once he adjusts to AAA he will be MLB-ready.

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind.

by Sandy Kazmir on Aug 14, 2008 10:36 AM EDT reply reply actions actions   0 recs

There is little doubt Price will become a good MLB starter....

But with his plus FB and plus slider, he could be a weapon coming out of the pen THIS YEAR ONLY. Don’t make the dumb mistake the Yankees did, and do a midyear switch. It is very difficult to go from a reliever to a starter. Going from a starter to a reliever is mostly mental, and doesnt take long for your arm to adapt. In fact, if they place rules that he cant pitch back to back days, it has very little physical impact. IMO, if they plan on bringing him up as a reliever this season, it would be a huge mistake not to give him 10-14 days in the minors as a reliever to get accustomed.

by td32 on Aug 14, 2008 3:23 PM EDT reply reply actions actions   0 recs

the rays will not make the mistake that the yankees did

next year our bullpen will be about the same as it is now, with juice, sonny and niemann possibly in it, and the yankees only had joba in their pen because their pen couldnt be counted on and ours can, so no way price is any where near the pen next year, he will be the 4th starter, also anyone think that wade davis will make the team out of spring training next year as the 5th starter?

Longo=ROY. Friedman=Executive of the year. Maddon=Manager of the year. BJ UPTON IS NOT LAZY! ! ! Gabe Gross= clutch. David Price is the next big time pitcher.

by RaysOfHope on Aug 14, 2008 7:41 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Look at baseball history

Joba’s not the first time a team has done this. Look at pretty much every pitcher that came up under Earl Weaver.

Vogt early, Vogt often.

by Brickhaus on Aug 14, 2008 9:14 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   1 recs

The Yankees problem with Joba

Was his injury history. That is why he was in the pen to begin with. They wanted to control his innings because he’d been flagged as an injury concern since he was drafted.

by rglass44 on Aug 15, 2008 10:40 AM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Joba was in the pen because the NY needed him there

None of their late inning RP’s were pitching reliably in ’08, so they quickly transitioned him to relief work in AAA then brought him up to fill that gap in their playoff push.

They could have left him starting in the minors – he had plenty of innings left in his “cap” and wasn’t having any physical issues. He only threw 23 more innings last season then he had at Nebraska alone in ’07, and he also threw 30+ in HWB. Had they pushed him up to what may well have been a 150 IP limit, he may have started ’09 in the Yanks rotation.

by nyyfaninlaaland on Aug 15, 2008 7:17 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Rec'd

The ‘mistake’ the Yankees made with Joba wasn’t that they let him start his career in the pen. Their mistake was their lack of faith in their decision once they’d committed to putting him in the pen for ’08.

by GomesSweetGomes on Aug 14, 2008 10:07 PM EDT reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Yes

But their decision to move him into a full time role was more of a knee-jerk reaction than they had initially planned for, mostly due to Steinbrenners impatience

by GomesSweetGomes on Aug 14, 2008 10:21 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

This article was written in April

The Yanks plan was to transition Chamberlain to the rotation to get his innings pitched load up to about 140, up from 110 the prior year. He was prepped as a starter early in spring, then dialed back to a his intended 2 month relief role. That Hank Steinbrenner didn’t understand that had no bearing – he commented soon after this story that after talking with Cashman he understood and that was that. If the reaction was to Hank, why did they wait until June to start the process when Hank bitched in April? The Yanks pitching injuries may have advanced the timetable a week or 2 at most. That a variety of “pundits” have disagreed, or that you want to see NY as having made a mistake, doesn’t matter. The original plan was largely adhered to.

What was different about the approach with Joba was making the transition in the majors. But it was done in exactly the pitch count approach that would have been taken in the minors. Since he was clearly able to handle major league batters, this approach was frankly more innovative than reactionary. If a pitcher is capable of getting major league hitters out while stretching his count and broadening his arsenal, why waste him in the minors?

I’m sure Price could handle the exact same approach, but I agree with Mr. Hope above that it’s not likely necessary. Of course, if for some reason the Rays mimicked this approach you’d be calling it genius, not reactionary. It may be a useful way to limit his innings in ‘09, since he may be limited to about 165-170 – 30 + over his 2007 Vandy high. If he moves into Tampa’s pen he won’t push that 133 IP level up much this season – perhaps an argument for not doing it at all but bringing him in as a starter to maximize his ’08 and thus ’09 IP.

Calling it a mistake now that Joba’s had some shoulder pain is a hindsight call. Was there a mistake made with Price in the spring that caused him to miss time early? No, he was having some irritation – it happens.

by nyyfaninlaaland on Aug 15, 2008 6:58 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Nothing

and it’s actually a slider, not a curveball. Price could be a very good pitcher with just two pitches, because his fastball and slider are awesome, but his changeup also has plus potential, but is merely an average pitch at this point.

Also, having gone back and watched video of his first AAA start, he was incredibly unlucky. Three or four of Norfolk’s hits were infield singles, and another hit was a routine flyball that Perez badly misjudged. He gave up one hard hit ball all night… I was thoroughly impressed, despite what his final line said.

He has rare velocity for a lefty and his fastball has natural sink, and his slider is downright dirty… Kazmir-esque when it’s on.

www.raysbb.com

Yes, we really do have fans.

by killa3312 on Aug 15, 2008 12:56 AM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Actually

Johnsonesque.

Not insinuating this in a bad way, but Price is 100% poor man’s Randy Johnson. Fastball and slider aren’t quite as hard, and they don’t come from as far out to the side, but he’s honestly the closest comparison.

Vogt early, Vogt often.

by Brickhaus on Aug 15, 2008 11:14 AM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

There's nothing insulting or bad about that comparison

If Price ends up a poor man’s version of Randy Johnson, he will win multiple Cy Young’s in his career. Johnson is arguably the best LHP of all-time (the only one who has an argument is Koufax), and a version of him that throws a little bit slower is still a really, really good pitcher.

www.raysbb.com

Yes, we really do have fans.

by killa3312 on Aug 15, 2008 11:37 AM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Yes

Even adjusted, Lefty Grove has a solid case.

Vogt early, Vogt often.

by Brickhaus on Aug 15, 2008 3:17 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

How could I forget Grove?

Yes, it’s Grove, Johnson, and Koufax, and then slightly behind them is Steve Carlton.

www.raysbb.com

Yes, we really do have fans.

by killa3312 on Aug 15, 2008 4:07 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Way better control, though.

That was Johnson’s problem early in his career. In the minors his BB/9 were 7.07, 8.23, and 5.72. They didn’t get much better in the majors until later in his career. He has still always struggled with his walk-rate. Career stats from baseball-cube show this.

Price on the other hand, already has pretty good control. His BB-rates have never been higher than 3.89 (as a freshman in college). His BB rates this year at each level: 1.82, 2.84, and 0 (through 1 start).

by rglass44 on Aug 15, 2008 11:38 AM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

I think

a lot of that comes from how far out to the side Johnson pitches. Price is certainly more polished than Johnson was at the same point in his career. He didn’t really become dominant until his last couple years with Seattle, but then again, Price just doesn’t have the same raw tools as Johnson did. Close in all regards though, and that’s what I means by poor man’s Randy Johnson.

Vogt early, Vogt often.

by Brickhaus on Aug 15, 2008 3:16 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Agreed he doesn't have Johnson's tools

He isn’t 6’10, but he is more of a pitcher than Johnson was. I wouldn’t be surprised if Price’s first full-season his BB numbers are in line w/ Randy’s career bests. He also won’t have the K rate that Randy has had though.

by rglass44 on Aug 15, 2008 3:27 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

If Price maximizes his potential

his career line could end up looking a lot like Steve Carlton’s. That’s if he completely reaches his ceiling, though.

www.raysbb.com

Yes, we really do have fans.

by killa3312 on Aug 15, 2008 4:09 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Seems kind of lofty

Considering he hasn’t thrown a pitch in Major League Baseball to date. Let’s let him make a favorable comparison to a Jimmy Key-type player before we include him in the top-5 lefties of all time debate.

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind.

by Sandy Kazmir on Aug 15, 2008 4:16 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Hence the reason why I said

If he maximizes his potential. There’s a great chance he doesn’t reach his ceiling, as good of a prospect as he is. Very few do.

www.raysbb.com

Yes, we really do have fans.

by killa3312 on Aug 15, 2008 4:23 PM EDT to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Comments For This Post Are Closed


User Tools

Founded in 2005. DRaysBay is home to "progressive statistical analysis and reasoned argument."
Start posting about the Rays »

Join SB Nation and dive into communities focused on all your favorite teams.

FanPosts

Community blog posts and discussion.

Recommended FanPosts

Small
Jeff Niemann Mr. Consistently Inconsistently Consistent
Longo2_small
Official Draftee Signing Thread 2.0 Please rec
Small
Introducing volatility to the 2009 Rays starting pitching

Recent FanPosts

Longo2_small
Question for anyone
Longo2_small
All Star thread
Dsc_0231_small
question about options
Rutg_uakjmedjwh9ndzd4lkll_small
David Price and release points
Kazavatar_small
Rays fas...When you hear NYS do you think Cheap HR to Right? (Statistics included)
Small
stpetelawyer got married tonight!!
Dsc01731_small
Small questions for the locals
Small
7/2 11:59 P.M. Last chance All Star vote.
Zorilla_small
Top 10 AL OPS PD
Price_small
Almost midseason thoughts.

Post_icon New FanPost All FanPosts Carrot-mini

FanShots

Quick hits of video, photos, quotes, chats, links and lists that you find around the web.

Recent FanShots

Jake McGee cant find command
Rays shuffle rotation
Project Prospect Midseason Top 50
Cubs acquire Jeff Baker DFA Ryan Freel
The Gabe Of The Day platoon put up a .482 wOBA in June, while playing...
Jake McGee GCL start #2: 2 ip 0 h 0 r 0 bb 5 so
Hanrahan to Pittsburgh
MONTGOMERY, AL – The Southern League has announced the roster for the S...
MADDON'S MISSION IS HURTING THE RAYS
Lightning Free Agent Primer

Post_icon New FanShot All FanShots Carrot-mini


VPs of Baseball Operations

Mos-def-the-ecstatic_small R.J. Anderson

Raysring1_small Tommy Rancel

Price_small Erik Hahmann

Ticket Account Executive

Grossamerica_small Sandy Kazmir

Zorilla_small FreeZorilla

Small Jason Pafundi

Official Partner of Yahoo! Sports