Today is another Rocker - Leiter doubleheader. Rocker's line: 5 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 6 Ks. A solid enough line but do not like to see the 3 BBs. If Leiter continues to sit around 95mph I'm going to be fully on board with him and I go back and forth on Hill too, since he seems to flash the tools that might make him ultimately the best.
Today is another Rocker - Leiter doubleheader. Rocker's line: 5 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 6 Ks. A solid enough line but do not like to see the 3 BBs. If Leiter continues to sit around 95mph I'm going to be fully on board with him and I go back and forth on Hill too, since he seems to flash the tools that might make him ultimately the best.
Rocker gives me Glasnow vibes.
Whether we'd take someone like Glasnow at 1-1...not sure.
Yeah that too. I'm falling off the Rocker-wagon.
How did you resist the chance to make the "falling off my Rocker" pun.
Honestly you should lose points for that dude.
I'm sorry Sir I'll try to do better next time.
Swaggerty's up next. Flied out to Center on the second pitch.
I'll go ahead and take the stab that Leiter will separate himself from the pack if the velocity holds. I get the concerns about his frame being smaller, but even before the velocity ticking up, his fastball played very well because of the angle it forces on hitters. He's got a clean, refined, and repeatable delivery and good feel for all his pitches.
I think the field is open enough that he just needs to keep doing what he's been able to show and he'll make himself the consensus top player. The trouble with Rocker is that so much rests on two pitches. The upside is definitely there but it's not a slam dunk. I think Hill, McLain, Lawler, and Fabian are all outside shots to be just in the mix, but my gut says that Leiter may start to separate himself here over the next three or four weeks.
I love Lieter's delivery. He's very refined, and is still apparently developing potential +pitches. Could end up with three or four plus offerings, there's a big ceiling there if he can stay healthy.
I agree – ideally there might also be an RP or two, but it's such a volatile position that there's no point in predicting. I do like Mears a good bit.
With Alford, I really hope he plays his way into the job, since he seems like such an awesome guy to root for. Also, for selfish purposes, he still has a long number of years of control (through 2025 – just one year before Hayes' arb years end). He seems very clearly like the best shot at a post-hype breakout type player, analogous to a Max Muncy. Even if he ends up in a quasi-platoon with Goodwin, if that helps him stay healthy enough to put up some good numbers, he could be an impact guy later on. Obviously his tools grade well defensively, but I'm thinking that if you can get enough of a solid look at him this year, you might count on him in future years as a guy to rotate into the DH role sometimes to keep him on the field. Obviously, that's getting way ahead of myself, as usual.
And on that front, I would love a surprise extension with Brault. I think he's quietly had an up arrow for a while, and if things click further, he'll actually be able to be fairly impactful. Initially I wanted to just see him go along with others for more prospects, but the more I have thought about it, the more I like the move to give him a long leash to step forward this year. Even if the result is a modestly better trade return at the deadline or in the winter, it's a smart move.
I'd also rather extend Brault than Kuhl. Though Kuhl's raw stuff is at times much louder, Brault has left-handedness and a much better injury history to go off of as he gets into his early 30s.
Yeah, I'd agree with that. I don't know if Kuhl has a pitch that can get lefties out consistently. Something that got lost in the covid shuffle last year with all the injuries and weirdness was that we were effectively using both of them as 4 IP starters before the wheels came off. I think Brault is more likely to take a step forward in that regard, and I wonder how long of a leash Kuhl will have, given that it is an absolute certainty that more than 5 SP will be used over the course of the season. Kuhl should have some leash but it might be interesting to have him as a very effective multi-inning reliever.
Nice to see Cruz put together a very good at-bat against a good pitcher, including a good take for ball 4.