Re: Minor Matters
Posted: Tue Jul 19, 2011 9:44 am
Climbing the ladder: Cleveland Indians prospect Drew Pomeranz prepares for Akron home debut Wednesday
Published: Monday, July 18, 2011, 9:49 PM Updated: Monday, July 18, 2011, 9:49 PM
By Bill Lubinger, The Plain Dealer
AKRON, Ohio -- By coincidence, Wednesday at Akron's Canal Park happens to be "Big Splash Day."
Drew Pomeranz -- and the Indians -- hopes he makes one.
At 12:05 p.m., the ballpark becomes a mid-summer water works, courtesy of Akron Fire Department hoses and an armory of Super Soakers. Pomeranz, 22, in whom the Indians are investing considerable money and hope, makes his home debut with the Aeros.
The 6-5, 230-pound left-hander, who starred collegiately at Mississippi and was the Indians' first pick and the fifth overall in the 2010 draft, takes the mound against Altoona (Pa.), offering local fans their first glimpse into the future.
He's the Indians' top prospect and 14th best in all of baseball, according to the rating service Baseball America.
At the moment, the Indians are too distracted with a pennant race -- and plugging holes to stay in one -- to go ga-ga over seasons yet to come. But the long-term forecast calls for a starting rotation along the lines of Justin Masterson, Josh Tomlin, Alex White, Carlos Carrasco and, yes, Pomeranz -- short of the parent club accepting a trade offer so sweet that a piece of the future is mortgaged for a win-now addition.
Don't think for a second his name isn't brought up by teams taking a peek at what the Indians might have in the cupboard.
"Well, yes," said Ross Atkins, the Indians' vice president of player development, "he is definitely a player that has tremendous value in the industry."
Pomeranz, in his first season of professional ball, just made the leap from Advanced Class A Kinston (N.C.) to AA Akron. The gap between AA to the majors is a Grand Canyon -- but not beyond question for 2012.
"Yeah, absolutely that's a possibility," acknowledged Atkins, who said the Indians project Pomeranz anchoring a spot in the middle to front of the Tribe's rotation for a long time.
He isn't being fast-tracked, but baseball is a business, and in any business there's pressure to see a return on investment. The Indians paid Pomeranz a $2.65 million signing bonus, the biggest committed to any college pitcher in last year's draft.
Despite the whirlwind -- in the last week, he flew back from Phoenix for baseball's All-Star Futures Game, drove to Akron from Kinston and immediately hopped the team bus to Harrisburg, Pa. -- he's not caught up in it.
Meeting with the media before the Aeros game Monday at Canal Park, Pomeranz said he's simply working on throwing his three pitches for strikes, keeping his pitch count down and going deeper into games.
"Just getting used to what it takes to win at this level," he said.
In his AA debut last Friday at Harrisburg, Pomeranz scattered three hits, including a solo home run, and walked one in 4 2/3 innings. The Aeros won, but Pomeranz didn't get the decision. Cherished minor-league arms are limited to 100 pitches per outing, more or less. Pomeranz threw 91. He struck out five, including left fielder Bryce Harper -- the Washington Nationals' No. 1 overall pick in last year's draft -- both times he faced him.
"Felt a little rusty from all the off days but finished up feeling great!" Pomeranz tweeted after the game. "Can't wait to get back out there in 5 days!"
Enthused fans responded: "If 5 Ks in 4.2 innings pitched with only 1ER in first game after being promoted is 'rusty,' I can't wait till you feel "good."
And "took down Mr. Harper, nice work."
Pomeranz had nothing left to prove in Kinston. He was 3-2 and led the Carolina League with a 1.87 ERA, striking out 95 batters in 77 innings.
"Pomeranz was probably the finest pitcher in this league," said Jason Wood, manager of the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, a Texas Rangers affiliate. This from a team that handed Pomeranz both of his losses. Wood said he loaded up his lineup with right-handed hitters and got lucky.
One was right-fielder Jared Prince, who went 5-for-5 against Pomeranz this season, including a homer. No one yet, Prince said, has matched the killer curveball San Francisco's Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum threw him in college. But Pomeranz, he said, with equal command of a 93- to 95-mile-an-hour fastball, curve and change-up, "has got the makings of a major leaguer."
Pomeranz could have had a three-year head start. Texas drafted him in the 12th round out of high school. His dad, who also played at Ole Miss, told him the decision was his. His older brother, who also plays professional baseball, told him to sign.
His mother told him to go to college. Mom won, but mainly because the Rangers didn't quite offer enough money.
"It was close," Pomeranz said.
At Ole Miss, he hit the weight room and got much stronger, said his college coach Mike Bianco. They got him to raise his leg a little higher and made other minor tweaks in his delivery. Meanwhile, Pomeranz said three years in college helped him mature -- and he'd recommend the same route to anyone who asked.
After a dominant college career, he moved up about 375 picks -- and millions of dollars -- in the draft. From Akron, the majors are but a valley and a freeway away.
"He looks like he's well on his way," Bianco said.
Published: Monday, July 18, 2011, 9:49 PM Updated: Monday, July 18, 2011, 9:49 PM
By Bill Lubinger, The Plain Dealer
AKRON, Ohio -- By coincidence, Wednesday at Akron's Canal Park happens to be "Big Splash Day."
Drew Pomeranz -- and the Indians -- hopes he makes one.
At 12:05 p.m., the ballpark becomes a mid-summer water works, courtesy of Akron Fire Department hoses and an armory of Super Soakers. Pomeranz, 22, in whom the Indians are investing considerable money and hope, makes his home debut with the Aeros.
The 6-5, 230-pound left-hander, who starred collegiately at Mississippi and was the Indians' first pick and the fifth overall in the 2010 draft, takes the mound against Altoona (Pa.), offering local fans their first glimpse into the future.
He's the Indians' top prospect and 14th best in all of baseball, according to the rating service Baseball America.
At the moment, the Indians are too distracted with a pennant race -- and plugging holes to stay in one -- to go ga-ga over seasons yet to come. But the long-term forecast calls for a starting rotation along the lines of Justin Masterson, Josh Tomlin, Alex White, Carlos Carrasco and, yes, Pomeranz -- short of the parent club accepting a trade offer so sweet that a piece of the future is mortgaged for a win-now addition.
Don't think for a second his name isn't brought up by teams taking a peek at what the Indians might have in the cupboard.
"Well, yes," said Ross Atkins, the Indians' vice president of player development, "he is definitely a player that has tremendous value in the industry."
Pomeranz, in his first season of professional ball, just made the leap from Advanced Class A Kinston (N.C.) to AA Akron. The gap between AA to the majors is a Grand Canyon -- but not beyond question for 2012.
"Yeah, absolutely that's a possibility," acknowledged Atkins, who said the Indians project Pomeranz anchoring a spot in the middle to front of the Tribe's rotation for a long time.
He isn't being fast-tracked, but baseball is a business, and in any business there's pressure to see a return on investment. The Indians paid Pomeranz a $2.65 million signing bonus, the biggest committed to any college pitcher in last year's draft.
Despite the whirlwind -- in the last week, he flew back from Phoenix for baseball's All-Star Futures Game, drove to Akron from Kinston and immediately hopped the team bus to Harrisburg, Pa. -- he's not caught up in it.
Meeting with the media before the Aeros game Monday at Canal Park, Pomeranz said he's simply working on throwing his three pitches for strikes, keeping his pitch count down and going deeper into games.
"Just getting used to what it takes to win at this level," he said.
In his AA debut last Friday at Harrisburg, Pomeranz scattered three hits, including a solo home run, and walked one in 4 2/3 innings. The Aeros won, but Pomeranz didn't get the decision. Cherished minor-league arms are limited to 100 pitches per outing, more or less. Pomeranz threw 91. He struck out five, including left fielder Bryce Harper -- the Washington Nationals' No. 1 overall pick in last year's draft -- both times he faced him.
"Felt a little rusty from all the off days but finished up feeling great!" Pomeranz tweeted after the game. "Can't wait to get back out there in 5 days!"
Enthused fans responded: "If 5 Ks in 4.2 innings pitched with only 1ER in first game after being promoted is 'rusty,' I can't wait till you feel "good."
And "took down Mr. Harper, nice work."
Pomeranz had nothing left to prove in Kinston. He was 3-2 and led the Carolina League with a 1.87 ERA, striking out 95 batters in 77 innings.
"Pomeranz was probably the finest pitcher in this league," said Jason Wood, manager of the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, a Texas Rangers affiliate. This from a team that handed Pomeranz both of his losses. Wood said he loaded up his lineup with right-handed hitters and got lucky.
One was right-fielder Jared Prince, who went 5-for-5 against Pomeranz this season, including a homer. No one yet, Prince said, has matched the killer curveball San Francisco's Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum threw him in college. But Pomeranz, he said, with equal command of a 93- to 95-mile-an-hour fastball, curve and change-up, "has got the makings of a major leaguer."
Pomeranz could have had a three-year head start. Texas drafted him in the 12th round out of high school. His dad, who also played at Ole Miss, told him the decision was his. His older brother, who also plays professional baseball, told him to sign.
His mother told him to go to college. Mom won, but mainly because the Rangers didn't quite offer enough money.
"It was close," Pomeranz said.
At Ole Miss, he hit the weight room and got much stronger, said his college coach Mike Bianco. They got him to raise his leg a little higher and made other minor tweaks in his delivery. Meanwhile, Pomeranz said three years in college helped him mature -- and he'd recommend the same route to anyone who asked.
After a dominant college career, he moved up about 375 picks -- and millions of dollars -- in the draft. From Akron, the majors are but a valley and a freeway away.
"He looks like he's well on his way," Bianco said.