clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Welcome to the Show: New Pitchers of the Week

By Harry Pavlidis

Ah, rookies.  New to the hitters, new to the fans, and new to PITCHf/x.  The past week of baseball saw a few pitchers answer the call for their MLB debuts.  I'm not including Cody Ross.

  1. Jordan Zimmermann (WAS) - Has now made two starts, I've already covered his first.
  2. Derek Holland (TEX) - Erik has already shown us his debut.
  3. Graham Taylor (FLO) - Faced Jamie Moyer and is supposedly from the same mold.
  4. Hunter Jones (BOS) - Lefty reliever made one appearance that PITCHf/x captured - no data from the Yankees game.
  5. Anthony Ortega (LAA) - Was struggling in AAA but got the call on Saturday to start for the depleted Angels.
  6. Esmerling Vasquez (ARI) - Just called up by the Diamondbacks and got right into action out of their bullpen.
  7. Matt Daley (COL) - Called up to work in the Rockies' bullpen.
  8. Jack Egbert (CHA) - White Sox rookie from Staten Island replaced DFA'd Mike MacDougal.  Good luck with Ozzie, kid.  Demoted already, making room for Lance Broadway.
  9. Tony Sipp (CLE) - From the minors into a bases loaded jam, welcome to the show.
  10. Brad Bergesen (BAL) - The Orioles' fifth starter spent the first couple weeks in the minors and has now made two starts for Baltimore.

Of these 10, we've got coverage of two already.  I'll take it to 50% here.  Bergesen and Taylor get the treatment as starters, no offense to Ortega.  I want to look at Vasquez, as he may face the Cubs in the next few days.  Yes, that's selfish.  For the rest of you...gee whiz, he has a unique name.  Let's study his pitches!

W-L G GS CG SHO SV BS IP H R ER HR BB K ERA WHIP
2009 - Esmerling Vasquez 0-0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1.0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 2.00

Only nine pitches thrown, but I know what I need to know.  Hard throwing, low slinging righty.  His fastball ranged from 95.2 to 98.8 mph.  Throws a sinking and tailing change-up around 86 that is a good two-seam fastball for normal humans.  Slider a few notches slower than the change, with what looks to be decent break.  Not a whole lot of sink, but I'm not too sure based on one inning in one park.

W-L G GS CG SHO SV BS IP H R ER HR BB K ERA WHIP
2009 - Graham Taylor 0-1 1 1 0 0 0 0 3.2 4 4 4 0 6 2 9.82 2.73

I can see where the Moyer comparisons come from.  Taylor's fastball topped out at a hair under 88 mph.  His change-up is just six mph slower, which is almost but not quite enough difference—seven is the magic number, IIRC.   Taylor also threw a slurvey looking breaking ball in the upper 70s.   I saw some of his game against the Phillies, and I saw what his line tells you—poor command.

W-L G GS CG SHO SV BS IP H R ER HR BB K ERA WHIP
2009 - Brad Bergesen 1-0 2 2 0 0 0 0 9.2 14 8 6 3 3 7 5.59 1.76

As you can see, Bergesen's results have been mixed.  The O's rookie throws a four-seam fastball that sits above 90 and tops out below 94, a sinker in the upper 80s and change-up, possibly a splitter.  The latter sits in the low 80s with very nice sinking motion, but less tail than the sinking fastball.  Bergesen also throws a breaking pitch, somewhere along the slutter/slider part of the continuum.  I have him throwing it anywhere from 79 to 88 mph, so there may be more there than I've found so far.

That's all folks.  Look for this again next Monday, or something like it.

More From Beyond the Box Score