The future of Jeremy Jeffress

[TheCrew07]

Contradictory how? It doesn't matter why a starter gets converted to relief, it only matters if they will start again. If Jeffress needs the focus of pitching everyday to stay off grass and into his career why would he come back to the rotation?

 

My angst isn't directed towards Jeffress at all, the situation just stinks. This time last year we were very excited about the potential of our Starting Pitching. This year 2 of those names are now relievers, Peralta is just holding his own, Scarpetta is pitching poorly, and Arnett has struggled mightily. It's a much different perspective from June of '09 to June of '10.

 

Rogers dominated A+ with the best BB rate of his career and a K rate over 9, Rivas was just as good with a BB rate under 3 and K rate over 9 on his way to the organization's pitcher of the year award.

 

Peralta has lowered his BB rate from last season, but he's also lowered his K rate almost 3 full strike outs per 9 innings... not good. Now he may be working on something specific like Rogers, but his results have just been so/so thus far in the season. He's just not been dominant, and best case he's 2 years away. I'm still high on Wily.

 

Scarpetta is actually trending the wrong way as he moves up. His BB rate has climbed this year to 5.7, his K rate has decline to 9.1 (which is still very good) but his K:BB ratio is under 2, his WHIP is currently 1.726 which .4 over what it was last year. At his best Cody is maybe a #2 with his curvebal but more like a 3, his velocity is just very average. Right now outside of Cody's curve there's not much to like and I'm not willing to pencil him into the rotation, much less the top of the rotation.

 

The other guys aren't even worth discussing for a rotation slot in the next 2 years. Heckathorn is probably the closest pitcher of that group and if he comes up to A+ and continues his success he's probably on a similar track to Peralta looking at mid 2012 to 2013. I've really come around on the Covey pick, but I'll be stunned if he's MLB ready in 3 seasons.

[Never Outhustled]

Sure, it stinks that this is where we're at, but at least the Brewers are making the smartest decision based on the circumstances, just as they did with Braddock. I proposed this move when Jeffress was handed his latest suspension, and I continue to think its the right approach.

 

The Brewers, at this point, need to get any value from Jeffress they can, its too risky to take the patient approach with him and wait for him to develop into a starting pitcher. As a reliever, he can ditch the 2 seam fastball he can't control, and just blow hitters away with his 4 seamer and breaking ball. With this approach, he'll be a late inning fixture with the big club in the near future. Thats better than getting nothing at all from him.

[TheCrew07]

You are absolutely correct X, getting something is better than getting nothing, and you did call your shot on this. It's just too bad really, we're quickly running out of options for the rotation but the bullpen will be absolutely loaded with talent... go figure.

 

I'd be into moving whichever one of these young pitchers becomes our closer, maybe some team will over value him and we'll get a starting pitcher back.

[twobrewers]

Look at it this way, our starting pitching is going to be so bad, we are going to need a lot of bullpen arms!

[Never Outhustled]

There could be numerous Brewers traded over the next year, Fielder, Weeks, and/or Hart. When that happens, we might be loaded with young pitching, the question will be if we have enough bats.

[homer]

I seem to recall some scouts saying Jeffress profiled as a closer at the time he was drafted.

[nate82]

There could be numerous Brewers traded over the next year, Fielder, Weeks, and/or Hart. When that happens, we might be loaded with young pitching, the question will be if we have enough bats.

It is easier to trade for bats than it is for pitchers so if that were to be a problem I think Melvin or whoever the GM maybe would be able to trade some of that excess pitching for some hitting.

[LouisEly]

Yeah, we don't want too many guys competing for starting rotation jobs.

 

Geez. I get why they are doing this, but this still kind of sucks.

Not a big deal at all - they just need to get him to the majors quickly. He can be stretched out down the road. C.J. Wilson of the Rangers was strictly a reliever from 2006-2009, but they moved him into the rotation this year and after 11 starts has two complete games and a 3.62 ERA.

[TooLiveBrew]

Ugh, not a fan of this move at all. Jeffress has so much more value as a starter, and he's certainly young enough to have time to get himself there. I really, really hope this is only a move for 2010. If it isn't, I'll be even more disappointed in the F.O.

[logan82]

Sort of sounds like it was Jeffress' idea.

 

 

"For probably the duration of this year, he will work out of the

bullpen," assistant general manager Gord Ash said. "It's a proactive

plan to keep him more focused and engaged. He feels, and we agree, that

if he's of the mindset coming into the park every day that he may pitch,

he will be more engaged in the process. That's OK with us."

[pete]

It doesn't matter why a starter gets converted to relief, it only matters if they will start again. If Jeffress needs the focus of pitching everyday to stay off grass and into his career why would he come back to the rotation?

 

You are totally certain that when Isom tells Gennett one thing it really means something very different. Here you are absolutely certain that the comment by Ash completely encompasses why Jeffress is being moved. Not only that you assume that its some permanent condition. They may also view it as a path to get him on the major league roster so they get nothing out of the guy. They may view that as the most likely way to have him as an eventual starter. Those are just some of the possibilities. Maybe they want him to refine a couple pitches first. The list goes on. They may view it as problematic to have a bunch of pitchers clogging up the 40 man to avoid rule V.

[filthyfrog]

I think this move has been coming for a long time and was pretty much inevitable. Let's face it, Jeffress has never shown the command to be a successful starter. Let him focus on two pitches. Instead of several years of inconsistent and mediocre results in the rotation, we can potentially get a dominant late inning reliever.

[brewmann04]

Hopefully as a Bullpen guy he can move up quickly and one thing is good the brewers drafted plenty of Pitching.

[TuesdaysWithRillo]

I seem to recall some scouts saying Jeffress profiled as a closer at the time he was drafted.

Yeah I'd fault Jack Z for the pick. A guy like Kyle Drabek or even Ian Kennedy would have been a much better pick in hind sight. That said, if Jeffress avoids the off the field issues, his upside as a top of the rotation starter was probably hard for him to pass on. The Brewers are due to hit on one of these type of pitchers and maybe, just maybe, Covey is that guy.

[HiAndTight]

I seem to recall some scouts saying Jeffress profiled as a closer at the time he was drafted.

Yeah I'd fault Jack Z for the pick. A guy like Kyle Drabek or even Ian Kennedy would have been a much better pick in hind sight. That said, if Jeffress avoids the off the field issues, his upside as a top of the rotation starter was probably hard for him to pass on. The Brewers are due to hit on one of these type of pitchers and maybe, just maybe, Covey is that guy.

I don't fault him for it at all. I don't think the final book has been written on Jeffress yet. It's certainly up to him, but I believe he'll end up as a starter. Scouts say a lot of things at the time a guy is drafted. Any pitcher who throws in the upper 90's without a great 3rd pitch they say "could end up as a closer", or "might profile best as a reliever". Scouting reports are often intentionally vague giving themselves the most cover.

 

I believe that the Brewers will continue to have Jeffress work on his entire repetoire hoping he can put together a dominating season as a reliever in an attempt to ease him back in, and then next year move him back into the rotation.

 

He never showed the CONSISTENT command and control to be a starter, but so what? Guys with his type of arm seldom do right out of the gate, and he's certainly provided some additional hurdles for himself to get over.

 

At the end of the day however, I do not believe the Brewers have relegated him to relief duty from here on out. We'll see though.....

 

 

By the way, to this day, I would still prefer Jeremy Jeffress to Ian Kennedy. Obviously Kyle Drabek would be nice, though last I saw he was struggling this year as well and didn't he have a big price tag and some maturity concerns? Obviously those seems to have gone the other way.

 

Again, to re-use the cliche at the end of the day, Jeffress is healthy, he's got one of the minors best arms, and he's got three pitches. They're in there. They just need to be brought out. Now if they think that him potentially pitching everyday can keep him more ''engaged", fine, whatever. But we can always move him back into the starting rotation. Especially with his free and easy delivery.

 

[HiAndTight]

There could be numerous Brewers traded over the next year, Fielder, Weeks, and/or Hart. When that happens, we might be loaded with young pitching, the question will be if we have enough bats.

I might be completely delusional, who's to say(those who are delusional never KNOW they're delusional), but I really, really like our young bats.

 

Here's the thing, there's no question we don't have these MVP type bats we had when Braun, Prince, Weeks, Hardy and those were coming up. But what I DO believe we have is a trio of potential star players in Braun(*already is), Gamel who I'm higher on than almost anyone, and Lawrie who I think could be in the Braun stratosphere. Then I think we're going to surround them with a plethora of good, solid, not great, but just steady, reliable big leaguers.

 

I really believe Taylor Green can be a very good #2 hitter profilling as a potential .285/.365 type hitter who hits 15-18 a year. Mark Loretta with more power.

Lucroy as a catcher is a very similar type hitter.

Rickie Weeks of course could be in that first group if he were to figure it out and re-sign(and we should have the resources to do so).

Escobar won't be a great bat, but I think he could also become a good #2 type hitter at his best. .300/.335. He's another guy I really think is going to develop some pop as he fills out. Not Hardy pop, but 10-15 with 35-40 doubles and he could OPS around .750.

 

Kentrail Davis and Lorenzo Cain are two 5 tool prsopects, AND Caleb Gindl.

 

 

Bottom line, I think we're going to be able to put up a lineup 1-8 that's not going to have any of these black holes and will have a league average player at every spot with the potential for a couple guys like Gamel, Braun, Lawrie, Weeks and Cain potentially becoming more.

 

Lets say 3 years down the road we've got a lineup of

 

2B-Weeks(RH)

CF-Cain(RH

LF-Braun(RH)

1B-Gamel(LH)

3B-Lawrie(RH)

RF-/K Davis(LH)

C-LuCroy(RH)

SS-Escobar(RH)

 

Bench

Kottaras/Salome(I still can't believe he won't move back behind the plate)

OF-Gindl

1B/2B/3B-T Green

 

I think Lawrie profiles best at 3B personally as he has the athletic ability to offer GOOD range there, the strong arm to play there, and the stick to play wherever the hell he wants.

 

Though it's certainly possible he moves to RF, in which case Taylor Green could move into the lineup at the #2 hole playing 3rd.

 

 

I see where people are saying we're getting thin on bats, but I do like the bats we've got and I think we've got a plethora of very sure fire big league bats. And more over, this is a lineup that could really put up a very nice OBP as a group.

[sheetskout]

Personally I'm just happy that Jeffress is getting back on the field. Let's just see what he can do as a reliever and maybe he'll be eased back into a starter next season. Worry about the pitches and their quality more than the positioning right now. The guy hasn't pitched in a pro game in a long time.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Jeffress' future with the Milwaukee Brewers depends on strikes

Mike Woods, Appleton Post-Crescent

 

The dark clouds that have followed Jeremy Jeffress throughout the past two years arrived here Thursday right about the same time he did.

 

But as he sat in the home dugout and observed the pregame rituals taking place before him on Time Warner Field at Fox Cities Stadium, nothing could change a disposition that was mostly sunny.

 

"It's amazing man," he said, a wide grin emerging as he looked at the players on the field. "I love the game of baseball. Anytime I'm on the diamond, it's a great feeling."

 

Fresh off a 100-game suspension, and a 50-game suspension prior to that for violating the Minor League Drug Treatment and Prevention program — he tested positive three times for marijuana use — it's safe to say Jeffress hasn't felt all that great for quite some time.

 

A team in desperate need of quality pitching, this 22-year-old was expected to deliver. Born with an electric arm, he's able to hit triple digits on the radar gun with his fastball.

 

Entering his senior year in high school in Virginia, he was tabbed the eighth-best prospect by Baseball America and the Brewers grabbed him with the 16th overall pick in the 2006 draft.

 

But his progress and potential have been derailed because of a bad habit and a bad case of immaturity.

 

It was impossible to know what to expect, but as we sat and chatted, there appeared to be no airs with this kid. He seemed to be genuinely remorseful for his past mistakes, took full responsibility, had an easy-going manner about him and a quick smile.

 

Pretty much just a regular guy, with a 100 mph fastball.

 

But he has a whole new outlook on the words strike three. One more failed drug test and he's done, forever. Baseball will impose a lifetime ban.

 

"Ah, man. It's right there. It's so scary," he said. "I don't want to be banned from the game of baseball because I love it too much. I love the atmosphere. I love all the players, the team, the fans, everybody. So it's very scary."

 

While there is some degree of truth to the matter, Jeffress says this is not a case of being scared straight.

 

"I've matured," he said. "I understand the game of baseball. This game waits for no one and I never wanted to hear that and never understood it. I'm trusting myself, I believe in myself and to do what I have to do."

 

The Brewers are banking on that being the case.

 

"I'm hoping it's more the former," Reid Nichols, special assistant to the general manager and director of player development who was on hand Thursday, said of Jeffress' maturity. "But the first (a lifetime ban) will do it to you. When they realize they really want to play baseball and one more strike and you're gone, I think that will have an impact."

 

His time away from the game has been spent seeing counseling, doctors and psychiatrists, all working to get his head on straight.

 

"I had to get my mental toughness back up," he said. "It was pretty hard, I'm not going to lie. It was hard to just stay focused, realize I'm not playing and get my maturity up. And to come back strong. It was pretty hard."

 

And not just on him.

 

"They got pissed, man," he said of his family. "Everybody got pissed. Because they knew the talent I had was going to go to waste if I didn't straighten up. Everybody was pretty mad. But they knew I had the right mind to turn it all around. They trusted me. And I did."

 

The Brewers have made it known they hope Jeffress is able to get his feet firmly on the ground and move through the system quickly, possibly joining the big club by season's end.

 

As part of that process, they have moved Jeffress to the bullpen and he will make his first appearance for the Rattlers on Sunday at Fox Cities Stadium, Nichols said.

 

In essence, the move is being made in part to ensure Jeffress stays busy with the anticipation he will be needed every day. In other words, he'll have a lot less downtime.

 

Whether he stays in that role or returns to a starting role will be determined down the line. Jeffress said he was excited about the move and, let's face it; he's just excited to be back on the diamond.

 

"I've gotten older," he said. "I've matured a lot more, in the game and off the field. I'm just ready to play. It's a lot of time off. I had a whole year and a half practically without playing, touching the baseball. I'm excited to be back."

 

Excited again to throw strike three, and never, ever take it.

[TuesdaysWithRillo]

HiAndTight wrote:

By the way, to this day, I would still prefer Jeremy Jeffress to Ian Kennedy. Obviously Kyle Drabek would be nice, though last I saw he was struggling this year as well and didn't he have a big price tag and some maturity concerns? Obviously those seems to have gone the other way.

Ian Kennedy and his 3.17 ERA would look pretty nice in our starting rotation right now, and it's still a big if whether Jeffress will ever even make the Major Leagues.

[TooLiveBrew]

Ian Kennedy is not a low-3s ERA talent. I'm still very much behind Jeffress over him.

[endaround]

Kennedy's FIP is 4.79. We have a bunch of pitchers like that. For example Doug Davis.

[Mass Haas]

So what's it like to throw 100 mph?

 

Brief Post-Crescent blog post...

[Mass Haas]

Mike Woods, Appleton Post-Crescent

Just a note that was left on the cutting room floor over the weekend concerning Jeremy Jeffress.

 

It's well documented that the 22-year-old can bring the heat. But he also showed a late-breaking curveball in his appearance on Sunday, which got the attention of Rattlers manager Jeff Isom.

 

“The breaking ball today, he threw two and none were called for strikes but you saw the shape and the late break he’s capable of having,’’ said Isom. “I know we’re excited as an organization getting him going again because he obviously offers quite a bit. Who knows what’s going to happen? You could see him in the big leagues by the end of the year.’’

 

With the demotion of former No. 1 pick Eric Arnett on Monday, the Brewers need something positive to happen with their organization's top pitching prospects. Right now, Jeffress is carrying that torch.

[uwisfan]

I realize it's A-ball, but Jeffress seems on a mission with numbers so far: 6 IP, 12 Ks, 2 BBs, 0 H.

 

I'd like to see him headed to Huntsville. We've all been burned by rooting on JJ so far, but if he & Rogers can pull it together, the next few years could get interesting for the pitching staff.

[paul253]

I'd like to see him head to BC first. His success is based 100% on control, and he's already struggled mightily in Huntsville. I'd like to see him go up to BC, stretch out a little bit and see how his control is over 5-6 innings. Hopefully he can go up there and dominate for 6 or 7 starts and then move up to AA.