Link Report for Fri. 5/21 -- Arnett Can't Step Up, Crushed for 16 Baserunners and Seven Runs in 5.2 Innings

[jason21nl]

I'm not sure how accurate those in game radar guns are but he was consistently up there. He didn't look like a guy that was injured at all, just looked like he tried to throw the ball past everyone and that doesn't work. This is the second time I have seen him pitch, and it was the same thing last time too.

 

I have no idea why they kept putting him back out there to get rocked.

[homer]

What a crappy thread title. Kick a young man when he's down. There's obviously something wrong with him, this isn't the guy they drafted. He hasn't done anything off the field to deserve this mis-treatment while he hasn't even been a pro for a year yet.

The pitching line doesn't really lie. He was crushed. There's really no other way to put it. Hope he can turn it around.

[Mass Haas]

What a crappy thread title. Kick a young man when he's down. There's obviously something wrong with him, this isn't the guy they drafted. He hasn't done anything off the field to deserve this mis-treatment while he hasn't even been a pro for a year yet.

 

X, you're a valued poster here, so you deserve a direct response from me, because the thread title (not changing it, just so the discussion is valid) is out of charcater from me and doesn't reflect the usual respect on which we try to present the system and its individual players.

 

The words "can't step up", in hindsight, aren't fair. The words initially were part of the pre-game thread title in which it was indicated that Arnett needed to "step up" to save a tired staff.

I have no idea why they kept putting him back out there to get rocked. -- jason21nl in prior post

Jason, there had been a 15-inning game the night before, and Arnett is not part of a scheduled tandem.

 

Anyway, back to X, by going back for 5.2 innings, you could say that indeed Arnett did step up. He could have cowered and asked out. He obviously didn't. It was actually his longest outing of the season. He did man up. In terms of actual game ERA and such, it wasn't the worst performance we've ever seen, the double-digit hit count makes it scarier than it actually was. It obviously wasn't a good outing, but the "step up" comment seems to reflect me speaking more about his character and fortitude than his current results, and agreed, is not fair.

 

That said, his results thus far don't bode well for an apparently healthy 22-year-old college first round pick in the Midwest League.

 

My frustration in pointing out some of the things I did last night are the combined pointed words towards the overall process involving Arnett -- was there a reason he slid to 26 after all? What is Pitching Coordinator Lee Tunnell's role with Arnett at this time? Does Pitching Coach Chris Hook have current thoughts on Arnett's lack of progress? Does all this involve the still developing work on the change-up he must eventually master?

 

Of course it's early, and the whole Arnett clan is probably just itching now to have Eric show this get-a-life Link Report guy what's really going to happen down the road. That's fine, of course I hope he does very well going forward.

 

A couple times a year some editorializing sneaks into the daily updates. Guess it's tough to keep it fairly vanilla 140+ times a year. Consider last night a Baskin-Robbins special.

[Never Outhustled]

If he was really clocked at 97 last night I highly doubt that he is injured.

 

That only tells us his shoulder is OK. His command is bad right now, which is sometimes a precursor to an elbow injury. With the number of innings and numbers of sliders he threw his junior year at Indiana, the elbow has to be a concern. Reports of his fastball being straight as a string tell us that he's throwing 4 seemers. In college, his most impressive pitch was his 2 seemer, which he commanded well at good velocity, with terrific tail. He's simply better than this, whether the problems are injury or mechanics.

[pete]

Gennet with a hit, making it 24 games in the last 26. He's still rocking a pretty high babip, but still impressive. Marseco pitched an inning. That guy is a future coach/manager. When I looked at the Brevard recap, I saw a lot of ground ball hits by opposing batters. Not so for Arnett. The phrase line drive appeared aplenty. If a guy has a 4 seamer in the mid 90s, a 2 seamer and a slider with decent control, you'd think he'd get better results. Maybe the pitching coach there?

 

Peralta's game recap doesn't sound as bad as his stat line. First inning with a GB single to the catcher, 2 pop ups, another GB single and a HR. The other big inning included a couple throwing errors including one by him. A hit and a walk by both Gamel and Zarraga. Zarraga won that home run derby before he was drafted. I wonder if that thing is sort of meaningless and whether Space Coast Stadium and the FSL are holding down his power production. Matt Cline out after 2 HBP. Another high babip guy. I wonder if he fits the profile that Sickels used to describe Martin Prado. Where was he in 2009?

 

Great to see Cain with a hit and a couple walks. Pretty remarkable numbers considering his 0/for games when he came back from injury. Yet another high babip guy. Lawrie with a hit and a walk in 4 ABs - almost expect it to be a triple.

 

Lean roster in Nashville. Chase Wright rockin the .500 BA. Luis Cruz's hitting streak is broken. Is the PCL weak this year or generally?

 

Corrections welcome.

[jason21nl]

He also took a pretty solid line drive off his leg that had to have hurt. He didn't take any practice pitches after being looked at but there is no way that didn't swell up.

[battlekow]

I'm not sure how accurate those in game radar guns are but he was consistently up there. He didn't look like a guy that was injured at all, just looked like he tried to throw the ball past everyone and that doesn't work. This is the second time I have seen him pitch, and it was the same thing last time too.

The thing is, in A-ball he should be able to simply throw the ball by a fair percentage of the guys. Just eyeballing his runs allowed and baserunners allowed, you can tell he's getting a little bit unlucky, and his FIP being over three runs lower than his RA bears this out, but a ~5.7 FIP (MLS is missing his tornado outing, it looks like) is still pretty lackluster. It's just surprising that with his stuff he's still getting hit so consistently by A-ball hitters.

[WisconsinSportsRule]

It sucks going to the minor league forum and checking out our pitching prospects only to see most of them struggling, Arnett included.

 

Sounding like another underachieving pitcher selected in the 1st round by this organization.

[biedergb]

Not sure if he is really considered and 'underachiever' as he is only in his first full season. He is a disappointment in that we were hoping for a 'fast track' 'advanced' college pitcher, who we hoped would be in AA next year and knocking on the bigs in 2012. That is not going to be the case.

In terms of our success (or lack thereof) of 1st round pitchers, I don't know in I'd call anyone underachieving: '99 Sheets (All Star), '01 Jones (derailed by numerous injuries yet has persevered through and now in AAA), '04 Rogers (injuries, but still young and in AA), '06 Jeffress (still young, and while foolish with his choices, still through hard and could see AA this year), '09 Arnett (not yet a full season)

Bad luck - yes. Bad scouting maybe? Underachievers, I'd say no.