The Wily Peralta Has Arrived Thread

[splitterpfj]

How 'bout the difference in Wily Peralta in recent weeks?

 

This is the guy they thought/hoped he would be, and OH do they need him to be.

[saget]

From Joe Block's twitter: Wily Peralta last 5 starts: 1.08 ERA in 33.1 IP

 

If you go back to the start of June he has a 2.88 ERA in 56.2 IP

[jjfanec]

I have not been able to follow the team much lately but what has been the biggest change for Peralta?

[splitterpfj]

Martin Maldanado has been catching his games, and basically, he hasn't let Wily off a leash. Peralta used to nibble with his pitches, walk around a lot on the mound, shake off signs, etc...Maldanado has him working at a faster pace, with no questions asked.

[nate82]

I have not been able to follow the team much lately but what has been the biggest change for Peralta?

 

Less walks and better command of his secondary pitches.

[torts]

its definitely been awesome/refreshing to see the last few weeks... makes me feel better with the idea of potentially trading off arms from the rotation in the next year or two

[JohnBriggs12]

its definitely been awesome/refreshing to see the last few weeks... makes me feel better with the idea of potentially trading off arms from the rotation in the next year or two

 

My reaction is just the opposite. If as he's shown lately, and at times earlier, Peralta is indeed a top of the rotation starter, and Gorzellany is indeed a solid mid rotation starter, then they have 4/5ths of a very good rotation going forward with plenty of viable internal candidates to fill the 5th spot. In my opinion, his and Gorzellany's recent success makes it less likely they'll deal Lohse or Gallardo, not more likely.

[brewmann04]

I like the way Martin has handled Willy behind the Plate . He has the making of a solid #2 starter.

[Thurston Fluff]

I don't know how much Maldanado has to do with the change considering he's been his catcher all along.

[monty57]

Peralta's always had the "stuff," he just needs to keep the walks down. If he gets that fixed, he could definitely be a top-of-the-rotation guy. If he can't, then he'll be one of those frustrating guys who can flirt with a no-hitter one game and have a horrible outing the next.

 

While difficult, it is possible for a guy with an upper-90's fastball to suddenly find control, while it's impossible for a guy with control to suddenly find an upper-90s fastball. This seems part of Melvin's strategy for pitchers. I just hope Peralta is able to find a permanent cure to the wildness he's shown his entire minor league career.

[RobDeer 45]

Boy he has looked great as of late. He's been fun to watch. More excitement for the future!

[brewmann04]

I think he has helped get him Focused and stay in rhythm on the mound.

[Thurston Fluff]

I think he has helped get him Focused and stay in rhythm on the mound.

 

If that is the case then was he at fault for not getting him to do that earlier?

[BrewersAA]

I have not been able to follow the team much lately but what has been the biggest change for Peralta?

I think this has to do with a quicker pace, even though they may not seem related, because i have noticed that Peralta has been more balanced on the mound. I dont mean pitch selection or emotional (which he has been more balanced in both of those areas) but actual balance. He seems to be getting into the next pitch quicker, hes spending less time deciding what to throw, and so it appears that he is spending a split second longer getting good balance on his right leg as he winds up. This is having two major positive effects on his delivery as a whole and what you can actually see, pay attention next time you watch him pitch, when he pushes off the mound his toe is almost dragging down the mound (good thing for balance) where as in may it was about 6 inches up off the mound as he was coming through his arm action. the other noticeable thing is that he seems to not be falling off the mound (to the left) nearly as hard and it is helping immensely with his control, which is directly related to him keeping that foot down, what is directly related to him finding his balance on that back leg, which appears to coincide with a slightly quicker pace. For willy right now, in my opinion, its all about balance!

[bork]

I don't know how much Maldanado has to do with the change considering he's been his catcher all along.

 

That's not entirely true. Lucroy caught him 2 games in April and then 5 straight from 5/27-6/16.

 

[pre]C G GS CG SHO IP H R ER HR BB K W L Sv ERA WHIP BB/9 K/9 K/BB

Luc 7 7 0 0 39 45 28 24 4 18 20 1 3 0 5.54 1.62 4.2 4.6 1.11

Mald 13 13 1 1 74.33 79 43 34 7 27 52 6 6 0 4.12 1.43 3.3 6.3 1.93[/pre]

[Thurston Fluff]

He was off to a slow start last season as well. Wasn't Maldanado his catcher then? I think it's more likely that it just takes him time to get in going than his catcher somehow getting him to throw more strikes. I wouldn't be surprised if he gets off to a slow start again next season. Hopefully, as he gets more experience, he regains his form more quickly.

[JohnBriggs12]

I don't like the term "has arrived" as it implies a plateau and players have to prove themselves every time out. He had great stuff when the results weren't there. He just lacked consistency. Forget #2, he's got #1 type stuff. It's all about consistency which generally for all pitchers is command of the fastball. Lately he's been more consistent.

 

The silver lining of a season such as this as it's much easier to be patient with a guy like Peralta.

[adambr2]

I like Lucroy as a player, but I question him as a game caller. There have been several pitchers during Lucroy's time here that have had significant problems with him behind the plate. To the point where they just axed Wolf ever pitching to Lucroy, and they may be doing the same with Peralta.

[bork]

Peralta's always had the "stuff," he just needs to keep the walks down. If he gets that fixed, he could definitely be a top-of-the-rotation guy. If he can't, then he'll be one of those frustrating guys who can flirt with a no-hitter one game and have a horrible outing the next.

 

While difficult, it is possible for a guy with an upper-90's fastball to suddenly find control, while it's impossible for a guy with control to suddenly find an upper-90s fastball. This seems part of Melvin's strategy for pitchers. I just hope Peralta is able to find a permanent cure to the wildness he's shown his entire minor league career.

 

I wonder if we'll be saying the same thing about Nelson in a couple years.

[jerichoholicninja]

Peralta's always had the "stuff," he just needs to keep the walks down. If he gets that fixed, he could definitely be a top-of-the-rotation guy. If he can't, then he'll be one of those frustrating guys who can flirt with a no-hitter one game and have a horrible outing the next.

 

While difficult, it is possible for a guy with an upper-90's fastball to suddenly find control, while it's impossible for a guy with control to suddenly find an upper-90s fastball. This seems part of Melvin's strategy for pitchers. I just hope Peralta is able to find a permanent cure to the wildness he's shown his entire minor league career.

 

I wonder if we'll be saying the same thing about Nelson in a couple years.

 

You could say the same thing about 2/3 of the pitchers in MLB. They almost all have "great stuff" it's just a matter of consistently throwing strikes and staying healthy.

[TheCrew07]

I don't like the term "has arrived" as it implies a plateau and players have to prove themselves every time out. He had great stuff when the results weren't there. He just lacked consistency. Forget #2, he's got #1 type stuff. It's all about consistency which generally for all pitchers is command of the fastball. Lately he's been more consistent.

 

I agree with your first premise, I'm not a fan of "arrived", I'm very slow to jump on and off bandwagons. I think Wily can be a very productive MLB pitcher and I'm encouraged by his progress over the last 6 weeks. He's the one pitcher on the big league that I follow very closely.

 

I disagree with your second premise, he does not have the stuff to be a #1, not in a scouting sense. He doesn't have 3 plus pitches that he can consistently throw for strikes, nor does he spot his FB like true #1s, he's never had that kind of command. I do believe he could be a solid #2.

 

He has a big enough arm to be a #1 but the rest of his repertoire just isn't at that level. Peralta is young enough that he could certainly continue to improve, and he's still relatively young to pitching, he was an OF whom the Brewers converted to a pitcher when they signed him. So there's room for hope, but the flip side is that he's already come so far, he's almost an entirely different pitcher than the guy I saw in Appleton.

 

Is it reasonable to expect him to continue his ascension a player? I would love to say yes, but looking at how far he's come I just don't know how realistic that would be.

[gregmag]

I had the same thought as TF about how Peralta had a horrible first half last year and then turned it around. I wonder if there's any common element in his two straight long, slow starts. If so, the team needs to figure that out and correct it. Of course, it could just be dumb luck or unrelated factors.

 

JB makes a good point about how Peralta's success immediately improves the team's prospects, making a rebuild strategy more complicated. However, the basic reality of our talent base hasn't changed. Gallardo and Lohse are short-term, unexceptional solutions for this team. If we can leverage either or both of them for longer-term assets, IMHO we should do so. Also, I'm not as confident as JB in the idea that Gorzelanny has become a rotation anchor, although stranger things have happened.

[JohnBriggs12]

The only people talking about a rebuilding strategy as a long term proposition are those on this and other sites. Melvin talks continually about making the team better in 2014. He's open to dealing to help make that happen but I don't think he's reached the point where he's going to do total rebuild ala the Cubs. Melvin is 61. Take it from a guy who's the same age. He's thinking 1-2 years ahead not 4-6, though getting a likely top 7 or so pick next year will help in that pursuit too. Lohse and Gallardo are still key pieces in the time frame Melvin is working within. The only way a complete rebuild happens is if Attanasio decides to take it that direction. If he does, then he'll replace Melvin.

[monty57]

Attanasio makes that call, not Melvin, and I think he's been a big factor behind the Brewers continual "all in" mentality. However, money talks. If he believes that ticket sales (the main source of revenue) are going to take a big hit next year, in a season in which they are almost certain to have a payroll near $100MM without making some moves, he will seriously have to consider how to go forward.

 

He can do like he did this past offseason, believing that one more big salaried player will put them over the edge. I don't think this is a good idea, but it's possible Attanasio will feel this way.

 

Or, he can do whatever possible to shed some salary. Hart's gone, and Axford (if not traded) will probably not be offered arby, but that's not enough. Weeks and Ramirez are probably in the salary dump category, so the decision will be whether they should pay them to see what they bring to the 2014 club, or find a team that will take them off our hands for nothing other than picking up the contract. Gallardo could bring back some decent talent, and Lohse could probably be traded, although we may have to pick up some salary if we want anything back in return.

 

I don't think Attanasio will go status quo. It will likely be one of the above choices. The question in my mind then becomes: "If he goes with choice B, how far is he going to go?" If they trade Gallardo or Lohse, is that enough, or would they look at it as a situation that without Gallardo, they might as well rip off the whole band-aid?

 

As we saw with Grienke, trading a player doesn't mean the world ends. It is possible that we trade Gallardo, Lohse, Aoki, etc and get some young talent in the system, take a step back next year to see what we've got, and then start climbing uphill. Our reluctance to think about the future for the past several years has put us in a precarious position, but acceptance is the first step to recovery. I still hold out hope that we can turn the ship around in a few years rather than a decade, but the longer we try to pretend we're the Yankees, the longer the down period is likely to be.

[trwi7]

Not that I want to "go for it" next year because there is so much that needs to be added and so little talent to acquire those pieces but people concerned about payroll I don't get. We'll be getting $20 million from local TV, $50 million from the new national contract. Sell 1,500,000 tickets at an average of $20 and that's $30 million plus concessions, parking, revenue sharing that hasn't even been accounted for and they're already well over $100 million.