Brewers Sign Josh Tomlin to Minors Deal - Invite to camp

[Ennder]

Well to be fair Miley only had 2 seasons with an ERA+ over 100 going into last season so not much difference. I do think Miley had shown some upside in his peripherals going into the season while Tomlin has shown mostly that he is done the last few years.

[Lathund]

Interesting article about Josh Tomlin and Driveline, about what he has learned about his mechanics and pitch usage.

 

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/josh-tomlin-on-what-he-learned-at-driveline/

[True Blue Brew Crew]

Interesting article about Josh Tomlin and Driveline, about what he has learned about his mechanics and pitch usage.

 

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/josh-tomlin-on-what-he-learned-at-driveline/

 

Lots of good stuff in there. Makes me wonder if the Brewers have a strong connection with Driveline. At the very least they obviously value the work being done there. Tomlin trained at Driveline from January 8-17th and then signed the minor league deal with Milwaukee on February 7th. Did someone at Driveline tip the Brewers off that Tomlin made some huge strides? Does Driveline shop their data to MLB teams? Do the players themselves take the data and then present it to teams? I'm very curious about how that works.

 

The article hopefully helps people get over the loss of Derek Johnson. There's much more to the Brewers success with pitchers than their former pitching coach.

[True Blue Brew Crew]

Did a little digging and saw that recent minor league pitching coach hire Cameron Castro was hired away from Driveline.

[sveumrules]

Doesn't address your inquiries specifically, TBBC, but this recent FG article about Junior College scouting has a number of interesting tidbits about how data collection is getting more intensive even at the lower levels of the amateur side. Kind of makes you wonder how much stuff like this maybe played into drafting guys like Ashby, Howell, Francis & others from the JC ranks over the last couple two tree drafts...

 

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/junior-colleges-have-become-scoutings-most-active-battleground/

[KeithStone53151]

I appreciate how open Tomlin is to change. Not everyone is open enough to reinvent themselves as a pitcher to this magnitude...at age 34.

[True Blue Brew Crew]

Doesn't address your inquiries specifically, TBBC, but this recent FG article about Junior College scouting has a number of interesting tidbits about how data collection is getting more intensive even at the lower levels of the amateur side. Kind of makes you wonder how much stuff like this maybe played into drafting guys like Ashby, Howell, Francis & others from the JC ranks over the last couple two tree drafts...

 

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/junior-colleges-have-become-scoutings-most-active-battleground/

 

Thanks for sharing. It makes sense that technology is making it easier to mine talent from JCs or even more obscure sources. Level of competition has always made it difficult to assess what you have in a player who is competing versus lesser regarded talent. But things like spin rate and exit velocity can be now measured anywhere. Via video and data collection, a hidden gem or a prospect with an elite characteristic can now be found anywhere. Previously a scout might write off a player due to the competition.

 

It paints the picture as to how the Brewers prospects might perform better than where presently ranked by traditional scouting metrics. Human scouts shunning data or at minimum not embracing it are going to be outclassed by technology. And I say that as someone related to a long time MLB scout. It's not easy to say but it's true.

[True Blue Brew Crew]

I appreciate how open Tomlin is to change. Not everyone is open enough to reinvent themselves as a pitcher to this magnitude...at age 34.

 

It must be invigorating for players with the end of their careers staring them in the face. Learning that you had an untapped ability that not only could significantly extend your career, but potentially lead to some of your best years.

[djoctagone]

tomlin can opt out of his contract on 21 march if not assured by the brewers that he will break camp with the club. the brewers can also pay him a $100,000 retention bonus to keep him in the minor leagues until presumably, 1 june. it's unclear if that retention bonus works like a club option or a mutual option.

 

tomlin appears willing to go to class aaa san antonio if no better offers arise.

[Eye Black]

Josh Tomlin has been released per Robert Murray.

[tigerbrew]

Surprising that Tomlin has been released, he has pitched a lot better than Davis and Anderson in ST. Could potentially be the next Miley for the Brewers.

[markedman5]

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To be clear about Josh Tomlin, he opted out of his contract with #Brewers, as was his right. Will now entertain outside offers. With his experience level, wouldn't be shocking if got another job.

[markedman5]

[djoctagone]

tomlin is hoping to crack the braves' roster. minor league deal with invite to big league camp.