Ben Lively is nearing 100 IP at the professional level

[Chuckie]

Currently at 96.2 including last season. We're not talking about a small sample size any longer my friends:

http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?pos=P&sid=t423&t=p_pbp&pid=594902

Flat-out stud.

I rank him as the Reds' No. 2 prospect, behind only Stephenson. That's how valuable pitching is and that's how good Lively is.

Check these numbers out:

96.2 IP, 55 H, 20 BB, 121 K, 9 ER (0.84 ERA).

[RedlegJake]

Lively has been phenomenal. BUT...he's been a polished college arm going against a lot of raw hitters to this point. Had Leake started at the lower levels he would likely have had similar success. I am excited but I am not going to go all in until he does this in Pensacola.

[RedTeamGo!]

I rank him as the Reds' No. 2 prospect, behind only Stephenson.

.

No.

[bellhead]

Lively has been phenomenal. BUT...he's been a polished college arm going against a lot of raw hitters to this point. Had Leake started at the lower levels he would likely have had similar success. I am excited but I am not going to go all in until he does this in Pensacola.


Agree 100%, if he dominates AA for a whole year with a ERA under 2.00 then we are looking at a flat out Maddox type stud. But until then let's wait and see.

[Chuckie]

No.

Yes.

[kaldaniels]

Winker my solid #2. Coming up on #1 if he doesn't watch it.

[dougdirt]

Yes.

Still no. Lively isn't even the 2nd best pitching prospect in the system. You could argue that if he joined the Blue Wahoos tomorrow that he may only be the 5th best pitching prospect on that team behind Stephenson, Lorenzen, Moscot and Contreras.

[WrongVerb]

Still no. Lively isn't even the 2nd best pitching prospect in the system. You could argue that if he joined the Blue Wahoos tomorrow that he may only be the 5th best pitching prospect on that team behind Stephenson, Lorenzen, Moscot and Contreras.

I'm not in a position to agree or disagree with your assessment, as I've never seen any of them pitch, and probably wouldn't know how to evaluate them if I did. But I do have a more general question: how does one differentiate between those pitchers, or any group of really good pitchers, and say that one is above another one?

[RedEye]

Agree 100%, if he dominates AA for a whole year with a ERA under 2.00 then we are looking at a flat out Maddox type stud. But until then let's wait and see.

Greg Maddux?

[mdccclxix]

But if Lively becomes Leake, is he not an unmitigated success?

[RedlegJake]

But if Lively becomes Leake, is he not an unmitigated success?

Absolutely yes. And that is probably his closest comp ceiling wise among the Reds pitchers.

[dougdirt]

I'm not in a position to agree or disagree with your assessment, as I've never seen any of them pitch, and probably wouldn't know how to evaluate them if I did. But I do have a more general question: how does one differentiate between those pitchers, or any group of really good pitchers, and say that one is above another one?

Trying to project them forward and see what they could become while weighing how likely it is that they become that. It isn't easy, but that's generally the process to go through.

[WrongVerb]

Trying to project them forward and see what they could become while weighing how likely it is that they become that. It isn't easy, but that's generally the process to go through.

I can imagine, with a group that talented, it wouldn't be easy.