Hardballtimes on Zach Stewart

[OnBaseMachine]

This was on Doug's and C. Trent's blog:

84. Zach Stewart | RHP | Cincinnati Reds

As opposed to the first round, the third round is a much more optimal place to be drafting a high-level reliever. In Stewart, the Reds are getting a pitcher with two potentially plus pitches, good control, and the ability to miss bats and generate ground balls. Overall, Stewart doesn't have too many glaring weaknesses.

Fastball - ranges from 91-95 mph and has both vertical and horizontal movement. The pitch has some heavy sink to generate plenty of ground balls, but also tails away from lefties and into right-handed hitters. The pitch profiles as above average, flashing plus at times.

Slider - a tight spinning, hard breaking pitch coming in the low 80's complements his fastball very well. The pitch can lose some of its tightness at times and turn into a slurvy-type pitch, but when he's on, the pitch can be very difficult to hit. Below is Stewart's fastball (left) at 93 mph, while his slider (right) is a little more slurvy, but still effective nonetheless:



Stewart has good command of both pitches as he can throw both pitches for strikes. His control is not perfect, however. There will be times he can lose the strike zone so he must do a better job of consistently throwing strikes.



Stewart comes to a compact, athletic position, which I like. His elbow gets a little high, but that doesn't concern me too much. You can see he generates very good separation between his torso and hips, helping him generate his plus velocity. The lower body is facing toward home plate, the numbers on the back of his jersey are pointing in the first-base direction.

One thing he does very well is maintain a firm glove out in front of his chest to prevent himself from flying open. His athletic/compact delivery, as I mentioned in my profile on Craig Kimbrel, helps Stewart coordinate all the moving parts of his body.

Stewart should move quickly through the Reds' minor league system and once he arrives to the big league level, he'll be a perfect fit in the homer-friendly Great American Ball Park, both because of his ability to miss bats and keep the ball on the ground.

http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/ar...quests-part-3/

[OnBaseMachine]

I think Stewart is gonna turn out to be a major steal in the third round. At one point he was viewed as a late first round pick but Texas Tech moved him to the rotation in the middle of the season and hurt his stock. As a starter his slider began to get loopy or slurvy and his control suffered. His stuff is better suited for the bullpen. Everyone who saw him pitch after he signed had nothing but great things to say about him. I expect Stewart to start the 2009 season with Double-A Carolina and I wouldn't be surprised if he's with the Reds by the end of the summer. Stewart, Fisher, Roenicke, Burton, and Cordero will give the Reds some serious flame throwers from the right side.

[redsof72]

Stewart was certainly dominant in Dayton this season and when he was able to command his slider, the hitters had no chance. I remember his first night with the team, he was consistently hitting 95 and topping out at 96. He lost a couple of miles an hour as the month wore on, but still looked very good. I felt he was the second best prospect on the Dayton team behind Soto. Big thing he has to be able to do is just become a little more consistent in terms of hitting his spots. There were nights when he would struggle a little with command and he was able to get away with it in the Midwest League but he would have gotten hit on those nights in the Southern League. Overall, a very bright light for the Reds in terms of potential.

[Sea Ray]

Originally Posted by OnBaseMachine

Everyone who saw him pitch after he signed had nothing but great things to say about him. I expect Stewart to start the 2009 season with Double-A Carolina and I wouldn't be surprised if he's with the Reds by the end of the summer. Stewart, Fisher, Roenicke, Burton, and Cordero will give the Reds some serious flame throwers from the right side.

I'd be very surprised if he made the leap to AA to begin next year. Did he pitch at all in high A?

Where does he project...as a closer or setup man?

[dougdirt]

Originally Posted by Sea Ray

I'd be very surprised if he made the leap to AA to begin next year. Did he pitch at all in high A?

Where does he project...as a closer or setup man?

He did pitch in High A.... and very well.
http://firstinning.com/players/Zachary-Stewart-a/

[OnBaseMachine]

Originally Posted by Sea Ray

I'd be very surprised if he made the leap to AA to begin next year. Did he pitch at all in high A?

Where does he project...as a closer or setup man?

Stewart posted a 1.62 ERA and 11 BB/23 K ratio in 16.2 innings in High-A Sarasota. I'd actually be surprised if he started anywhere lower than Double-A. As for his future role, he's got the stuff to be a closer but with Cordero locked up for three more years his initial role may be as a setup man or middle reliever.

[camisadelgolf]

11 walks in 16.2 innings tells me he's not necessarily ready for AA. That, plus there's a little pitching depth he has to pass up.

projected AA pitching squad:
Pedro Viola
Jordan Smith
Travis Wood
Alex Smit
Dallas Buck
*Scott Carroll (suspension)
James Avery
Sean Watson
Ramon Geronimo
Pedro Viola
Lee Tabor
Terrell Young
Phil Valiquette
Derrik Lutz

That's also not to mention Logan Ondrusek, Rafael Gonzalez, Joe Valentine, Mike Hrynio, Camilo Vazquez, and a few other guys who have seniority plus the journeyman minor league free agents the Reds will be signing.

[OnBaseMachine]

Originally Posted by camisadelgolf

11 walks in 16.2 innings tells me he's not necessarily ready for AA. That, plus there's a little pitching depth he has to pass up.

projected AA pitching squad:
Pedro Viola
Jordan Smith
Travis Wood
Alex Smit
Dallas Buck
*Scott Carroll (suspension)
James Avery
Sean Watson
Ramon Geronimo
Pedro Viola
Lee Tabor
Terrell Young
Phil Valiquette
Derrik Lutz

That's also not to mention Logan Ondrusek, Rafael Gonzalez, Joe Valentine, Mike Hrynio, Camilo Vazquez, and a few other guys who have seniority plus the journeyman minor league free agents the Reds will be signing.

That's a pretty small sample size. Plus late in the season he was reaching unchartered territory in innings pitched. The walks aren't a big issue for me. as for that list... Viola, Smith, Wood, and Buck are starters. Carroll isn't ready for AA. Smit may not be back. Avery isn't much of a prospect. There's plenty of room for Stewart in AA.

[lollipopcurve]

his initial role may be as a setup man or middle reliever.

There is no doubt -- rookies don't debut as closers.

[OesterPoster]

Originally Posted by lollipopcurve

There is no doubt -- rookies don't debut as closers.

Was that TIC?

I could have sworn I watched a rookie closer pitch last night.

[lollipopcurve]

I could have sworn I watched a rookie closer pitch last night.

Well, true. But Price will be in the rotation next year.

[GoReds33]

Originally Posted by lollipopcurve

Well, true. But Price will be in the rotation next year.

It doesn't hurt that Price is a freak of nature either.