What else does Brad Boxberger need to do in order to prove he's ready. The Reds call up relievers from AA all the time (like Jordan Smith last year). Boxberger was drafted the same year as Leake ('09) and it sure looks like he's ready to me. He's got to be better than Fisher.
He's not on the 40 and I bet they want him to get some time in Louisville before they do.
He's not on the 40-man roster and they likely want him to get time in Louisville before they think about calling him up.
Box had a rough year in AA last year; he needs a bit more time to work out the kinks. We've got a lot of relief options, so there's no reason to rush him. If Fisher continues to get knocked around (his marathon performance may still be hurting him), Willis is waiting for a shot, and Chapman/Lecure won't be down for too long.
LeCure will be back after this road trip.
Boxberger is the closer of the future. Is he the future closer next year?
I love the idea of bringing him up sometime this year and seeing how he holds up. Save millions on a closer (CoCo) and use the money for another position.
Last year Boxberger's relief issues resolved around him not having the control they wanted to see out of him. He has 22 walks in 29.2 innings. This season, in 30 innings, he has 12 walks (and 50 strikeouts). While I agree that there isn't a need to rush him, I don't think its all that fair to say he needs to work out the kinks from last year.Originally Posted by The DARK
I get that... I was just pointing to "kinks" as a general way of saying that he doesn't need to be rushed. The one area where the Reds are not having a crisis right now is the bullpen; Cordero, Masset, Ondrusek, Arredondo, Horst, and Bray are all healthy and performing well; we just happen to have 2 main guys on the DL and backups playing in their place. It's not the end of the world if they aren't shutdown, and it's certainly not a reason to rush a guy who had a bad year the last time he jumped a level.
But guys, would what I'm suggesting really be "rushing" him?
We're talking about a former college pitcher who was drafted in the first round (compensatory) two full years ago. How would bringing him up later this season be rushing him?
And I realize he struggled a bit in 2010 after being moved to the bullpen. But I chalk that up to him adjusting to the role for the first time. He had been a starter since Little League. Now, this year, he's been a reliever all season and has been lights out.
I guess I don't understand calling up Jordan Smith directly from AA last year (who is not nearly as good as Boxberger) ... and not calling up Boxberger this year. If LeCure is ready to go, fine. But as is, we have Carlos Fisher on the Reds' 25-man roster. If it means removing someone from the 40-man (like Fisher himself) to make room for Boxberger, what are they waiting for? Box's time has arrived IMO.
Also, if he's truly the "closer of the future" better get him some MLB experience this year considering our closer is in the last year of his deal. And there's no way Cordero will be re-signed. He's having a great year, but that will just raise his asking price.
I would like to see Boxberger in AAA, just to see how the more advanced at the plate AAAA types handle him. I would have promoted him weeks ago to AAA. Not entirely sure what they are waiting for other than they don't want to take away the only solid pitcher Carolina has on the entire roster.
Ha, they probably feel so sorry for the Mudcats they don't want to take away their lone all-star until after the break. But I agree, I would like to see him at AAA. In a perfect world, LeCure will come back healthy and he will be the 5th, 6th or 7th man out of the pen (along with Arredondo and Horst). But if something else goes wrong with LeCure when he comes back, I sure hope they find a better option than Fisher or Jordan Smith as the last guy out of the pen. With Boxberger's age, draft position and (most-importantly) how he's pitching this year at AA, I think he's ready. Course, I'm basing this strictly on stats when it comes to Box since I've never seen him pitch ... so there's a very good chance I might not know what the hell I'm talking about.
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