Chapman to start? Maybe not

[NeilHamburger]

I think you have to at least take the chance that he could one day be Randy Johnson. You could've said the same thing about Johnson early in his career. You just have to if you that resource.

The value to the franchise (and the player) if it clicks and he is somewhat close to Randy Johnson is just astronomical.

I'm not a big believer in a failed experiment ruining a player, I think injuries have done that to Joba.

[wlf WV]

Originally Posted by mace

Sorry if this has already been posted, but at quick glance I didn't see it anywhere. It's a pretty extensive and informative story on the whole package of Chapman.

http://www.cincinnatimagazine.com/fe...spx?ID=1885174

Thanks Mace.
I haven't read this before.Baker could be right,leave well enough alone.

It may not be so simple as to plug him in or unplug him. I get frustrated with Baker,but he does know people.I've come to the point in my life I don't have to remind myself how little I know.

Spring training ,as someone said, will probably sort things out.

[NeilHamburger]

Originally Posted by wlf WV

Thanks Mace.
I haven't read this before.Baker could be right,leave well enough alone.

It may not be so simple as to plug him in or unplug him. I get frustrated with Baker,but he does know people.I've come to the point in my life I don't have to remind myself how little I know.

Spring training ,as someone said, will probably sort things out.

It's a great read. But, honestly when I was done reading it I felt more scared then anything. Honestly, I'm scared to try and find out too much about Aroldis because there's a feeling in the pit of my stomach that it will make it hard for me to root for him.

I'm not saying anything about guilt or innocence, because I have no idea. I'm just kinda scared that more facts are going to come out, and some of the one's that already have already have me worried. I really don't want this to turn into a situation where I have to squint and pretend to root for someone. When I read things about him I try and justify things in my mind, but in my heart sometimes I wonder what kind of person he is, and it makes me question myself, and whether I justify things because he can throw a baseball real hard. I'm scared for the answers sometimes.

[jojo]

Originally Posted by edabbs44

Even though it is off topic, I think people might be a little too confident in Hoover at this stage. I hope he is as good as advertised, but 30 innings isn't really a large body of work at the ML level.

Broxton only pitched 22 innings as a Red last season and some seem to think his 6.7 K/BB ratio and an erroneous perception of increasing fastball velocity as the season aged is a sign of the future.

[RFS62]

Would anyone have predicted last offseason that Chapman would have such an incredible year as a closer? I think not.

The kid is a fire breathing mutant. He's different. I'm not about to predict that he won't be able to adapt as a starter after the progress I've seen him make in everything he's tried to do in the bigs.

It's worth a shot. Yes, as a closer he's uber valuable. But what if he's that good as a starter too?

It's time to find out, one way or another, and stay with whatever shakes out.

[OnBaseMachine]

Keith Law thinks Chapman can handle being a starter:

“I’d almost emphasize the looseness more than the velocity,” Law says of Chapman’s arm. In other words, it’s not just that Chapman throws 100 MPH—it’s that he throws 100 MPH and looks like he’s playing catch. That easy delivery comes from Chapman’s rare athleticism; one gets the sense that, had he stuck with boxing, Chapman would have made a terrific light heavyweight (or a terrific wide receiver, or a terrific shooting guard). Law calls Chapman’s fastball “electric” and praises his “wipeout slider.” “And I’ve always thought his changeup is better than he gets credit for,” he says.

This year at spring training the Reds are planning to move Chapman back to the rotation—a role with more pressure, more ups and downs, more structure-free days. The physical switch should be easy. “The guy’s a horse,” says ESPN’s Law. “He can be a 35-start, 220-inning guy.”

http://www.cincinnatimagazine.com/fe...spx?ID=1885174

[cincrazy]

Originally Posted by OnBaseMachine

Keith Law thinks Chapman can handle being a starter:





http://www.cincinnatimagazine.com/fe...spx?ID=1885174

The fact that Keith Law endorses him as a starter makes me want him to be a reliever even more

[Wonderful Monds]

Originally Posted by jojo

Broxton only pitched 22 innings as a Red last season and some seem to think his 6.7 K/BB ratio and an erroneous perception of increasing fastball velocity as the season aged is a sign of the future.

Not to mention adding a cut fastball that completely changed him as a player.

[Wonderful Monds]

Originally Posted by Brutus

There were people that said trading for Broxton was a dumb move. All he proceeded to do was put up a 3.5-1 K:BB ratio, nearly 2-1 grounders to flyballs and a 2.82 ERA.

Maybe the 3-year deal isn't such a bad move after all. I trust this isn't Jocketty's first rodeo.

No, the team should just cobble together a bullpen of retreads and rookies and assign a pitcher with 30 MLB innings to be the closer. That should work out so well.

[Unassisted]

Originally Posted by mace

Sorry if this has already been posted, but at quick glance I didn't see it anywhere. It's a pretty extensive and informative story on the whole package of Chapman.

http://www.cincinnatimagazine.com/fe...spx?ID=1885174

I read that earlier today. It makes me think he should be nowhere near the rotation and that the experiment to put him there will fail so badly that he'll be back in the pen by June.

I don't know how someone could read that and think positively about the guy. Issues-wise, he's the pitching equivalent of Josh Hamilton and we've been none the wiser about the kid gloves the Reds are using to handle him.

[jojo]

Originally Posted by Wonderful Monds

Not to mention adding a cut fastball that completely changed him as a player.

It's an "awesome" narrative isn't it?

[jojo]

Originally Posted by Wonderful Monds

No, the team should just cobble together a bullpen of retreads and rookies and assign a pitcher with 30 MLB innings to be the closer. That should work out so well.

Yep, those are the only two options.

[Wonderful Monds]

Originally Posted by jojo

It's an "awesome" narrative isn't it?

Not only is it an awesome narrative, it also happened, so, you know.

[Wonderful Monds]

So we have a pitcher who's getting stronger after recovering from surgery who has added a dominant pitch to his repertoire (definition of dominant: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index...tons-cutter-2/) who has results that match.

And yet that apparently means nothing? That doesn't sound like the logical conclusion to me.

[RedEye]

Originally Posted by Wonderful Monds

So we have a pitcher who's getting stronger after recovering from surgery who has added a dominant pitch to his repertoire (definition of dominant: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index...tons-cutter-2/) who has results that match.

And yet that apparently means nothing? That doesn't sound like the logical conclusion to me.

It's not that it means nothing. It's just that many believe that sort of money was too much to pay for it. I think there's a good chance that LeCure or Hoover or both are better pitchers than Broxton in 2013.