Antonio Santillian

[redsof72]

I believe Boyles is going to be ready to go so expect Santillan to start in extended.

[IndianaRed]

Quick in person update by Fangraphs new lead prospect writer on Santillian .. video in the post as well

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/scout...adier-alvarez/

Santillan has consistently been 93-96 and touching 97 this spring. Monday was no different. He’s gotten himself into much better shape than we saw last year and he’s throwing more strikes. Although I still have some concerns about stamina and long-term strike-throwing ability, Santillan has made significant strides in this area already after being horrendously wild in last year’s AZL. The slider will flash plus in the 84-87 mph range and Santillan has been consistently locating it either in the strike zone or beneath it. He’s still more likely to end up in relief than in a rotation, but I think Santillan and the Reds have improved his chances of making a 200-inning impact in just a few short months.

Also a quick bit on Moises Nova with video as well.

[Tom Servo]

Who the freak is Moises Nova, a smaller international signing?

Oh, he started 14 games last year for the DSL Reds. I don't remember him at all.

[Tom Servo]

Man, watching that video of Santillan, those kids don't stand a chance of doing anything with that fastball. Their only chance is if he throws four of them wide before three of them for strikes.

[nmculbreth]

Who the freak is Moises Nova, a smaller international signing?

Oh, he started 14 games last year for the DSL Reds. I don't remember him at all.

I can't speak to his talent, but Moises Nova is an 80-grade name.

[klw]

Man, watching that video of Santillan, those kids don't stand a chance of doing anything with that fastball. Their only chance is if he throws four of them wide before three of them for strikes.

Those fastballs have some serious giddyup on them!

[klw]

If you watch the videos of the Dodger pitchers you will see a bunch of Reds picks from last year and other young guys- Pitnik, Azcuna(?) Siri, Gordon, McElroy

[SoTxRedsFan]

If you watch the videos of the Dodger pitchers you will see a bunch of Reds picks from last year and other young guys- Pitnik, Azcuna(?) Siri, Gordon, McElroy

Good catch! Miles Gordon is someone I'd love an update on.

[klw]

Good catch! Miles Gordon is someone I'd love an update on.

Watching the video was not encouraging. He seemed to have a lot of trouble with the fastball- was very late on every swing but I was not watching too closely so maybe he had 2 strikes and was just fending off pitches.

[Tom Servo]

15 strikeouts in 8.2 innings so far in Billings.

If you ain't on the Santillan train you can get the hell out of my damn face.

[M2]

Santillan has improved by leaps and bounds over the past year. Credit to him and to the organization for putting him on a positive trajectory.

[podgejeff_]

If the coaches are getting his control straightened out then we've got ourselves something real. Guy has a first round arm.

[REDREAD]

15 strikeouts in 8.2 innings so far in Billings.

If you ain't on the Santillan train you can get the hell out of my damn face.

And only 3 walks.. Nice, encouraging start considering where he was at draft time.
Hitters only hitting .212 against him.
Although I know it is not statistically significant before someone rains on the parade

[bellhead]

Was listening to the video and the guys were talking about him sitting 94/95 with his fastball and sounded impressed by it.

[WrongVerb]

Questions:

Hows the movement on his fastball?
4-seamer or 2-seamer?
Can he throw it consistently for strikes? (Rookie leaguers could be swinging at anything close)
Can he throw it for balls? (For when he needs to pitch around someone but stay close to the zone)
Can he throw it for strikes or balls without tipping the pitch type or location?
Does he hold his velocity into the later innings?

And that's just the fastball. He's got other pitches as well to learn to throw consistently well. Sounds like he's put in a lot of work and it's paying off, but again rookie leagues are a far distance from the majors.

What about holding runners on?
How's his move to first?
How's his move to 2nd?
Can he field his position well?
What are his feet like while fielding a bunt?
How does he handle come backers to the mound?
Does he go to the correct spot to back up wherever the throw is coming from?
Can he bunt?

All this is stuff we don't even consider when we see someone lighting up the radar gun. But we are well served to keep in mind that baseball at the highest level is really, really, really hard and a lot more goes into it than a fastball that sits 94 and touches 97. And that's just in rookie leagues. There's entire books that can be written on the subject of intra game strategy between the batter and pitcher that we lay fans don't have a clue about. That doesn't come until much later. But the margin for error is miniscule.

All that said, there's no reason to think Santillan can't learn all that stuff. Seems to have taken to the coaching concerning his mechanics, so no doubt he'll be working on those other things as well.