Kohl Stewart is confident

[gunnarthor]

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/sunday-notes-grichuks-barrel-kohl-stewarts-moxie-opening-day-arrives/

 

Interesting article on fangraphs.  They say that Stewart is throwing both a curve and a slider b/c he seems to have them both and they haven't (at least not yet) merged into one "slurve" like pitch. 

 

"The introduction of Uncle Charlie is somewhat curious, as many pitchers are limited to one breaking pitch in the early stages of their development. Youngsters who throw both a curveball and slider are frequently told to put one in their back pocket. The Twins opted to have him add rather than subtract.

“It depends on the guy, and whether those pitches are defined,” explained Rasmussen. “When they start bleeding into each other, which they usually do, you have to make a choice. Otherwise you end up having two crappy breaking balls that look the same. But if one is a slider and one is a curveball, which is the case with Kohl, then they’re OK.”"

 

Stewart seems pretty confident in his abilities and sure of himself, in a good way.  Hopefully, he has a big year for the Twins and moves up the ladder like Berrios did last year.

[jokin]

 

 

When I suggested it will take him time to go from thrower to pitcher, he took umbrage.

“I don’t know about that,” responded Stewart, who logged a 2.59 ERA in low-A last year. “I feel like I’m a pitcher. I’m still learning to use my stuff – that’s part of growing up and having a better picture — but I have a plan and know what I’m doing. I think I know how to pitch.”

 

Finally, some good news on the pitching front.  It seems like we haven't heard much, if anything, on Kohl Stewart's development this spring.  No news on negative health issues or imposed pitching restrictions is good news.  His blossoming "Moxie" is even better news, he seems like a guy who has set his sights high and is going to demand to take the ball, much like Berrios.  I'd like to see a two-level jump over the summer to AA eventually- which could position him to be knocking on the door a year ahead of schedule- some time in 2016.

[HitInAPinch]

I've often wondered why MLB management didn't like pitchers using both a slider and curve:

 

Rasmussen. “When they start bleeding into each other, which they usually do, you have to make a choice. Otherwise you end up having two crappy breaking balls that look the same. But if one is a slider and one is a curveball, which is the case with Kohl, then they’re OK.”

 

Check!

[markos]

 

 I'd like to see a two-level jump over the summer to AA eventually- which could position him to be knocking on the door a year ahead of schedule- some time in 2016.

This two-level jump has been fairly common for many of the recent HS pitchers that were top draft picks. Examples include:

Madison Bumgarner

Jarrod Parker

Shelby Miller

Jameson Taillon

Archie Bradley

Robert Stephenson

 

Also, several pitchers ended up moving even faster (Jacob Turner, Jose Fernandez, Dylan Bundy). Provided Stewart stays healthy, I will be disappointed if he doesn't force his way to AA this year. 

[HitInAPinch]

 

 

Finally, some good news on the pitching front.  It seems like we haven't heard much, if anything, on Kohl Stewart's development this spring.  No news on negative health issues or imposed pitching restrictions is good news.  His blossoming "Moxie" is even better news, he seems like a guy who has set his sights high and is going to demand to take the ball, much like Berrios.  I'd like to see a two-level jump over the summer to AA eventually- which could position him to be knocking on the door a year ahead of schedule- some time in 2016.

I'd like to see the Twins be a little more aggressive in promoting players, too.  However, Stewart did have some shoulder issues last year and he has a whopping 107 total innings to date. 

 

Then again, I too would like to see him at AA sometime shortly after mid-season this year....

[jimmer]

I am totally confidant in his ability as well.  Should take a big step forward this year.

[gunnarthor]

He's an interesting prospect.  Some prospect guys are a little low on him while others remain very high.  Baseball America doesn't have him ranked in their top 100 and Sickels had him at #105 but mlb.com and BP have him at #36 and 28, respectively.  Klaw said the Twins were doing a great job of developing him from a thrower into a pitcher (and I think he was in Klaw's top 100, as well). 

 

Obviously, injuries are always a concern but, if he's healthy, I do think he could be a fast mover once everything "clicks" for him.  He certainly seems to have the front of the rotation mentality that I wish all of our guys had.

[Brandon]

because of his age I am ok with him spending the whole year at Fort Myers.  He should throw about 110-130 innings this year and next year should be able to go up to 150-160 range at AA and maybe AAA. and then be ready for the majors   in 2017 after the free agency or arbitration cut off for service time/ after the coldest month of the season with less pressure from the get go (cough cough) .....

[jokin]

 

because of his age I am ok with him spending the whole year at Fort Myers.  He should throw about 110-130 innings this year and next year should be able to go up to 150-160 range at AA and maybe AAA. and then be ready for the majors   in 2017 after the free agency or arbitration cut off for service time/ after the coldest month of the season with less pressure from the get go (cough cough) .....

 

Berrios pitched 14 more innings than Stewart at age 19 at the same level, but Stewart pitched better than Berrios.  Berrios pitched 140 innings at age 20 through 3 levels, there's no reason to hold Stewart back at Ft Myers all season if he continues to perform at Berrios' level to this point or better, even if he doesn't reach 140 innings.  He was drafted as a potential elite #1 or #2 pitcher, there's no innings-restriction-related reason to delay him one full season if he proves he is ready to debut some time in the second half of 2016- presuming that things continue to go well for him- after repeating some AA and perhaps a few starts at AAA.

 

Obviously, the strikeout rate is going to have to jump significantly, but this year will tell us if he's on track in that regard.  Success at missing more bats this year might even give the Twins the impetus to jettison one or more of the non-performing blocking veterans earlier than envisioned (at this point, likely to be Nolasco). 

[amjgt]

Who's confidant is he?

[gunnarthor]

 

Who's confidant is he?

It's funny, I saw that I had done that and I thought I changed it before I posted the thread in the first place (I even made that joke to myself).  But apparently I didn't.

 

Or a moderator is ****** with me.

[Hrbowski]

I think Stewart is our best pitching prospect.

[ashbury]

 

It's funny, I saw that I had done that and I thought I changed it before I posted the thread in the first place (I even made that joke to myself).  But apparently I didn't.

 

Or a moderator is ****** with me.

Just a moment ago I changed the spelling in the title to "confident", before I even read through the thread, just because it kind of looked bad on the TD front page as one of the forum entries. I'm not aware that there's been any monkey business before that, and I doubt there would be.

[diehardtwinsfan]

It's funny, I saw that I had done that and I thought I changed it before I posted the thread in the first place (I even made that joke to myself).  But apparently I didn't.

 

Or a moderator is ****** with me.

What's that on your shoulder?

[Sweetwater]

Cautiously optimistic about Kohl. Heard his velo is down from HS, which doesn't seem to bode well. That and the lack of K's, and I'm pretty concerned. This year is super important for him. I'll be following him closely.

[Brandon]

I don't think keeping him in Fort Myers is about ability but letting him mature as an adult physically.  He pitched less then 90 innings last year and has diabetes he has to manage.  You don't want t increase his workload too much the innings I posted earlier is what I keep reading you want to increase on a yearly basis.  He is not going to be ready to throw 180 innings next year so why push him to the majors then. 

[Vance_Christianson]

Realistically Kohl had a great first full year of pro ball. I think having 1 year under his belt now, he's going to come in and attack! I think we are looking at another Berrios type jump in levels with Kohl this year!

 

Twins prospects are looking great, too bad we filled our MLB Roster with Veteran Garbage, or 3-4 guys who all play the same position.

 

My gut tells me that our Roster is going to look a lot different after this years trade deadline.

[jokin]

 

I don't think keeping him in Fort Myers is about ability but letting him mature as an adult physically.  He pitched less then 90 innings last year and has diabetes he has to manage.  You don't want t increase his workload too much the innings I posted earlier is what I keep reading you want to increase on a yearly basis.  He is not going to be ready to throw 180 innings next year so why push him to the majors then. 

 

I get the idea of a fully-monitored developmental plan, but there's no sense in babying this kid. this is a projected high-level (Texas A&M) quarterback, not a late bloomer physically who needs his hand held.  Let's see what he can handle in terms of both workload and level of competition this season (I'm assuming we'll see them shoot for a 50% jump in innings), before we set restrictions on him for next season.

[Dantes929]

 

I don't think keeping him in Fort Myers is about ability but letting him mature as an adult physically.  He pitched less then 90 innings last year and has diabetes he has to manage.  You don't want t increase his workload too much the innings I posted earlier is what I keep reading you want to increase on a yearly basis.  He is not going to be ready to throw 180 innings next year so why push him to the majors then. 

I know I am cherry picking but Bert Blyleven threw 278 innings at age 20.   I understand the desire to be conservative and that is my nature but I have seen no particular evidence that inning limits have any benefit whatsoever.     I suspect the rate of arm injuries has not decreased since these practices have bee implemented.    I can see skipping starts if there is dead arm or fatigue and shutting guys down when there is pain.   Other than that I just haven't seen any support for innings limits. 

[Brandon]

He had shoulder trouble last year after 90 innings is why I am suggesting they monitor his innings or I would be like yeah push him a little.