John Klima | February 26, 2010
Aroldis Chapman got paid and now begins the process of molding a great pitcher’s body and a big arm into a major league starter. This is the first rung of the ladder in professional baseball for Chapman, and Baseball Beginnings has exclusive footage of Chapman’s first on-the-mound bullpen as a paid pro. Have a look and then we will break him down.
John Klima | January 10, 2010
Reds fans are eagerly awaiting the arrival of first baseman Yonder Alonso, who stopped in the Arizona Fall League on the way to supplying some much needed punch in Cincinnati. The former Miami first baseman, who was a college masher, doesn’t strike me as a pure power bat. Rather, I felt Alonso will become a professional hitter with gap power and about 20-home run potential.
John Klima | January 2, 2010
“Swish” was Bob Thurman’s nickname, long before it was a shoe logo. Thurman was a left-handed hitting outfielder and pitcher who played for the Homestead Grays in the last Negro League World Series in 1948. When he signed with the Kansas City Monarchs and eventually found his way to the major leagues with the Cincinnati Reds, he had changed his age more than his socks.
“I have had my age put back so many times,” an amused and demurring Thurman wrote, “I can’t remember my real age.”
There is humor in history, but a lesson to be learned for today’s Major League teams that pursue Cuban left-hander Aroldis Chapman.
John Klima | December 26, 2009
The Arizona Fall League is hyped as a league for can’t-miss young prospects, but in reality this league is vastly more important for older players like Reds outfielder Chris Heisey, a 17th round pick in 2006 from Messiah College, a Division III Christian college in Grantham, Pennsylvania. Heisey, who will be 25 on Opening Day, had his most productive minor league season in 2009 when he hit 22 home runs and drove in 77 runs between Double-A and Triple-A.
Heisey’s most valuable tool is his power, which he’s clearly developed with patience and hard work as a pro. I had never seen Heisey before two games in the Arizona Fall League and two BPs, and liked him for what he is. Heisey has strong hands, bat speed, good actions, and a good sound off the bat. He’s not talented enough to be a dominating major league player, but I think he’s got enough pop to produce gap-to-gap power.
I’m sure there will have been some scouts who looked at this player and his age and concluded he is a fringy 48-49 extra at the major league level at best, but I think there’s more here.
This is obviously a very hard-working player who has raised his grades all the way up his organization. Heisey could fit in on the major league level as an outfielder who can play all three positions and provide 16-18 HR power if he gets frequent at-bats. This is a good example of a professional ballplayer without the earth-shattering talent who nonetheless has made himself a candidate to be a very serviceable big leaguer.
John Klima | November 27, 2009
When we last saw Mike Leake here at Baseball Beginnings, he was pitching for Arizona State on the road to a season that got him drafted in the first round, No. 8 overall in 2009. We picked Leake up again recently in-person at the Arizona Fall League, where we caught three innings and a bullpen.
Leake is a classic example of what the great scout and former big league second baseman Gene Handley meant when he said, “The gun is a crutch.” (more…)
John Klima | August 15, 2009
The Cincinnati Reds have agreed to terms with 2009 first round pick Mike Leake (selected 8th overall) on a reported $2.27 million bonus. Baseball Beginnings scouted, captured video and interviewed Leake during the 2009 season.
Read Mike Leake Q&A
Who Will Be the Better Pro: Stephen Strasburg or Mike Leake?
Read Mike Leake Scouting Report
Watch Mike Leake Video
Read Fall 2009 Mike Leake Scouting Report
John Klima | August 15, 2009
The Cincinnati Reds agreed to terms with right-handed starter Brad Boxberger, the 43rd overall selection in the 2009 MLB draft, on a reported signing bonus of $857,000. Baseball Beginnings scouted and captured video of Boxberger, from the University of Southern California, this spring.
Read Brad Boxberger Scouting report
Watch Brad Boxberger Scouting Video
John Klima | July 2, 2009
Aroldis Chapman, LHP
Cuban National Team
(Free Agent)
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Tall, lean and loose, thick legs, high hips, long arms, legs and fingers. Whippy body; physically matured, limber and powerful.
STRENGTHS: FB pitches at 93-95 with glove-side run, topped 100, several 97-98. 2-seam FB at 91-92. SL 82 and hard, glove-side sink. Overall command average to below-average. FB control ranges from average to above average. Workhorse type; different look from left-side; looks like an athlete. Repeats delivery and well-coordinated for big man, smooth gas, easy effort, arm speed is a blur.
WEAKNESSES: Freeze frame him and it looks like his elbow will snap off. Lacks third pitch, DNS CB, would need third pitch and different plane variation to become true top-tier starter. Doesn’t show a flair for pitch ability; relies mostly on FB velocity and control of that pitch. Highly talented though still incomplete arm, inconsistent command and control are concerns. Needs to learn to pitch like a professional.
SUMMARY: True rarity, power arm from LHP, easy gas, should be a No. 1 starter based on pure physicality of stuff and body. Two put-away power pitches; prefer if he had a third show-me off-speed pitch to start with. Age listed at 21, but body looks more like 28. As is, could have a year or two of exceptional success and a number of workhorse years if he can stay healthy.
Overall Future Potential: 60
Read The Risk Factors of Aroldis Chapman
More Cincinnati Reds prospects:
Read Mike Leake Q&A
Read Mike Leake Scouting Report
Read updated Mike Leake Scouting Report
Watch Mike Leake Scouting Video
Read Who Will Be the Better Pro: Stephen Strasburg or Mike Leake?
Read Brad Boxberger Scouting Report
Watch Brad Boxberger Scouting Video
Read Chris Heisey Scouting Report
Read Yonder Alonso Scouting Report
John Klima | June 19, 2009
Brad Boxberger, RHP
USC (2009 Draft)
6-2, 200
Games seen: 2, Innings: 10
(43rd overall pick, 2009 Draft, Cincinnati Reds)
John Klima | June 18, 2009
Brad Boxberger got lost a bit in the national shuffle during the college season, overshadowed as USC played .500 baseball, Grant Green had all the attention, Robert Stock pitched his way out of college and Mike Leake and Arizona State made their run to the College World Series.
But Boxberger has the makings of a middle-of-the-rotation major league starter. He has the aptitude to pitch above his grades, but we’ll have to see how his stuff translates in pro ball. He has enough velocity for a right-hander to get by, touching 94 with max effort, but usually working at a breezy and effective 90-92. As a college pitcher, Boxberger needed time to get loose early in the game. He got a reputation, however true or unfounded, that he was a bad first inning pitcher.
What Boxberger does have is three pitches and an effective knuckle-curve deal which showed tight rotation and bite. That’s where the comparison to Mike Mussina comes to mind. Neither right-hander had overpowering stuff, but both had a breaking ball for strikes and both understood how to change speeds, pitch backwards, and screw with pitch sequences. It would be one thing if Boxberger was smoke and mirrors and no velocity; it’s quite another when he’s smoke, mirrors and stuff.
We captured this video late in the season at Cal State Northridge. It wasn’t his best outing, but the video gives a clear idea of his physical description, arm action, and some of his stuff’s life. Click to see the video.
