9/28/10

2011 ROSTER PROJECTION: - SP - Eric Beaulac

The Mets drafted Beaulac in the 9th round of the 2008 draft. 2008 stats from Le Moyne: 14 GS, 2.83 ERA, 113K/43BB, 54 Hits allowed in 92 1/3 IP, 11 XBH allowed all season but also 15 WPs.



From a local paper before the draft: At 6-foot-5, 195 pounds, the lanky Beaulac looks every inch the part of a Grade A prospect. His hard stuff sizzles up to 94 MPH, and his tabletop-drop slider sends hitters raking through the dirt to find it. He set a school record with 113 strikeouts (in 92 1/3 innings) this season, to go along with a 9-2 record and a 2.83 ERA.



Beaulac entered the Mack’s Prospect List for the first time in August 2008, coming in at # 19: 19. RP Eric Beaulac/K-Port – 21 years old – I’ve been told by a couple of so-called ‘inside sources’ that the Mets are very high on this pitcher. He got his first professional start on 7-15, gave up 1 run in 4.0 IP, then followed it up with 5.0 IP, 1 ER, for his first professional victory on 7-15. Then, on 7-25, he returned to a relief role, pitching 3 scoreless innings and lowering his ERA to 1.89. On 7-29, Beaulac was promoted to A-Savannah and should be used as a starter for the remainder of the season.


In 2008, Beaulac pitched for 3 teams, Savannah, Brooklyn, and Kingaport, and turned in a combined record of 2-2, 3.38, in 14 games, 8 starts.


In February 2009, Toby Hyde wrote: Beaulac had a nice debut split largely between Kingsport and Savannah, complemented by equally strong scouting reports. Scouts praised both his arm strength, seeing an average to better MLB fastball, and a power breaking ball. 2008: Beaulac set a new Le Moyne Dolphins single-season strikeout record (113) on his way to the 2008 Division I Independent Pitcher of the Year Award. The Mets started Beaulac out in Brooklyn where he made just two relief appearances in June, the second of which was a perfect, five strikeout performance over two innings. That earned him a demotion to Kingsport where he was excellent in three relief appearances before two starts in mid-July. And that prompted the Mets to promote Beaulac to Savannah where he made six strong starts from the end of July to August. One statistical red flag from his Savannah time was the increased walk rate. Projected 2009 Start: A-ball


In 2009, Beaulac pitched the entire season for Savannah: 7-7, 2.95, 1.30, 133-K, 116.0-IP.


Two year professional totals: 193-K in 164.0-IP.


9-15-09 from: - http://myworldofbaseball.com/wordpress/?cat=42  - Eric Beaulac RHP - A ninth round pick in 2008 Eric had an eye popping 133 K’s in only 116 innings for Savannah. He had a 2.95 ERA in 19 stats but an even better 1.13 ERA in the pen. He’s got good height (6′5″). If he doesn’t develop the secondary pitches to allow him to start it appears that he can be quite effective out of the bullpen.


1-10-10 Forecast: Listen, you keep your ERA below 3 and have better than a 1.0 K/IP ration, you get promoted. Still wished he got back to me about that interview, but it’s on to Lucy for Eric.


7-14 from: - http://www.amazinavenue.com/2010/7/14/1567569/mets-farm-system-mid-term-review  - Though he's put up solid numbers against more advanced hitters, Beaulac is really just starting to catch up to players his own age so take that line with a grain of salt. Nor have his numbers actually been that good as evidenced by his 5.35 K/9 and .275 BABIP. However, his ability to get outs, namely groundouts, is undeniable, coming as a result of his slider which is looking more and more like a major league quality plus pitch. Beaulac himself requested a move to the bullpen and perhaps it's time for the Mets to heed his call. The lowering strikeout rates, reports of inconsistent velocity (anywhere from 86mph-93mph), poor platoon splits and a mediocre at best changeup all seem to point to a future fb/slider power reliever in the vain of a Bobby Parnell, minus 4-5 mph off the fastball.


8-5-10: - Stock Down – Beaulac has been removed from the St. Lucie rotation, to make room for the promotion of Jimmy Fuller. He pitched relief last night after starting 16 out of 17 games, and going 5-3, 3.38. That’s some pretty damn good numbers for anyone that pitches for Lucy, so this doesn’t make much sense on the surface. One thing worth noting… Beaulac was a strike out machine last year, with Savannah, producing 133-Ks in 116.0-IP. This year, he’s down to 57-K in 82.2-IP. This just might be another of the many college pitches that start off strong in A ball, but stumble against players their own age when they start up the ladder.

9-27-10 - 2011 Forecast: -  Beaulac has reached the point of no return. You have to do two things to reach the majors. One, get to the AA level... and secondly, do well there. Beaulac, like his pitching buddy Chris Schwinden, and 300 other back-end rotation prospects before him, look like the second coming of Tom Glavine... until they reach AA. This is where Beaulac finished this year and this is where he was stumbling (2 starts, 0-2, 9.00). Like I said, 95% of all SPs go through this and we'll just have to wait to see if he gets past it. If he does, his increased velocity over the other SPs coming out of Lucy, could earn him a trip to Queens in 2012.

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