2/4/12

Baseball: Trevor Bauer, Anthony Renaudo, Gerritt Cole, Ryan Theriot


Trevor Bauer’s specialty is his ability to miss bats. He struck out over 13 batters every nine innings, and accumulated an amazing 203 strikeouts in just under 137 innings of work at UCLA. That K-rate actually understates Bauer’s performance. Because he allowed so few hits for reasons mentioned earlier (fastball movement, deep repertoire of pitches, ability to change speeds), that means he faced fewer hitters. So if you look at his strikeouts as a percentage, Bauer struck out an astounding 45.5% of all batters he faced. Bauer has no problem throwing strikes and his command is improving. However, it is still inconsistent and he can go through stretches where he struggles to hit his spots. His stuff is good enough to make up for any mistakes in location http://www.baseball-intellect.com/arizona-diamondbacks-top-prospects-2012/

A right-hander from the Jersey Shore town of Belmar, Anthony Ranaudo passed up signing with the Texas Rangers out of high school in 2007 and went on to dominate for Louisiana State University, leading the Tigers to the College World Series in 2008 and '09. An arm injury his junior year saw his Draft stock slip slightly, and it was the Boston Red Sox that selected him 39th overall in 2010 (he found out he was drafted when an LSU teammate tipped him off while on an airplane on his way back from Omaha). A towering 6-foot-7 righty, Ranaudo made his professional debut last April for the Red Sox's Class A affiliate at Greenville before moving up to Class A Advanced Salem for the second half, ftinishing 9-6 with a 3.97 ERA and 117 strikeouts in 127 innings. Both Ranaudo and Boston fans hope the 22-year-old continues progressing this summer at Double-A and beyond, but for now, the righty is only focused on getting ready for Spring Training.  http://www.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120112&content_id=26329042&fext=.jsp&vkey=news_milb&tcid=tw_share

The Pirates organization entered the 2011 amateur draft in an enviable position with the first overall selection. The club had its pick from a number of high-ceiling players and ultimately chose Gerrit Cole. It’s easy to see the move working out well for the organization as long as the right-hander can stay healthy (and there are no red flags… or even yellow for that matter). Cole, who has been a top prospect since his prep days and actually turned down the Yankees as a first rounder in ’08, has the chance to develop into a No. 1 starter and could get to Pittsburgh in short order. The California native’s repertoire includes two strikeout pitches: a 92-97 mph fastball and a slider. He also features a solid changeup. Expect Cole to open 2012 in either high-A or double-A and he could reach the Majors by year’s end – unless the club wants to be cautious with his service time  http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/top-15-prospects-pittsburgh-pirates/

Giants signed SS Ryan Theriot to a one-year contract. The deal was reported earlier and has now been confirmed by the club. CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman reports that the contract is for $1.25 million, with $750,000 more possible in incentives, but it's interesting to note that the deal is not guaranteed. But, barring something unforeseen, Theriot should make the Opening Day roster and is probably the favorite to start over Brandon Crawford. He produced an unimpressive .271/.321/.342 batting line with one home run, 47 RBI, four stolen bases and a .662 OPS over 483 plate appearances in 2011 for St. Louis. http://www.rotoworld.com/headlines/mlb/348399/baseball-headlines?r=1

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