ANGRY MIKE SYNDICATE: JONAH TONG: "BABA-YAGA" RISING

 

ANGRY MIKE

ANGRY MIKE SYNDICATE 

JONAH TONG 

AKA

"BABA-YAGA"

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I’ve been watching Jonah Tong dominate the minor leagues for 2 straight seasons, and the hardest part wasn’t trying to understand how he’s been able to obliterate hitters on a nightly basis, it was trying to come up with a proper nickname. It’s easy to understand why Tong has been as successful as he has, he attacks hitters with 3 plus pitches, improving command, and a cerebral approach to pitching rarely seen by young pitchers. What has baffled scouts and astonished fans is the fact there have been countless other pitching prospects who had arguably better “pure stuff” or higher “prospect pedigree” that haven’t come remotely close to ascertaining the same success as Tong.

Like most spectators, I’m no longer, trying to figure out why Tong makes it look so easy, I’m fully committed to enjoying the show and coming up with a proper nickname.

“J.T.” is a nickname utilized by his teammates and “King Tong” has been seen making the rounds across social media, but do they properly capture what we have? So what do we have with Tong, or what best describes the type of pitcher he is? 

 

Simple. 

 

Tong is a pitcher with a filthy arsenal, with a frightening degree of lethality, add the fact his pitches have the potential for more improvement makes his arsenal truly haunting.

“BABA YAGA” or “boogeyman” seems to fit perfectly when describing Tong’s pitching arsenal, his ability to dominate hitters, and his mysterious rise to prominence as an unheralded prospect. After watching how Tong overpowered hitters during his debut for Syracuse, “Baba Yaga” appears to be the perfect nickname for the young hurler.

Tong was absolutely ELECTRIC during his AAA debut, exhibiting consistent top-end fastball velocity throughout his entire outing. Tong’s fastball has already earned a 65-grade, on the “20-80” scouting grade scale, primarily because of the twenty-one inches of “induced vertical break” his fastball exhibits, but during his Syracuse debut, Tong unleashed elite velocity that has never been seen before. We have seen Tong’s velocity top out as high as 98 MPH or 99 MPH during exhibitions, such as the Futures Game. What hasn’t been seen before last Saturday, was Tong’s ability to maintain an average fastball velocity of 96 MPH for an entire start.

       AAA DEBUT : 5.2 IP | 9 K | 2 Hits | 3 BB | 90 NP | 22 TBF

Total # of Pitches: 90

Total # of Fastballs: 49 

Max Fastball velocity: 98 MPH

Low Fastball velocity: 94 MPH

Average Fastball velocity: 96.4 MPH

Here’s how many times each velocity was thrown:

94 mph: 1 time

95 mph: 7 times

96 mph: 17 times

97 mph: 21 times

98 mph: 3 times

What is even more impressive is the fact that Tong’s fastball had the exact same velocity on the first fastball he threw (pitch #1) and for the last fastball threw (pitch #89). He even wowed spectators with his ability to maintain that elite velocity on 5 consecutive fastballs to the same hitter, overpower Andrew Pinckney, the 15th batter he faced.

 

A. PINCKNEY AT-BAT

96 MPH | Pitch #56

96 MPH | Pitch #57

96 MPH | Pitch #58

98 MPH | Pitch #59 I

97 MPH | Pitch #60

97 MPH | Pitch #61

The most impressive aspect of Tong’s performance has to be the fact, his average fastball velocity for his first 6 fastballs was identical to the average fastball velocity for his last 6 fastballs, regardless of pitch count!

 

Average fastball velocity for both groups: 96.3 MPH

 

Pitch #89 : 97 MPH

Pitch #79 : 96 MPH

Pitch #78 : 96 MPH

Pitch #74 : 97 MPH

Pitch #73 : 95 MPH

Pitch #72 : 97 MPH

Pitch #1 : 97 MPH

Pitch #2 : 95 MPH

Pitch #3 : 96 MPH

Pitch #6 : 97 MPH

Pitch #7 : 96 MPH

Pitch #9 : 97 MPH

Tong’s performance wasn’t negatively impacted by having to switch to a different sized baseball, nor did he have trouble adjusting to the ABS system. The Rochester Redwings were only able to tally 1 extra-base hit off Tong, and only 1 runner was able to make it third base after reaching on error. 

 

“BABA-YAGA” WAS DOWNRIGHT SPOOKINESS TO THE MAXIMUS… 

Tong was clearly working on perfecting his changeup, the only other pitch-type that was thrown for a double-digit total (28). His changeup was baffling hitters, despite hitters realizing Tong was primarily utilizing a 2-pitch approach, he was still baffling or overpowering hitters with regularity. The fact Tong’s changeup is only scratching the surface of its true potential makes it a truly exciting pitch. Same can be said about his curveball and his slider, which I am sure he will look to improve during this upcoming off-season.

 

Is anyone really surprised about Tong’s performance? Tong has nothing left to prove in the Minors and the only thing holding him back is his age. Look at how he’s dominated some of the best hitters in AA this season:

 

There is a lot more recently collected data that shows pitchers who accumulate higher innings’ totals before they turn 24, are at higher risk for Tommy John Surgery, especially when those pitchers have higher average fastball velocities. 

Teams also benefit by starting the service time of pitchers after they turn 25, because then they potentially hit free agency on the wrong side of age 30, potentially saving teams hundreds of millions in potential extensions compared to having to sign pitchers like Yamamoto who hit free agency at the age of 25.

Are these 2 reasons enough to hold Tong in the Minors? Possibly. Tong is ready to compete in the Majors right now, that's an indisputable fact, but he's also not a finished product. He can improve his curveball and slider significantly, as well as his changeup, which is why waiting might be the best course of action.

Once "BABA-YAGA" is unleashed on the MLB, I assure you, he is going to be fun to watch, each and every start.

JONAH TONG

MOUND ASSASSIN

AKA

"BABA-YAGA"

ANGRY MIKE SYNDICATE