From: Bill McGuffin, Teen-age Asst. GM
Date: Jan. 1, 2042
About: The Bullpen
Here's Part 2 of the briefing on our players and top prospects. This one centers on the bullpen:
Relief Pitchers
| Pitcher | Level | Ovr/Pot | Stuff | Move | Control | Stamina | Gb/FB | Velocity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gilberto Sosa, Closer | Majors | 80/80 | 10/11 | 7/7 | 7/7 | 9 | Ext. Groundball | 98-100 |
| Francisco Salgado, Setup | Majors | 75/80 | 11/11 | 6/6 | 8/9 | 8 | Groundball | 98-100 |
| Brian Smith, Setup | Majors | 60/65 | 8/8 | 7/7 | 7/7 | 9 | Groundball | 90-92 |
| Frits Brinson, Middle | Majors | 55/65 | 8/8 | 6/7 | 6/6 | 8 | Groundball | 95-97 |
| David Rivas, Middle | Majors | 45/60 | 7/10 | 6/6 | 6/6 | 1 | Neutral | 98-100 |
| Juan Alfonzo, Middle | Majors | 45/45 | 7/7 | 6/6 | 6/6 | 1 | Groundball | 94-96 |
| Dieter Ruijghaver, Middle | Majors | 40/40 | 7/7 | 7/7 | 4/4 | 4 | Groundball | 93-95 |
| Luis Gonzáles, SP/RP | Majors | 70/70 | 10/10 | 6/6 | 7/7 | 8 | Neutral | 97-99 |
| Ángel Díaz, Middle | AAA | 45/45 | 6/6 | 7/7 | 7/7 | 4 | Ext. Groundball | 93-95 |
| Weston Etheridge, Middle | AAA | 30/40 | 6/6 | 5/7 | 5/5 | 1 | Groundball | 90-92 |
| Andrés Ortega, Middle | AAA | 40/40 | 4/5 | 9/9 | 6/6 | 7 | Ext. Groundball | 95-97 |
| James Matarazzo, Closer | AAA | 40/50 | 6/6 | 7/8 | 6/8 | 2 | Neutral | 90-92 |
| Paul Kemp, Closer/LF | AA | 45/55 | 6/6 | 8/8 | 6/7 | 6 | Ext. Groundball | 92-94 |
| Ike Kocher, Closer | A | 25/45 | 5/6 | 7/8 | 4/5 | 4 | Ext. Groundball | 96-98 |
Several of the individual pitchers look absolutely killer in their scouting reports, but ended up getting killed by opposing batters way too often. Chicago pen finished just 7th in the Frick for bullpen ERA. And guys like Frits Brinson and Francisco Salgado got smacked around way too frequently, and we were also a little underwhelmed by Brian Smith's performance. Looking back now, though, I'm starting to wonder if some of this might have been due to Mark Wareham's shortcomings in the field. The Sox relief corps is overwhelmingly made up of groundball or extreme groundball pitchers, and the Sox infield was something less than elite last year.
Perhaps addressing that issue this season will pay some dividends for our bullpen.
At any rate, we expect Sosa to continue his development; we hope Salgado will round into shape with a full season in the majors; and Brinson should bounce back. Speaking of which, he's in the final season of his contract - we need to look at extending him.
You'll notice I put Gonzáles on this list, as well as the SP list: if any of our starting prospects pan out, we might consider moving Luis into the bullpen, where his stuff makes him near-elite. Granted, he's valuable in the rotation, too, but he could help put our bullpen over the top. Something to keep an eye on, at least.
A couple of names to underscore among the prospects: Matarazzo got hurt at the end of last season, but was putting together a nice year. If he fills out his control potential and ticks up his movement rating another point, he could easily find a role in Chicago.
Paul Kemp is our very own unicorn: a two-way player who's so good at the plate you hate to waste him on the mound, and so good on the mound you hate to spare him for the lineup. He's been starting (and blowing people away in that role), but really just has two good pitches. So the bullpen is probably the best spot for him. Unless it's DH or the outfield, given that he slashed .341/.382/.564 last season for Grand Junction.
Finally, we're also excited by Kocher, who had a nice debut in Rookie ball (2.49 ERA; 2-1-7 record; 22 Ks in 21 IP). We're moving him to A ball so he can work with the pitching coach there, who's very good.
Our pipeline for relievers has thinned out some over the past couple of years because guys like Sosa, Smith and Salgado have been promoted to the big club. We'll be keeping our eyes out for talent to take their place through the draft and other means, though.
