Editor's note:
Check out this FREE sample of the quality reports you could be receiving all
season long as a Scout.com subscriber. To take advantage of our seven-day free
trial, just click this
link.
The Johnson City Cardinals
finished the first twelve games with a record of eight wins and four
losses. They are in second place in
the five-team Western Division of the Appalachian League, three games behind the
Elizabethton Twins. Johnson City has already
recorded three shutouts this season and is second in the league in team ERA and
WHIP. The only other team in the
league with any shutouts is the Bristol White Sox (1). The Cardinal pitching staff has issued
the fewest walks of any team in the league (28) through their first twelve
games. They also lead the league in
saves (4) and holds (6).
I was able to attend three of the
first twelve games in person and those observations provide the basis for this
report. I attended the first three
games against the Kingsport Mets prior to an extended vacation which included
seeing several former Johnson City Cardinals play against the Cincinnati Reds on
July 4th in Cincinnati. Colby Rasmus hit his 9th home
run of the season in the first inning to bring back my fond memories of his
summer of 2005 in Tennessee.
Roster
The original roster of 31
increased to 32 (max of 35) with the addition of IF Hector Alvarez from
Batavia prior to
the third game of the season.
Alvarez was bumped down a level due to a glut of infielders at
Quad Cities and Batavia following the signing of Jason Stidham
and the move of Alan Ahmady away from his 1B draft position.
The
Season in Review
Johnson
City has won each of its first four
three game series; each by a two games to one record. With three of their first four series on
the road, the Cardinals find themselves tied for the league lead in road
victories with six.
Tandem
Starting Pitchers
As a reminder, listed below are
the pairings for Johnson
City. The
five primary starters (labeled “A”) are limited to around 65 pitches and the
secondary starters may be limited to a few less pitches starting out the season
(may vary from pitcher to pitcher).
The five “A” pitchers all spent time in the Cardinals organization last
year and were competing for long season roster spots during the Cardinals spring
training. The five “B” pitchers
were drafted during the June 2009 First-Year Player Draft. Some may be building their arm strength
while others may be coming off some pretty high pitch-count college
seasons. The “A” pitchers each
started the first inning for each of the first two rotations through the
pairings and the “B” pitchers are starting the third time through the
rotation. The actual starter should
then alternate to the other pair each time through the rotation after that.
Tandem Starting Pitchers
(10):
RHP Reynier Gonzalez (1A) and RHP
Andy Moss (1B)
RHP Pablo Ortiz (2A) and RHP Jesse Simpson (2B)
RHP Chris Notti (3A) and RHP
Justin Smith (3B)
LHP Anthony Ferrara (4A) and RHP
Michael Thompson (4B)
RHP Randy Santos (5A) and LHP John Durham (5B)
Who’s
Hot (Hitters)
3B Rich Racobaldo already has 15
hits and five multi-hit games in 10 games.
The 6’1”, 220 pound 23-year old from NJ is fourth in the league in
batting average (.417). “Rock” is
looking to add some power to his hitting statistics as he only has three extra
base hits (3 doubles) and a .500 slugging percentage to go with his .463 on-base
percentage (eighth in league).
1B Matt Adams (pictured) is ninth in the
league in batting average (.382) and is tied for sixth in the league in home
runs (3). Adams is seventh in the league in OPS (1.093). On first glance, the 6’3”, 240 pound
Adams would appear to be limited to 1B/DH and that is likely where he will play
this season with Johnson City however, Matt was drafted as a catcher and he
played about half of his college games at Slippery Rock (PA) as a catcher.
RF Edgar Lara leads the league in
doubles (7) and is fourth in the league in slugging (.763). In his second season with Johnson
City, Lara is tied
for sixth in the league in home runs (3) and is sixth in the league in on-base
plus slugging (OPS) at 1.138. Lara
has also impressed with a strong arm in the field by adding two outfield
assists.
2B Luis Mateo (pictured) is tied for ninth in
the league in hits (16) and has six multi-hit games through his first 12
games. Also in his second season
with Johnson City, Mateo is tied for second in the league in doubles
(5) and is tied for sixth in the league in home runs (3).
Who’s
Not Hot (Hitters)
SS Yunier Castillo has just six
singles in his first 29 at bats (.207).
The numbers get even worse when you look at his batting averages with
runners on (.118) and with runners in scoring position (.077).
OF Ross Smith has just three
singles in his first 22 at bats (.136).
Who’s
Hot (Pitchers)
RHP Justin Smith has struck out 13
batters in 6 innings-pitched (IP) while allowing no hits and walking just
one. Smith is scheduled to make the
start at home against Bristol on Sunday night (weather
permitting). Justin will have to
stretch his pitch count over 4.2 IP to qualify for the league pitching
leaders. Smith is one of only two
pitchers in the league with more than 6 strikeouts who is averaging more than 2
K/IP.
A tandem starting pitcher selected
in the 36th round of the June 2009 First-Year Player Draft out of
Utah Valley University in Orem, UT,
Smith has been impressive on the mound.
I asked him what his two best pitches were and he told me his 4-seam
fastball and slider were his best pitches.
In his first professional inning (the fifth inning of the third game),
the 21-year-old from Pleasant Grove, UT had all of his
pitches working well. Smith struck
out the side on 13 pitches (11 strikes and 3-for-3 first-pitch-strikes) and
appeared to record all three of his strikeouts on sliders. For good measure, he started the third
batter out with what appeared to be a slow curve ball for a called strike.
RHP Andy Moss has not allowed a
run in 10 IP (tied for first in league with Joseph Serafin, Appalachian League
Pitcher of the Week). Moss has
allowed 6 hits (two doubles and two triples) and 4 walks to rank seventh in the
league in walks plus hits per inning pitched (1.00 WHIP). Moss, also a tandem starting pitcher,
has struck out 11 over 3 games.
I asked Andy what his two best
pitches were and he told me his slider and curve were his best pitches. Moss was selected in the 35th
round of the June 2009 First-Year Player Draft out of Lincoln University
(MO). He told me his statistics for
his senior year were for the Division 2 Blue Tigers out of Jefferson City, MO
were 6-5, 3.68 ERA, 100 K, 27 BB, 85 IP.
Moss, from Piedmont,
MO is a “big Cardinals fan” and was
really happy to be selected by his favorite team.
Closer and RHP Dave Kington is
tied for the league lead in saves (3) after 5 games (4.2 IP). Kington is second on the team in WHIP
(0.43). Dave has yet to allow
a hit or an earned run despite only recording three strikeouts.
Who’s
Not Hot (Pitchers)
While there are several pitchers
with high ERAs, none of them have consistently pitched poorly. Only right-handed tandem starter Chris
Notti (2.14) and right-handed reliever Jason Novak (2.25) have WHIPs of 2 or
more. Notti and Novak have also
combined for just one walk and nine strikeouts over 9.2 IP. LHP John Durham (7.20 ERA, 1.80 WHIP) is
probably the only pitcher who has yet to put together a quality tandem
start. However, Durham has shown a good
ability to pitch from the stretch with runners in scoring position by allowing
just one hit and a .167 batting average.
Week
Three Schedule
Game 13 (Sun): Justin Smith followed by Chris Notti –
vs. Bristol White Sox
Game 14 (Mon): Michael Thompson followed by Anthony
Ferrara – vs. Bristol White Sox
Game 15 (Tue): John Durham followed by Randy Santos –
vs. Bristol White Sox
Game 16 (Wed): Reynier Gonzalez followed by Andy Moss –
vs. Greeneville Astros
Game 17 (Thu): Pablo Ortiz followed by Jesse Simpson vs.
Greeneville Astros
Game 18 (Fri): Chris Notti followed by Justin Smith –
vs. Greeneville Astros
Game 19 (Sat): Anthony Ferrara followed by Michael
Thompson – @ Elizabethton Twins
©
2009 stlcardinals.scout.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be
published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.