Jeremy Sowers Info

He has a chance at being a #3-4 starter, but it's hard not to be bitter after he burned me this year.     He'll really have to get his control pinpoint though, as his stuff is average and doesn't get a lot of Ks or groundballs.  I see Kevin Slowey as his upside, but of course we don't know what that even means yet.

Hello CouncilmanJim,

Ironically, I just finished posting a response to another Sowers' topic over at LGT - you can see my post here.  You may also want to check out that whole thread, as Jay and others had some insightful points to make about Sowers' performances at AAA this year - you can see the whole thread here.

Essentially, one has to keep in mind that Sowers only had 1.5 seasons before he reached the Majors; in addition, he did have a 7.65 K/9 IP rate - while that may not be considered a stellar K rate, for a guy with the stuff of Sowers, that's still pretty darn good in my opinion, at a level where the pretenders are usually separated from the contenders.

Also realize that, SSS understood, Sowers' K rate at AAA this season has increased by over 0.50 K/9 IP compared to last season (currently 5.55, compared to 4.99 in 2006.)

Plus, as I mentioned in that post, how has Moyer been pitching so well all these years?  It's certainly not with a high K rate (6.07 was his highest post-Cubs era K/9 IP rate, and that was back in 1998 - he's been between 4.5 and 5.7 since 1998.)  Moyer's fastball is a good 5-7 MPH slower than Sowers'; while Moyer's offspeed stuff is a little better than Sowers', I wouldn't put his changeup at Santana's, or even Sabathia's level.  

In fact, I really can't say any of Moyer's pitches are stellar; a bit above-average, perhaps, but certainly not at a stellar or dynamite level - Moyer's main way of getting one out is to keep the hitter off-balance and outthink the hitter.  That's what Sowers did so well last year.  At age 24, a good 5-10 years younger than the age Moyer turned himself into the pitcher he is today, I certainly agree with Congo Hammer that Sowers still has a solid chance to turn into a #3-#4 starter.  While expecting him to become the next Moyer may be a little much, for him to follow the same blueprint to reach a level of success that would make Sowers valuable is not out of the question in my opinion, especially not at age 24.  

Like I said in that post, Sowers has spent less time in the Minor League system than pitching prospects with better stuff and velocity, like Adam Miller, Chuck Lofgren, Aaron Laffey, Sean Smith, etc.  Doesn't that suggest that Sowers might be going through an adjustment period - after all, he didn't have a half-a-season at the ML level, and he barely had half-a-season at the AAA level, this from a guy who had over a 7.5 K/9 IP rate at the AA level, at age 22.  That's why I still think Sowers has a solid chance of being a #3-#4 starter in the Majors.  He just needs some more time in the Minors to continue developing consistent command, develop his pitches a little more, and develop his approach to keep hitters off-balance, even after seeing him a time or two in a start or over a season.

Just my 2 cents.  Hopefully, this is helpful.  :-)

Take care and have a great day!

Hello sdtribefan,

Thanks for the compliment - greatly appreciated!  :-)

I try to watch the players when I can, but can't always get out to games; I do try to read through reports that scout them (whether from posted online sources or from people who have seen them play) whenever possible, though that isn't always possible either.  

I appreciate your input on Sowers; I agree he's made progress, but still has room for improvement.  I'm hopeful he can improve his breaking stuff enough to be at least ML average, perhaps maybe even make one of those pitches, like his changeup or curveball, to become good enough to become an out pitch, though if he can at least make them average, along with getting back to being pinpoint in his command, that probably would be enough to make him a serviceable to quality #3-#4 pitcher.  

That's not good that he is trying to overthrow the fastball, as he'll likely lose command of it, which could make it more hittable if he leaves it out over the plate.  Hopefully, he learns to stay within himself and use what he has; many pitchers (Moyer, Maroth, etc.) have shown that an upper-80s fastball can be effective if properly used and placed.

I think Sowers' increased K rate in some of his starts is encouraging, as that is the one main complaint against him.  However, as Jay and I have mentioned on LGT, an increase in Sowers' K rate would not be out of the question, once he adapts and learns how to best use his stuff to attack ML hitters; after all, he barely had a .5 season of AAA, and not even that at the ML level - for him to have these difficulties and him needing to make adjustments is arguably not surprising.  

Jamie Moyer has proven you can pretty much dominate with good command of average to slightly above-average stuff and only register between 4-6 K/game on average, which is why it's way too early to say that Sowers can't become a solid ML pitcher, especially since Sowers is 24-YO, while Moyer was in his early- to mid-30s before he figured out how to have consistent success at the ML level.  Sowers certainly has time on his side at this point.

Just my 2 cents.

Again, appreciate the input on Sowers - keep up the great work!  :-)

Take care and have a great day!