you just can’t reach.

Show me one of these pitchers you’re talking about who was not allowed to throw his best pitch. Thought so.

Context and scouting. Like I said, there are tons of pitchers in the same league that dwarfed Porcello’s k rate. Most of them couldn’t hold Porcello’s jock from a talent perspective and therefore will never go as far as he will.

Here’s a good example for you. Jeff Samardzija. Wasn’t striking guys out, wasn’t doing a whole lot of things all that impressively. Many scouts stuck to their guns, as did the Cubs personnel in charge of player development. They taught him some things and promoted him aggressively, despite 99% of people on boards like this saying they were crazy. Looks like the scouts were on to something, no? In Porcello’s case, it’s even more compelling because he actually did have great results – despite not racking up ton’s of k’s and being very young for his league. Many of the scouts that were touting Shark are the same ones saying glowing things about Porcello.

If you want to look at prospects through an entirely stat-oriented view and neglect context, be my guest. You’re going to be wrong about a lot of guys – not to mention it raises the question of why you’re even paying that much attention to prospects if you can order your top 100 directly off the stat sheets.. At the same time, scouts aren’t infalable, but it’s very wise to listen them, especially when they make as much racket as they are over someone like Porcello.

Or because he wasn’t allowed to throw what may be his best pitch this year. I don’t get why some people can’t wrap their brain around that concept.

when the shackles come off you’ll see what some of us see already. that is the big picture.