Ian Kennedy Dominant in return to minors

by loop on May 6, 2008 9:13 PM EDT Comment 13 comments

7 1/3 Innings

1 Hit

No Runs

No Walks

8 Strikeouts

58/90 pitches went for strikes

Hopefully Kennedy can just gain some confidence down in AAA and come back and perform well on the big stage in NY. I for one am rooting for him. Maybe he just wasn't trusting his stuff with the Yankees and went back to it tonight? In any event, Kennedy will be back up in the big leagues in no time if he can keep progressing like he did tonight. Big first step for him. I didn't think he should have been sent down in the first place

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"Maybe he just wasn't trusting his stuff with the Yankees and went back to it tonight?"

His stuff was never great in the first place. And it certainly wasn’t good enough to fool MLB hitters. Its more probable that he is a back of the rotation starter(4-5) who is showing typical signs of an AAAA pitcher. New York prospects always get overrated.

Go Pirates!!!

by cool hand Charlie on May 6, 2008 10:24 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I don't know what Yankee fans are expecting.

He is nothing more than a 5th starter. He might have a year or 2 approching 2nd to 3rd starter stats but hes just mediocre

by AthleticsReign on May 6, 2008 10:49 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

he nibbled like crazy when he was up in the majors. I think he probably went on the attack mode a little more tonight. I guess time will tell. But I think he’s better than a 5th starter. Matt Belisle-Brett Tomko types are 5th starters.

by loop on May 6, 2008 11:04 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

At one time

Brett Tomko was a top tier prospect – a better overall prospect than Kennedy is now.

by deezle on May 6, 2008 11:38 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

he's a 4-5

hes a control righty without a true out pitch who needs pinpoint precision to be successful…. in AAA they are less patient and less likely to pounce on mistakes…. don’t get me wrong I cheer for every prospect to do well… (ok not all but most who don’t face my team) but be realistic

"If you were a hot dog, would you eat yourself?"

by Trobone on May 6, 2008 11:42 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Yeah hes prob a 4-5 guy..

but thats not a bad thing. If he can produce 10-12 wins a year with a league average ERA Id take it. Most 5th starters are total garbage.

by AdamC on May 7, 2008 12:25 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Response

Technically, if he posts a league average ERA with the durability to pitch enough innings to post double-digit wins every year, that would then make him a “league average starter,” by virtually any measure, would it not? And if he’s a “league average” starter by performance, that would then make him a #3 starter, would it not? It certainly would never leave him being confused for a #5 starter, who is typically a fringe major leaguer with clearly below-average performance.

People hear “league average” or ”#3 starter” and think that says bad things about a pitcher. There’s roughly 60 guys out there who can stake a claim to being a “frontline” starter (read: above-average, a 1 or 2) in a single year, and substantially fewer if you want to evaluate starting pitchers over the course of several years.

by mrkupe on May 7, 2008 4:26 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Watched all of Kennedy's starts this year

He usually sits at 86, sometimes “pumping it up” to 88.

by samjjones on May 7, 2008 7:38 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Based on what?

Gameday has him at 88-90, going as high as 92.

by number_twentyone on May 7, 2008 1:27 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That's the Chuck James and Kyle Davies syndrome

He dominates the minors and has initial success in majors but as soon as hitters see him more than once he gets hit hard.

by Jay212033 on May 7, 2008 2:28 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I think this is a bit different

James only uses 2 pitches basically and Davies had good stuff but his FB was flat and straight as an arrow. I still think Davies problem is mostly psychological/emotional. I think Kennedy is a better pitcher then both of them unfortunately for the Braves and their fans.

by jfish26101 on May 7, 2008 2:53 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs