Adam Loewen to convert to 1B/OF

by jonk1982 on Jul 19, 2008 6:07 PM EDT

...Adam Loewen is done as a pitcher. He's going to reinvent himself as an outfielder/first baseman, perhaps as early as the fall instructional league.

Another surgery on his elbow would have sidelined him for an estimated 1 1/2 years, and he wasn't willing to go down that path.

"I'm always going to be a pitcher," he said. "I've been doing it since I was 9 years old. It's going to be hard to let it go, but God has a plan for me."

- Baltimore Sun

Rotoworld's analysis:

Complicating things is that Loewen is out of options. However, there's probably not going to be a host of teams looking to grab him off waivers when he's physically incapable of pitching at the moment. Had he chosen surgery on his elbow, he likely would have been out until 2010. Given that Loewen never hit in the minors and has just two major league at-bats since being drafted in 2002, it's hard to imagine him becoming a useful hitter for the Orioles.

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wow

good luck, i guess.

by god allah star on Jul 19, 2008 7:10 PM EDT 0 recs

What about the injury?

Isn’t that going to slow him down as a hitter too? He will still have to make throws from the OF.

"My mom always taught me it's better to laugh at yourself than to laugh at others. She was so wrong. ;)" -Pedrophile

by Boxkutter on Jul 19, 2008 7:17 PM EDT 0 recs

not a problem

According to the full article in the Sun, the injury shouldn’t bother him as an oufielder. He won’t have to throw as hard or as frequently as he does when he pitches.

by edsachs1 on Jul 21, 2008 2:18 PM EDT up 0 recs

Pitts

The Pirates should have done this with John Van Benschoten years ago … probably from the day they signed him, but certainly after he started having arm problems.

by StickRat on Jul 19, 2008 7:47 PM EDT 0 recs

Yeah

Odd part (maybe?) is that the Orioles were one of the few teams that liked Loewen as a pitcher at the time he was drafted, and the Pirates were the only team that liked JVB as a pitcher when he was drafted. It seems like it usually works out better when teams decide to make the highly drafted player a hitter rather than a pitcher (see: Hamilton, Markakis, etc.).

Vogt early, Vogt often.

by Brickhaus on Jul 21, 2008 2:39 PM EDT up 0 recs

Another one

James Loney

by npurcell on Jul 21, 2008 6:43 PM EDT up 0 recs

Although not an elite draft prospect

Jordan Schafer is another example

Tools Whore

Sign Bonds!

by Tyler on Jul 21, 2008 8:38 PM EDT up 0 recs

Mitch Moreland

Anyone see what he is doing at Class-A Clinton? Engel Beltre is getting all the attention, but Moreland has quietly become the standout bat for Texas in the low minors. Most thought he was a pitcher out of MSU.

by StickRat on Jul 21, 2008 10:21 PM EDT up 0 recs

Response

I think a lot of this just has to do with the high rate of attrition associated with young pitchers. There are certainly cases where the players turn out just fine, but it’s not like having a good bat as an amateur spares one from the various perils of professional pitching. So yeah, I would agree that it probably does work out better when you opt to make the player a hitter rather than a pitcher . . .but it’s often not due to scouting error, if that makes any sense.

So why do teams choose to make a given prospect a pitcher instead of a hitter despite the huge additional risk they’re taking on as a result of that choice? That answer to that one is obvious, because teams need pitchers, and very talented ones in particular. So if they feel the evaluation of the given player’s talent as a pitcher is correct and the player represents the best selection among the available options . . .well, there you go.

JVB and Markakis were odd cases of teams going against prevailing opinion – naturally, you have totally different results, and not the results that you would expect.

by mrkupe on Jul 23, 2008 4:57 PM EDT up 0 recs

Stick a Fork in Loewen, He's DONE!

.350 with 1 HR in JUCO and now trying to convert? He has nice size, but this guy isn’t nearly the overall athlete Rick Ankiel was. This whole thing just seems like a pipe dream.

Mike N.
Jadedvoices.blogspot.com

by Fivebucs on Jul 19, 2008 8:44 PM EDT 0 recs

I wouldn't be so sure

he can’t be Ankiel.
Many Canadian scouts think he was as good, or better, a hitter than any Canadian in the last few years… that includes a first-rounder in Lawrie and a prospect in Weglarz. Some have said, as an amatuer, he was as good or better than an MVP.. Morneau

by nms on Jul 20, 2008 3:22 AM EDT up 0 recs

But...

they’re Canadians… what do they know?

"My mom always taught me it's better to laugh at yourself than to laugh at others. She was so wrong. ;)" -Pedrophile

by Boxkutter on Jul 20, 2008 3:43 AM EDT up 1 recs

LOL

by LCT on Jul 20, 2008 8:16 AM EDT up 0 recs

God injures injures elbows?

What a jerk. If only God told high school pitchers not to demand major league contracts.

by aap212 on Jul 19, 2008 8:55 PM EDT 0 recs

Yes, Adam

God’s plan is to have you sit around the low minors for a few years and then get a job as a tire salesman.

It’s all for the best, really.

Your 2008 Athletics: It's Nothing Personal.

by PaulThomas on Jul 19, 2008 10:06 PM EDT 0 recs

I don't understand why.

He isn’t that old. Its not like he’s 27 or 28 and wouldn’t be back til his 30’s. He would have plenty of time to get back on his feet.

The vagaries of professional baseball can be so sweet and yet so sour.

Accidentally not thedude925 anymore. I do hate this new name.

by wildthang on Jul 19, 2008 11:18 PM EDT 0 recs

Look at his medical history

He had a stress fracture in his arm last year.

They tried to fix it by putting a six-inch screw in his arm to hold the bone together, but he just recently re-injured himself while pitching. The same stress fracture opened up again, and the bone split around the screw.

I think his arm simply never will be able to stand up to the stresses of pitching in the major leagues.

He’s an incredible longshot to ever contribute as a hitter, but I think he’s an even longer shot as a pitcher.

by dkdc on Jul 19, 2008 11:57 PM EDT up 0 recs