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Under the Radar: Tommy Mendoza

After talking last time about Yankees pitcher D.J. Mitchell, I've decided to continue this series with a profile on Angels righty Tommy Mendoza.

Mendoza's Background

The Angels drafted Mendoza in the 4th round in 2005, and Baseball America rated him as the #10 prospect in the system prior to both 2006 and 2007. Sickels, meanwhile, rated him 7th and 9th in the system, with grades B and C+, respectively. This was all a response to the great success he had since being drafted, with an 8.67 K/9 and a 1.74 BB/9 over the two seasons. However, Mendoza took major steps back in 2007, as he was hit far more often, and saw a steep decline in his strikeouts. He dropped almost completely off the radar, not making John's 2008 Angels' list. And, last season, there were even more setbacks for the pitcher, with a Noah Lowry-esque 50/39 K/BB in 110 innings. Still, though, Mendoza had just completed a season at one of the toughest parks in baseball (high-A Rancho Cucamonga), and was still just 21 going into 2009.

Typecasting Mendoza

Before we talk about Mendoza's 2009 line, let's look at the type of pitcher that he is. He primarily throws three pitches: an 89-94 MPH fastball, an average- if inconsistent- curveball, and a changeup. He has multiple different looks to his fastball- Baseball America said in multiple reports that Mendoza knows when to add and remove velocity from it, and could also cut it or throw a two-seamer when needed. Lastly, Mendoza tends to be a fairly extreme fly ball pitcher, but has for the most part done a good job of keeping the ball in the park. I usually tend to take interest in strike-throwing ground ball pitchers, but Mendoza may be even more interesting as a fly ball pitcher with very good control.

I've thought for a good amount of time about a comparison for Mendoza, and I think he profiles as a righty version of Jarrod Washburn. Washburn has similar fastball velocity, a similar secondary arsenal (slider/change), and has a diverse arsenal of fastballs, like Mendoza. He's also a flyball pitcher that struggles to get K's (but has good control), and is even the same height/weight as our young Angels prospect. I think Washburn is an excellent best-case scenario here, and at the age of 21, Mendoza has plenty of time to reach that potential if LA decides that he needs to repeat AA or AAA.

The Mendoza Line in 2009

If I had to pick one prospect that has really, truly impressed and surprised me this season, it would be Mendoza. His 2009 has been exceptional... The Angels aggressively started him at AA (even though he had struggled somewhat at high-A), and he has more than answered the call. Although his K/9 is still unspectacular (6.0), Mendoza has further refined his control, and his H/9 has dropped to its lowest level since 2006. With good surface stats (3.47 ERA, 1.27 WHIP), it's hard to explain why he's not getting attention this season, even if his ceiling is only that of a back-end starter.

What to Expect Going Forward

Mendoza is not a shiny prospect. He's been around forever, but is still just 21 years old. He's gotten attention before, and he's gone way downhill after receiving it. However, he looks like as good a bet as any right now, and has been consistently good at AA through the season. I can't see the Angels pushing him to AAA this season, but he should start there next year. If he continues to put up these types of numbers, the Angels may need him sometime in 2010. It doesn't seem like LA will have a tough rotation to crack, and an injury or two could force their hand with Mendoza.

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