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38 Responses to “Minor Leagues: Despite Strikeouts, Carrasco Faring Poorly”

1. Justin Says:
   May 13th, 2009 at 2:26 pm

   Defense has played a part in Carrasco’s poor outings, I’ve seen him pitch 2 different times at LHV and he generally runs into problems around the 5th or 6th innings either due to control, just getting a little outside the zone and walks build up or just poor fielding. I’m not making excuses for the kid because he’s still young and still going through the growing pains of being a pitcher at the AAA level. He’s got some veteran pitchers around him that are hopefully helping him learn.

2. Justin Says:
   May 13th, 2009 at 2:29 pm

   on another note how would they call up someone to take one of the 2 games, they would have to send someone down or put someone on the D.L. I would think that would be Cairo but in a DH but that wouldn’t work because you would need to try to get a few guys a rest in the back end or maybe the front of a DH. Either way they’ll need every bat and arm on deck for that. They have a day off Monday that buys them an extra day for one of the pitchers, in theory they could throw 2 starters and not have to call up a Kendrick or Lehr or whoever.

3. Mark B Says:
   May 13th, 2009 at 2:38 pm

   If I remember correctly, Carrasco and Marson were rated the top 2 prospects in the entire organization, about a year ago. I have high hopes for both of them, despite these growing pains.

4. Manny Says:
   May 13th, 2009 at 2:56 pm

   Let’s hope that Jamie Moyer (today) or Joe Blanton (Friday) don’t blow up and we end up putting Happ for multiple innings. The guy needs/deserves to get the start on Saturday.

5. Geoff Says:
   May 13th, 2009 at 3:01 pm

   That tells me that Carrasco is no longer the top pitching prospect in this organization, and this is not good. Drabek, Worley, Stutes, & Knapp Project are performing better at their own levels right now. Which is good, but not good that our best pitching prospects are NOT really ready for or really close to the majors now. We have GREAT young pitching coming up but its all at the AA & down level for the most part.

   My guess is unless he starts dealing, Carrasco is PRIME to be packaged for a starting pitcher of some sort at the deadline.

6. mikemike Says:
   May 13th, 2009 at 3:11 pm

   Our top prospect is Dominic Brown, a outfielder, then you have a true number one in Drabek, followed by marson, donald, taylor[ a stud outfielder] then you can fill in carrasco, Worley,Stutes, Knapp[who is clocked at 96-97 with a work in progress breaking ball.

7. Geoff Says:
   May 13th, 2009 at 3:25 pm

   Yeah I know I meant, Carrasco might have lost the top pitching prospect label by now. Once Kyle Drabek gets back to being stretched out for 6-7+ innings (theyre taking it easy on him because of the TJ surgery) hell be top guy by far. That guy, and potentially Knapp are the two guys in their farm system with true blue “Ace” potential.

8. Justin Says:
   May 13th, 2009 at 3:27 pm

   Carrasco was #2 behind Dom Brown. Carrasco just has to find his groove, he’s made 5 or 6 starts this season, let’s not jump the bandwagon because he had 2 or 3 rough outings. Besides what team is going to want a prospect that is struggling with AAA hitters? No one, he’d be sent to AA or back to another AAA team and face the same problems. He’s still only 22 yrs old, he has time to develop, look at Hamels we never thought we’d ever see a finished product between the injuries and the broken hand, and now he’s an ace, carrasco just needs to figure out what he’s been doing wrong to right the ship.

9. Justin Says:
   May 13th, 2009 at 3:28 pm

   Carrasco was #2 behind Dom Brown. Carrasco just has to find his groove, he’s made 5 or 6 starts this season, let’s not jump the bandwagon because he had 2 or 3 rough outings. Besides what team is going to want a prospect that is struggling with AAA hitters? No one, he’d be sent to AA or back to another AAA team and face the same problems. He’s still only 22 yrs old, he has time to develop, look at Hamels we never thought we’d ever see a finished product between the injuries and the broken hand, and now he’s an ace, carrasco just needs to figure out what he’s been doing wrong to right the ship.

   BTW The big Putz just blew the tie for the Muts, 7-6 Braves in the top of the 8th.

10. Rick Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:28 pm

    How’s Joe Savary doing? Anyone hear anything on him? He was our #1 pick I think in 2007 out of Rice University.

11. Justin Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:30 pm

    He’s not looking like the ace he thought he’d be. He’s missing locations and getting hit around but he’s 2-2. He’s more in the mold of a Joe Blanton or Jamie Moyer in that he pitches to contact which i guess is a change of pace with the other top pitchers in our system that are more strikeout pitchers.

12. christopher Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:53 pm

    how is he a contact pitcher if he’s averaging a strikeout/inning even when he’s struggling? if you had to compare carrasco to a current phillies pitcher it’s clearly hamels: he’s a fastball/changeup pitcher with a dominating change that is his out pitch. anyway, i still have faith in carrasco, a few bad starts early don’t have me that worried. let’s check back in a few months and see where things are then.

13. Don M Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:53 pm

    Good thing Carrasco is only 22-years-old …otherwise, PhilliesNation would freak out and start talking about trading him because he’s not an “ACE”

    Little early to be talking about 18-year-old Jason Knapp (4.32 ERA at A-Lakewood) as the ACE-in-waiting .. isn’t it?

    Carrasco is a guy with good “stuff” … he’s 22 years old, so the more he learns HOW TO PITCH.. not just HOW TO THROW.. he’ll get better, and at 22, he’s got lots of time..

    Unless of course fans want to trade him, or trade everyone in front of him, for no reason

14. Manny Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:58 pm

    Damn, one of our top prospects is having a rough start and some think we should trade him? No way!!

15. Don M Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:59 pm

    Carrasco and Savery are both simply allowing too many baserunners… both have WHIP (walks plus hits, per innings pitched) over 1.50

    Savery (23) has 15 walks, 25 Ks, 33 hits.. in 32 innings.. a 4.22 ERA

    Carrasco (22) has 8 walks, 37 Ks, 46 hits.. in 35 innings.. a 6.62 ERA

    I’d think that Savery is trade-bait if anyone is.. a Lefty-pitcher that will be a back-end rotation starter in the Major Leagues..

16. Justin Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:59 pm

    Well christopher if your going to look at his strikeout to inning ratio why don’t you look at his hit per inning ratio where he’s given up 33 hits in 32 1/3 innings, which is slightly more than a hit an inning, which shows he pitches to a lot more contact.

    I agree with Don people are taking things a little out of proportion. He’s in the minors for a reason, to learn how to pitch, to learn how to read scouting reports and to find out what works and in what situations. Give the kid a break, Knapp will more than likely be in the same boat as Carrasco because they’re both throwers and have to learn to rely on scouting reports more than just their ability to throw, that’s why you see those two get into jams and guys like Worley and Stutes who have gone through college hitters and learned how to pitch blow through the system.

17. shag beta sigma delta Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:16 pm

    there is no reason to bring up another pitcher to pitch the second game against the NATS, We have a starter in the pull pen his name is JA Happ, who needs to get into the starting rotation by July 4 or the phillies are crazy, oh wait that is me who is crazy.

18. christopher Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:24 pm

    justin, almost every pitcher gives up hits when he’s struggling. just because he’s giving up hits when he’s pitching poorly doesn’t mean he’s a “contact pitcher”. i’m fairly certain if you look at carrasco’s scouting report he is not typically considered a contact pitcher.

19. Don M Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:25 pm

    I’m not even positive if they’ll start Happ.. with an Off-Day on Monday.. maybe they want Happ to be available in long-relief still

    because there is no guarantee that he’ll give you 6+ innings as a starter because he hasn’t thrown that long in the better part of a year!

    I think Happ SHOULD get the start, but I’m not positive that he will

20. Rob Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:28 pm

    Philliesnation bus trip might get to see Happ make his first start. It will be like a home game for Happ, does anyone go to the NATS games?

21. Michael N. Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:33 pm

    Use Kendrick why even toy with Happ give him 1 start and put him back in the Pen kinda pointless at least with Kendrick you can see how his confidence and pitching has improved against Major League talent even if it is the Nationals.

22. Michael N. Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:34 pm

    I Have Faith in Kendrick. I predict if he starts he’ll stop Zimmerman Streak!!!

23. Chuck P Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:37 pm

    Turds… Kyle Drabek is pitching for A and having more success, I agree. Does that mean that he’s a better pitcher than Carlos Carrasco??? Hell no… it means that Carlos Carrasco, who is pitching against hungry AAA prospects, has not put up the numbers that he is capable of and Drabek is getting the confidence he needs to make the jump to AA. Carrasco is also battling elbow soreness… I can’t believe I’m saying this but RELAX. Now is not time to give up on him or annoint Drabek, Savery or ANYONE else as our top prospect. Carlos Carrasco has top of the rotation talent. Drabek might also posess that level of talent but I’ll need to see him pitch at AA or better before jumping to any conclusions.

24. Geoff Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:40 pm

    Kendrick is not a legitimate major league pitcher. It has to be Happ on Saturday.

25. Chuck P Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:49 pm

    I think that Happ gets the start… he hasn’t gotten much work out of the pen as of late. I think that it depends what happens over these next few games. He hasn’t pitched since April 8… if they don’t use him between now and Saturday, he likely gets the start but that would mean that he would be pitching on 10 days rest… I don’t know if that’s a good thing. Since Carrasco pitched last night, he probably won’t be available. Kyle Kendrick pitched Monday so it sets up almost perfectly that he would be the call up (if they don’t go with Happ).

26. Justin Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:51 pm

    I agree with Michael N. theres no point to giving the start to Happ because it toys with his psyche like we toyed with Madsons’. The guy had no idea what his role was the first 2 or 3 years he was here then the lightbulb finally turned on and he improved on his job as a reliever/setup man.

    Like i said earlier i don’t think with the off day on Monday it’s neccessary to bring a guy up or force Happ into an emergency start, you can throw 2 starters on saturday and both would have 5 days off until their next start. If my math is right it would be Park/Moyer if they threw their 2 starters and it would be legit 5 days for Park and 4 for Moyer, but Moyer’s ability to be a contact or groudball pitcher would work on 4 days rest and give him 6 days rest for his next start.

27. mikemike Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:52 pm

    Based on pure stuff ,YES, Drabek is a better prospect, The only reason he isn’t in reading is weather . They really want to go easy with him. I was reading that the tigers were doing the same with portello he is in the majors already at twenty and on a pitch count in each start. he is the player I wanted instead of Savery in the draft. Savery is throwing 88-89 with no movement on his fastball. He is out of rice. known for ruining pitchers, same as Stanford hurts players swings with there technique, fortunally Taylor in reading is getting away from that swing, mayberry can’t it seems. Trading Carrasco is what people think it would take to get a harden or peavy, personally I think they would want Drabek or Worley plus two others like taylor or brown and marson.Even though they rated carrasco high in our system before the last two drafts we had nothing. but so far we have put some players in the system with the last two drafts, a lot of scouts even last year had carrasco as a back of the rotation guy, where drabek is a #1.

28. Don M Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:55 pm

    It won’t be anyone that’s not on the roster right now.. becuase if they called up Kendrick (please God, no) .. or Carrasco.. they would need to send someone down because you can only carry 25 guys on the roster.

    Happ is available, but as he is the long reliever.. he might be needed when playing two games in the same day..

    It’s either Happ, or whoever would follow Myers in the rotation normally.. since Monday is an off-day

29. Justin Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:59 pm

    Mets blow the game, lose 8-7 to the Braves, who are starting to look formidable after taking 2 of 3 from us and the Muts. I guess they think they’re for real.

30. Don M Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:07 pm

    Braves had Brian McCann and Garret Anderson both missing for a while a few weeks ago.. when they’ve got their whole lineup, they are a solid team..

    They should hang around .500 all year.. not enough in the bullpen to hang with the big boys.. but they’ve got a STUD pitcher waiting Tommy Hanson.. and they are usually in talks around the trade deadlines.. with Chipper Jones healthy, they can battle if they add some pieces

31. Justin Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:11 pm

    Hanson is in the same spot, minus the high era, that Carrascos in. No support and i think he’s like 0-2 or 0-3 the last i looked and that was like Friday of last week i think.

32. Don M Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:21 pm

    One of my good friends is a Braves fan.. so i’ve been hearing how great Hanson is for the past couple summers.. my buddy lives in Myrtle Beach where they have a minor league team so he’s seen him a ton

    Hanson is 6′6″ and has been “BIG” so far his minor league career

    in 71 games over 4 seasons, a 2.65 ERA .. Now the impressive stats: K’s per 9 innings = 10.7 (walks 3.3 per 9 innings) Hits per 9 innings = 6.4 WHIP = 1.07

    so it looks like he thorws lots of pitches.. but at 6′6″ tall, he’s got a Major league body already.. Chipper Jones said out of Spring Training that he should be in their rotation (Chipper is a lifetime .310 hitter, so he knows which pitchers are legit)

33. Don M Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:24 pm

    To all those former Kendrick-Lovers:

    Another stat to show how “WINS” don’t mean much..

    Tommy Hanson with a 1.99 ERA in 40.2 Innings.. 27 hits, 57 Ks… has a 1-3 record..

34. NJ Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:33 pm

    Tommy Hanson scares me more than global warming and Tim Lincecum combined.

35. Chase Mutley Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:36 pm

    I don’t know what you guys are talking about, with those numbers he’s PERFECT for this rotation.

36. Don M Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:42 pm

    Rosie O’Donnell scares me most

    Off to the game.. tonight and tomrw.. peace yo’s

    Go Fightin’s

37. Ed Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:47 pm

    The trend with Carrasco is to start strong and then get bored and lose focus. This isnt just within a game, but for the whole season. What im getting at is that he tends to feel like he is better than his situation. He did nothing to deserve a promotion last year, but once he did, he ripped up AAA. Anyone who has seen him in spring training the last few years can attest to the fact that he has looked pretty good…regardless of the drop off at the end this year. He performed well in the futures game as well. He enjoys pressure, but needs to be challenged. He feels that he should be in the majors and cannot get motivated to play in AAA anymore. In games he starts strong, but eventually gets pulverised. At 22, i guess you can expect this immaturity. He needs to buck up and perform to his ability.

38. Ed Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:55 pm

    …and Tommy Hanson has replaced the low outside slider (no where near the the plate) thrown to Pat Burrell with runners in scoring position as my biggest fear.

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