Seems like most every team has an arsenal of power arms in their bullpens ... often times they are fellas most fans havenât heard much about. This yearâs Rays used a dominating crew of relievers to drive their way to the World Series and the 2020 champion Dodgers also featured a bevy of powerful relievers ...
Since Iâve got a bit of time on my hands I thought Iâd search the minor league systems of each of the other 29 clubs to identify minor league free agents that might fit with the Phillies as part of a power pen arsenal, with both immediate needs and short term minor league development in mind ... if ya missed the previous articles in this series here are links :
... hereâs a look at the National League Western Division. This is the last of the series ... just some amateur scouting via research on the internet ... for whatever itâs worth đ¤Ş
Dodgers
Reymin Gudian - 28 year old LHP ( 6â4â 205 ) - originally signed by Houston Astros on 5/29/2010. Signed by Dodgers as a free agent in December of 2019. Heâs appeared in 32 major league games with the Astros ( 2017-2019) with 26 Kâs and 12 BB in 24.2 IP and a very high ERA. He was suspended for disciplinary reasons by Astros in the minor leagues after fighting with a teammate over chiding about being unable to throw strikes in a game.
I found this observation report on him ... âGuduan throws extremely hard (normally sitting in the 95-97 MPH range). Heâs been clocked as high as 100 in the minors. The fastball has movement and he combines it with an impressive slider. Unfortunately, Guduanâs pitches have so much movement and velocity that he has trouble controlling them. Despite all the hard stuff, heâs had consistent difficulty keeping right-handed batters from hitting him hard, probably due to lack of an effective off-speed pitch. His control has improved from terrible to below average over the last two years and further improvement could make him dominant. That hasnât happened yet, though. No one will give up on him quickly due to his arm strength.â
Anthony Vizcaya - 27 year old RHP ( 6â0â 220 ) - sat in the 94-96 range with Twins AA team ( Pensacola ) in 2019 with a stellar 0.78 ERA in 26 games ( 48 Kâs in 46 IP ... 20 BB ) ... also showed good secondaries ( changeup and slider ). Was signed by Dodgers 1/7/2020 ... originally signed by Cleveland Indians in 2012 - played independent baseball after being released following the 2014 season - signed by Twins in 2019. Heâs a diehard ... gotta like that đđ¤
Giants
Rodolfo Martinez 26 year old RHP ( 6â2â 200 ) - âmade a head turning appearing in 2020 spring training as a minor league game day call-up - Martinez entered the game and touched 100 miles per hour on the stadium radar gun. The unheralded reliever allowed a two-out ninth inning single, but reached back for some high-90s heat to strike out former Giants infielder Alen Hanson and end the game.â - SF Chronicle
âFB has been clocked as high as 103 mph, Martinez has a big league fastball that has the potential to be a dominant pitch, but he hasnât learned to command it effectively within the strike zoneâ.
Was signed by the Giants as an amateur free agent 9/16/2013 ... reached the AA level three years later. From what Iâve read heâs an extreme power arm that needs to learn how to pitch ... Iâm a believer that can be taught đ¤
Diamondbacks - I couldnât find any âbig arm âfree agent pitchers from their system this year
Rockies :
Tim Collins - 31 year old LHP ( 5â7â 166 ) - he was signed by the Rockies 11/19 and is a veteran hurler whoâs pitched six years in the major leagues with the Royals, Nationals and Cubs ... has made 275 appearances with a 3.60 ERA in 242 IP. Collins garners good speed on his FB (averaging 93â94 mph, tops out at 97 mph) and also features two off-speed pitches, a curve at 74â77 mph and a change-up at 83â85 mph. An big league experienced lefty that may fly under the radar đ¤¨.
Padres
Hansel Rodriguez - 23 year old RHP ( 6â2â 170 ) - originally signed by the Blue Jays on 1/6/14 as a 16 year old he was traded to San Diego on 7/26/16 for Melvin Upton. A starter in the Blue Jays system he was converted to a reliever by the Padres and has fared much better ... 2.92 ERA in 19 games ( 24.2 IP ) with 32 Kâs/ 7 BB at the High A level in 2019. FB generally sits 94-96 but flashes 97-98 ... slider is best secondary offering ... he was once considered as being a top 20 prospect in the Jays system ... might be worth a look as word is heâs got a loose arm that with some mechanical tweaks could push him consistently into the upper 90âs ... is just 23 years old.
Happy Day, Happy Baseball âžď¸
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