Comments on: 2009 River Bandits Pitching Stats

By: cariocacardinal

cariocacardinal — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 22:33:24 +0000

The first time I’d heard the top 10 pick quote from Mo.

By: sluhser

sluhser — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 19:42:03 +0000

Here’s the whole story. I sure hope the agent is actually right and not just protecting his client.

Wagner Mateo — the 16-year-old outfielder who signed a $3.1 million bonus, the most ever given to an amateur Latin American position player — is having vision problems that may affect his contract status with the St. Louis Cardinals, according to several Latin American baseball sources.

The sources indicate that the Dominican-born Mateo has recently undergone several eye examinations and that the Cardinals are waiting for results to see if Mateo has a degenerative condition that would impair his future as a baseball player. If so, then it’s possible that the Cardinals would take action to reclaim all or part of that record bonus.

Jeff Luhnow, the Cardinals vice president of baseball development, declined to comment on Mateo’s possible medical issue, but did clarify that Mateo “has been signed and his contract has been approved by Major League Baseball.”

Not speaking specifically about Mateo, Luhnow said a contract already approved by MLB can be altered because, “there are rules that MLB sets up in regards to pre-existing conditions.”

Edgar Mercedes, Mateo’s agent and trainer, blamed the eye issues on faulty contact lenses.

“It’s not a problem,” Mercedes said. “He has contact lenses that gave him an infection that affected his cornea. He used contact lenses that weren’t the correct size for his eyeballs. He’s recuperating now and is doing well.”

Several teams, including the San Francisco Giants, had expressed a serious interest in signing Mateo, a sweet-stroking center fielder considered by many to be the most advanced hitting prospect in Latin America this year. Many thought the 6-foot-2, 190-pound Mateo would eventually end up as a corner outfielder.

Mateo was also considered a relatively risk-free signing since he quickly passed his MLB age investigation without a hitch. All those factors weighed heavily in Mateo getting a record deal. Pitcher Michel Ynoa’s $4.25 million deal with the Oakland Athletics in 2008 remains the biggest deal given to any Latin American amateur player.

Any serious issues with Mateo would be a blow to the Cardinals, who are trying to emerge as big players in the Latin American market. At the time of the signing, Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak told reporters at a press conference in Santo Domingo that he would have considered Mateo a top-10 pick had he been eligible for the amateur draft and added, “I do think he’ll be a quick mover [in our system]. He’s advanced for 16.”

By: Pierce

Pierce — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 18:57:38 +0000

Nothing to do with QC, but there’s an ESPN Insider article that mentioned Mateo is having problems with his vision, which may affect his contract with the Cardinals.

Here’s the quote from the free content preview:
Wagner Mateo — the 16-year-old outfielder who signed a $3.1 million bonus, the most ever given to an amateur Latin American position player — is having vision problems that may affect his contract status with the St. Louis Cardinals, according to several Latin American baseball sources.

By: ridgesee

ridgesee — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 14:15:48 +0000

With Quad Cities offense it had to be tough pitching there this year. They were a bunch of “hitless wonders.”

By: tom s.

tom s. — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 17:56:05 +0000

funny that the batavia staff had almost the entire staff at or above average, while the river bandits are, with a couple of exceptions, below average.

By: RobertoRydeWagner

RobertoRydeWagner — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 17:42:57 +0000

The best pitches for Walters are a changeup and forkball; he will use a fastball to keep batters honest. Brad was a reliever at QC and a sinker baller.
Mulligan is significantly different from Brad or PJ. He is a short reliever. He has a strong arm, the reason he got tried at 3B and catcher, before going out to the hill, like Motte and David Carpenter. Mulligan will never be a starting pitcher like Walters who can throw alot of innings. He has a stronger arm than Thompson.

The Cards had a surplus of relievers this year for QC. Buursma and Frevert were stuck in EST because of limited roster spots for relievers, and had no difficulty with QC when they finally got a chance.

With a shortage of starters, Zawacki got called on and got hit around, before hurt.

McCully had a rough intro. The Cards hoped he could begin at QC, but he got smacked. Schneider had a fine beginning in pro ball. Maybe he could become a Brad Thompson of the future.

By: CRay

CRay — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 15:54:43 +0000

Agree with Grunto on Nieto. Compare his stats with those of McGregor or Thomas, both of whom were worse and are older. Also, my impression is that Nieto had a very inconsistent year – some starts he was shutdown (one of which I saw) and others he was quite mediocre. And, I also saw an impressive start by Schneider, who turned 21 in early June. Small samples all around and certainly nothing great jumps out, but there may be a few things there.

By: Gruntosaurus

Gruntosaurus — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 14:41:01 +0000

Buursma is another one who’s old for the level. Nieto, by contrast, was young for it. I’d be more excited about him going forward, “average” here or not, than Buursma, unless there is a clear difference in both stuff and projectability.

Could somebody do a good analysis on just how Casey Mulligan gets guys out? If PJ Walters or Brad Thompson is his upside, based on similarities in how they pitch, then he’s not all that exciting, but guys who hold the opposition to less than 7 H/9 while advancing two levels in one year don’t grow on trees.

And oh MAN, does it warm the heart to see Shelby Miller’s name here, even if it’s at the bottom of the list.