Baseball America debuted their New York/Penn League top 20 prospects today. 2007 second round RHP Jordan Zimmermann was #5, 2006 fourth round LHP Glenn Gibson was #9, and 2006 first round RHP Colton Willems was #11.
Quick hits on each …
- Zimmermann - Zimmermann’s heavy, sinking fastball sits at 91-93 mph range and touches 94, and its life makes it a true plus pitch. He attacks the strike zone with his fastball, his hard slider with late bite and his decent changeup. He’s also working on a 12-to-6 curveball because the Nationals don’t like their young pitchers to throw sliders. Zimmermann has strong legs and good mechanics, and he should only get better the more he pitches in warmer weather.
- Gibson - Gibson pores over hitting and pitching charts before every start so he can exploit hitters’ weaknesses. He mixes speeds and locations very well. He’s starting to fill out his lean frame and he ran his fastball up to 91 mph this summer, though he usually pitches in the high 80s with late movement.
- Willems - He came out strong this summer, regularly running his fastball up to 94-95 mph and pitching in the low 90s. His downer curveball and changeup are both promising offerings, but he’s still working on refining his command.
VladiHondo | 26-Sep-07 at 12:13 pm | Permalink
So BA differs with you on Willems, putting him 3rd instead of 1st, but says he’s got a better fastball, but Gibson has plus off-speed pitches.
Great job on the recaps!
Query | 26-Sep-07 at 12:47 pm | Permalink
“He’s also working on a 12-to-6 curveball because the Nationals don’t like their young pitchers to throw sliders”
Hmmm. Wonder when (and who) implimented this policy. Good or bad, it seems to indicated that some kind of “Nats Way” is finally in place.
Louis J. | 26-Sep-07 at 4:53 pm | Permalink
Query
The NATS WAY/PITCHING PHILOSOPHY has been established by Spin Williams, the Nats pitching instructor for the minors. According to Williams, some of that philosophy is as follows: Work on the delivery remembering some basic pitching principles such as, throwing off their backside, being in a power position and throwing downhill. Also a top priority is the fastball, thrown over the heart of the plate and down, way down, at the hollow of the knee. over and over again, and then offset by the straight changeup. Emphasis is placed on command and control of those 2 pitches, first. No breaking balls. Stresses that pitchers attach the strike zone and when they get ahead, to extend the strike zone. As a pitcher progresses, work begins on developing other pitches and then, learning how to pitch.
And many other prinicples. (see Washington Times article dated 08/03/2007)
Louis J. | 27-Sep-07 at 10:46 am | Permalink
Gibson’s father (Paul) has tutored his son well. Control and command are very important which is Gibson’s big plus. With his secondary pitches and changing speeds, he’ll have a sneaky fastball (89-90) by the time he matures. His mound presence and poise are advanced for his age. I wonder where his father learned this method of pitching? (Maybe from the pitcher who were successful during the years he played). I can see Gibson’s promotion to Potomac in the second half, 2008.
P.S.- I understand that Gibson (son) and Lannan met in the off-season and that Gibson’s father help Lannan over the off-season with his stuff, etc. which could explain why Lannan had such a good 2007 year (Potomac to Harrisburg to Columbus to the Nationals). I wonder if Paul Gibson will be working with his son and Lannan during the off-season, again?! Maybe the Nats should hire Paul Gibson as a pitching instructor!!