Bautista makes case for rotation - Page 3

tk13 · 03-10-2005, 12:27 AM

http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/NAS...t=.jsp&c_id=kc

Notes: Bautista getting noticed
Pena says youngster could earn spot in the rotation
By Alan Eskew / Special to MLB.com

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Denny Bautista is the early leader to claim a spot in the Royals' rotation.

Bautista, a 24-year-old rookie right-hander, threw three shutout innings and allowed just one single, while striking out four in the Royals' 6-0 victory over the Mariners on Wednesday.

Royals manager Tony Pena said there is "no way" he could omit Bautista from the rotation if he continues to pitch the way he has been.

In two outings, Bautista has allowed one unearned run in five innings, while striking out eight and walking two.

"This kid has thrown real good in back-to-back games," Pena said. "He's real tough. He threw only 32 pitches today in three innings. He threw only two pitches up in the strike zone. Everything else was down. He had a good changeup, good curveball and a good slider."

Not to mention a fastball that tops out at 98 mph and is consistently 96-97.

"Bautista is one of the most intimidating pitchers I've ever seen," Royals pitching coach Guy Hansen said. "He has got four pitches that are all above average. He has the eye of the tiger. He wants the ball. He's just got an exceptional arm.

"He could be an impact guy. The Royals did a tremendous scouting effort to get him in a trade [with the Orioles last June for veteran reliever Jason Grimsley]. I know a couple of guys called me and said, 'You've got the mother lode.' "

The Royals said Bautista, who stands 6-foot-5, added 20 pounds to his frame and is weighing 190 pounds, which helped increase the velocity on his fastball.

Lima escapes: Jose Lima weaved his way into and out of trouble the first three innings on Wednesday.

Lima did not allow a run, but he yielded five hits, all singles, and walked three. The Royals turned double plays behind him in the first and third innings. In the second with the bases loaded and one out, Lima struck out Jamal Strong and retired Ichiro Suzuki on a ground ball.

"I got the bases loaded, but that didn't bother me," Lima said. "I'm a better pitcher when I'm in trouble. I made some good pitches. I don't try to be too fine."
Pena thought Lima got in jams because "he tried to be fine."

"He tried to make perfect pitches," Pena said.

Pena said Lima's outing was "much better" than his first, when he allowed seven runs, six earned, on eight hits against the Rangers.

"If I get the slider going, watch out," Lima said. "Then I'll have my two-seam fastball, my changeup and my slider. I can throw the changeup anytime I want now for strikes."

Forget about it: Chris George's line looked alarming in the box score: two innings, five hits, three runs, in a loss to the Rockies on Monday.

"The stats lied," Hansen said. "It wasn't an indicator. I actually thought he threw the ball as well as I've seen him. He had a firmness to his breaking ball. He had some deception in his delivery. There were a lot of good things I liked."

George gave up two ground-ball singles off infielders' gloves, a broken-bat single to Desi Relaford and a RBI on a squibbler to the first baseman.

"That's the story of my life," George said. "I was throwing all four pitches for strikes. Again, I didn't walk anybody, which is big for me. I was being aggressive, just trying to make them put the ball in play. I'm not afraid of contact."

George paused and then added, "Maybe I should be," and laughed.

"I felt really good about the way I threw the ball," George said. "I just didn't get the breaks. It's going to equal out in the end."

Guiel meeting: Outfielder Aaron Guiel met with general manager Allard Baird and Pena on Wednesday after a published report came out with the headline: "Guiel: If I'm not starting, I'll probably be departing."

Guiel is competing for an outfield job after missing most of last season because of a vision problem that he corrected with two laser eye surgeries.

"I just wanted to clear the air with Allard and Tony," Guiel said. "I was glad I could meet with both. Allard and I had a nice conversation. I was probably not misquoted, but the quotes were taking out of context.

"I never said if I wasn't starting that I wanted out. All I ever asked for was an opportunity to prove to them that my vision is 100 percent. My eye is 100 percent, but they have to see me perform on the field.

"I have a lot of loyalty to this ballclub. The organization signed me out of the Mexican League [in 2000] and gave me my first opportunity to play in the big leagues."

Injury updates: Tony Graffanino, who has been restricted to DH duties after having shoulder surgery last season, said his throwing is coming along well and that he anticipates he will be able to play second base on Friday in a "B" games against the Rangers.

Pena said third baseman Chris Truby, who has not played since the March 3 opener because of a sore left wrist, will be out at least three or four more days.

siberian khatru · 03-11-2005, 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by beavis

He reminds me a lot of Hal Morris. He might hit .300, but it'll be the emptiest .300 you'll ever see.

The won't keep Pickering and Harvey. They've got Stairs that can play 1st too, and it would pointless to have 4 first baseman on the roster.

Yep on Morris. Dave Magadan, too.

I'd forgotten about Stairs. He's a similar hitter to Pick, too. Those guys would be nice to platoon at the same time against righties.

Pick may be one of those guys who falls through the cracks, often a victim of circumstances. He'll probably have to go to Japan to get full-time work.

tk13 · 03-11-2005, 04:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by siberian khatru

I think Baird's wrong. His .287 avg. last year was highest above Double-A. He's never shown power, not even doubles power. He's a big, slow, right-handed singles hitter with no glove, who doesn't even walk much to supplement his BA. Unless he develops more power, he better hit, like, .320 to contribute. Because even at .300, with all those groundball singles to left, he doesn't provide as much offense as Calvin Pickering hitting .245 but slugging .500 and drawing walks in between.

They ought to platoon them and go with 11 pitchers. Because I don't think that 12th pitcher is going to contribute as much as 350 at-bats from Calvin Pickering in this weak-ass lineup would. I'm dead serious about this: This lineup is in desperate need of guys who can work counts and belt the ball.

Baird always talks about how he hit .370 then got tired in the 2nd half, I think if he didn't do that we wouldn't even be having this discussion. Whether that stretch of play was Ken Harvey or an aberration, I honestly don't know.

I don't think we can go with 11 pitchers, we've gotta keep Andy Sisco on the roster all season. That'd leave it down to Affeldt and 5 other relievers, with Sisco I'm guessing as a mop-up or occassional left handed specialist kind of guy. I don't think anybody wants him in too many pressure situations yet, but maybe he'll rise to the challenge. That's a big jump from A ball though.

siberian khatru · 03-11-2005, 04:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tk13

I don't think we can go with 11 pitchers, we've gotta keep Andy Sisco on the roster all season. That'd leave it down to Affeldt and 5 other relievers, with Sisco I'm guessing as a mop-up or occassional left handed specialist kind of guy. I don't think anybody wants him in too many pressure situations yet, but maybe he'll rise to the challenge. That's a big jump from A ball though.

I can appreciate all that. I'm just not looking forward to watching this "offense" this summer; I'm looking for all the bats I can get. Suck it up, Andy! You're in the big leagues now!

tk13 · 03-11-2005, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by siberian khatru

I can appreciate all that. I'm just not looking forward to watching this "offense" this summer; I'm looking for all the bats I can get. Suck it up, Andy! You're in the big leagues now!

I imagine it'll be really inconsistent at times, guys like Pickering, Stairs, and Long kill righties and we have Marrero and Harvey to hit lefties. Don't forget Aaron Guiel, he is hitting very well this spring. If he's healthy and can see he probably has the ability to take one of these OF spots outright.

Actually as I say that, checking over the game thread on kcroyals.com... Greinke had another rough outing today, but the Royals have come back to tie the game against the A's behind a 3 run double by Guiel and a 2 run homer by Gotay. Both of those guys are tearing it up...

SCTrojan · 03-11-2005, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by beavis

I've heard all that before, but it's basically a bunch of bs to cover the fact that if he stays down for a little over a month, they push out his arbitration/free agency years.

The one thing I hate about Baird is that he often makes up his mind about the prospects (Gotay, Greinke, Teahen) and won't change it DESPITE evidence that they are ready. The biggest example last year was when he refused to bring up Greinke and plugged in Villacis against the Yankees.

Agree with the sentiment about Harvey. He only looks like a decent defensive first baseman in comparison to Sweeney. He doesn't hit for power and he hasn't adjusted to people busting him with high fastballs.

tk13 · 03-14-2005, 12:24 AM

Bautista pitched 2 2/3 innings today, no runs, 3 hits, a walk and 3 strikeouts as the Royals played to a 10-inning draw with the Giants. Gotay, Guiel, and Emil Brown all continued their torrid hitting by hitting back-to-back-to-back homers. Gotay has clearly been the best hitter so far, he's now hitting .480 with 3 doubles, 4 HR, 9 RBI in 25 at-bats.

For the spring, Bautista now has pitched 7.2 IP, 5 H, 3 BB, 11 K, 0.00 ERA. The other interesting tidbit is that in 4 of the last 5 games, the Royals "bullpen" hasn't allowed a run. The starter usually has been going 2-3 innings to get his work in, and that's where all our runs allowed seem to come from, the pitchers following the starter have been nearly perfect. That one game in this stretch where the bullpen was scored on, 3 earned runs came from one pitcher who isn't going to make the team (Roberto Giron), and the only other earned run was given up by Mike Wood. Pretty solid work.

Coach · 03-14-2005, 12:48 AM

Good deal about the Royals lately. But what is up with Greinke?

tk13 · 03-14-2005, 12:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coach

Good deal about the Royals lately. But what is up with Greinke?

I think it's either one of three things:

A.) He's struggling, sophomore slump.
B.) He's bored, these games don't mean anything. Once the lights are on and these games mean something he'll be fine.
C.) He is so far advanced of everybody else as a pitcher he's using Spring Training as a testing lab to test how hitters react to different pitches, speeds, and other variables. He's like Albert Einstein on a pitcher's mound.

Which one of these is the correct answer? You tell me. I think it could geniunely be all three. I don't think we're going to know until the regular season gets here.

Pitt Gorilla · 03-14-2005, 01:00 AM

I'm guessing that Gotay and Brown don't make the big club, despite their solid O. With Guiel, I have no idea...

Valiant · 03-14-2005, 01:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tk13

Well maybe this is all moot. I just read on the Royals website Mike Sweeney had to be scratched from the lineup today with a sore right oblique muscle. Yippie. At least it's not a back muscle, but he's always pulling something.

that is not true...

he hasnt pulled a hit/stint/catch worth a damn in almost three years...

Coach · 03-14-2005, 01:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tk13

I think it's either one of three things:

A.) He's struggling, sophomore slump.
B.) He's bored, these games don't mean anything. Once the lights are on and these games mean something he'll be fine.
C.) He is so far advanced of everybody else as a pitcher he's using Spring Training as a testing lab to test how hitters react to different pitches, speeds, and other variables. He's like Albert Einstein on a pitcher's mound.

Which one of these is the correct answer? You tell me. I think it could geniunely be all three. I don't think we're going to know until the regular season gets here.

Good points, but there's also one more thing that you may be missing, and even though nobody other than him knows...

D) Injury. Probably has some injury, but wants to fight through it.

tk13 · 03-14-2005, 01:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coach

Good points, but there's also one more thing that you may be missing, and even though nobody other than him knows...

D) Injury. Probably has some injury, but wants to fight through it.

Quiet! Quiet! Quiet! You said no such thing. No jinx here.

Actually Guy Hansen apparently has tinkered with him a bit after this last struggling start because he was too far right on the rubber, and according to Hansen he worries about Greinke because I guess in some ways his arm action is similar to someone like Kerry Wood, which is a very injury-prone delivery according to him. The way Hansen comes across in the articles I've read, he seems to act like Greinke doesn't quite absorb it all and sometimes does his own thing.

Coach · 03-14-2005, 01:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tk13

Quiet! Quiet! Quiet! You said no such thing. No jinx here.

Actually Guy Hansen apparently has tinkered with him a bit after this last struggling start because he was too far right on the rubber, and according to Hansen he worries about Greinke because I guess in some ways his arm action is similar to someone like Kerry Wood, which is a very injury-prone delivery according to him. The way Hansen comes across in the articles I've read, he seems to act like Greinke doesn't quite absorb it all and sometimes does his own thing.

Heh.

Yeah, I have read about Hansen tinkering with several pitcher's throwing motion, such as Gobble and Anderson if I am not mistaken.

tk13 · 03-19-2005, 02:26 AM

It's a couple days old but good stuff...

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansas...s/11165439.htm

Bautista can do no wrong for Royals so far

JOE POSNANSKI

TEMPE, Ariz. — Every spring training camp needs a phenom, a prodigy, a kid who makes scouts' eyes pop out of their heads. The man on the mound fits the story. He's 24. He's 6 feet 5. He throws a 98-mph fastball. He throws a slider that bears in on you like a car salesman at a dealership. He throws a curveball that dives like Louganis.

Some scouts think his change-up is his best pitch.

He walks to the mound on Thursday to face the California Angels of Anaheim in Los Angeles County at Camden Yards — or whatever this goofy team is called now — and it's a good time to take a look at the man's statistics. Coming into this game, he has not given up a run yet in the spring. He has struck out more hitters than any other pitcher in spring training. Already, he has inspired Royals pitching coach Guy Hansen to say these words: “He's the most intimidating pitcher I've ever seen in my 30 years of baseball.”

“I'll tell you what,” says the harder-to-impress Allard Baird, the Royals' general manager. “This guy's got some serious, serious stuff.”

This guy is Denny Bautista, and as he warms up effortlessly, throwing mid-90s fastballs as if that's as easy as blowing bubbles in the back yard, you can't help but wonder how this happened, how the Royals got this phenom. Pitchers like this don't just happen. They don't just appear. They don't just end up with the Royals.

The quick answer is the Royals got him from Baltimore last June in a trade for a 36-year-old middle reliever, Jason Grimsley. But the quick answer doesn't seem to add up.

Let's explain: It was June, and the word from Baltimore was that the Orioles felt as if they were in playoff contention (they were nine games under .500 and 9 1/2 games out of the wild-card spot). Apparently, the Orioles felt like a 36-year-old middle reliever might be just the thing to push them over the top.

So they called about Grimsley. And called again. And again. Baird kept asking for Bautista. And one day — desperation can do things to a team — the Orioles just said yes.

Grimsley did not bring the Orioles that playoff spot. He did blow out his elbow.

Meanwhile, around Kansas City, baseball people keep asking the same question: “What's wrong with Bautista?” They kept trying to guess what was wrong. Maybe he was wild. Maybe he had off-the-field issues. Maybe he was in the Witness Protection Program. Maybe. Maybe.

All they knew for sure is there had to be something, because the Orioles would not just deal a young pitcher with one of the game's most overpowering fastballs and other dazzling pitches for Jason Grimsley. No way. There had to be something wrong.

The thing is, the Royals can't find anything wrong with Bautista.

“He's throwing all his pitches for strikes,” Baird says as we watch him throw those fastballs. “If he keeps doing that …”

And he stops, because he doesn't really know what follows. He honestly does not know how good a pitcher can be who throws Roger Clemens' fastball and Pedro Martinez's change-up and that big curveball and that nasty slider. He's awed by the possibilities.

After Bautista finishes warming up, we get word that Bautista has developed a small blister on his finger. It's nothing at all — happens every spring — but because of the blister, he won't throw his curveball or slider. This actually makes Baird happy — he wants to see how Bautista will react without his full arsenal of pitches. If he could, Baird would send Bautista out there with a full body cast to see how he would react.

He just wants to see what this kid is made of.

He just wants to see what's wrong.

And Bautista struggles a bit. Maybe it's the blister. Maybe it's the pressure of trying to make his first team. Whatever, he has some trouble finding the strike zone. He has worked all spring on keeping the ball down — now his pitches are coming in too low. He keeps throwing low fastballs, and he walks Darren Erstad. He gives up a single to Chone Figgins. After getting Vladimir Guerrero to bounce a ball back to him for an out, he loses track of the runners. They double-steal on him.

He gives up his first run of the spring when veteran Steve Finley punches a single up the middle. Bautista then works his way out of the jam without giving up any more runs.

“He showed me something working out of that without any of his breaking stuff,” Baird says. “That's pretty impressive.”

It gets more impressive. The next inning, Bautista breaks two bats with fastballs. He ignores the blister and unleashes a vicious slider. It's clocked at 88 mph — faster than most Royals' fastballs. He also throws his mesmerizing change-up that coaxes Angels shortstop Erick Aybar to hit into a double play.

By the end of the three innings, Bautista — even without a single curveball — has so overwhelmed the Angels hitters that Figgins desperately tries to bunt for a single with two outs. He pops it up. Bautista catches it.

“Why would you do that?” Baird asks, but he knows why. Figgins believed it was his only chance. That's what it's like to face the phenom these days. Bautista has now pitched 10 2/3 innings in the spring; he has struck out 12. He has an 0.84 ERA.

“He's pretty good,” Baird says.

Yes, he sure looks pretty good. One year ago, during the season, Denny Bautista pitched two innings for the Baltimore Orioles. He gave up eight runs. Maybe the Orioles saw enough. Or maybe they didn't see anything at all.

tk13 · 03-19-2005, 02:32 AM

I don't know, I've tried to be even keel all spring, but I'm starting to believe... I thought Bautista was still a little rough around the edges, and he probably is. I didn't think he'd be ready, but maybe he is. Hard to believe he has the potential to force Greinke into being our #2 starter one of these days. Greinke had a lights out performance the other day. Runelvys Hernandez threw 70 pitches and threw pretty well today. Jose Lima might end up being our 4th or 5th best starter. We'll have to see once the lights come on and it means something, but I'm cautiously optimistic our pitching won't be too shabby... and it all starts with good pitching.

03-10-2005, 12:27 AM
tk13 ... Join Date: Nov 2001 Casino cash: $1762500	Bautista makes case for rotation http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/NAS...t=.jsp&c_id=kc Notes: Bautista getting noticed Pena says youngster could earn spot in the rotation By Alan Eskew / Special to MLB.com SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Denny Bautista is the early leader to claim a spot in the Royals' rotation. Bautista, a 24-year-old rookie right-hander, threw three shutout innings and allowed just one single, while striking out four in the Royals' 6-0 victory over the Mariners on Wednesday. Royals manager Tony Pena said there is "no way" he could omit Bautista from the rotation if he continues to pitch the way he has been. In two outings, Bautista has allowed one unearned run in five innings, while striking out eight and walking two. "This kid has thrown real good in back-to-back games," Pena said. "He's real tough. He threw only 32 pitches today in three innings. He threw only two pitches up in the strike zone. Everything else was down. He had a good changeup, good curveball and a good slider." Not to mention a fastball that tops out at 98 mph and is consistently 96-97. "Bautista is one of the most intimidating pitchers I've ever seen," Royals pitching coach Guy Hansen said. "He has got four pitches that are all above average. He has the eye of the tiger. He wants the ball. He's just got an exceptional arm. "He could be an impact guy. The Royals did a tremendous scouting effort to get him in a trade [with the Orioles last June for veteran reliever Jason Grimsley]. I know a couple of guys called me and said, 'You've got the mother lode.' " The Royals said Bautista, who stands 6-foot-5, added 20 pounds to his frame and is weighing 190 pounds, which helped increase the velocity on his fastball. Lima escapes: Jose Lima weaved his way into and out of trouble the first three innings on Wednesday. Lima did not allow a run, but he yielded five hits, all singles, and walked three. The Royals turned double plays behind him in the first and third innings. In the second with the bases loaded and one out, Lima struck out Jamal Strong and retired Ichiro Suzuki on a ground ball. "I got the bases loaded, but that didn't bother me," Lima said. "I'm a better pitcher when I'm in trouble. I made some good pitches. I don't try to be too fine." Pena thought Lima got in jams because "he tried to be fine." "He tried to make perfect pitches," Pena said. Pena said Lima's outing was "much better" than his first, when he allowed seven runs, six earned, on eight hits against the Rangers. "If I get the slider going, watch out," Lima said. "Then I'll have my two-seam fastball, my changeup and my slider. I can throw the changeup anytime I want now for strikes." Forget about it: Chris George's line looked alarming in the box score: two innings, five hits, three runs, in a loss to the Rockies on Monday. "The stats lied," Hansen said. "It wasn't an indicator. I actually thought he threw the ball as well as I've seen him. He had a firmness to his breaking ball. He had some deception in his delivery. There were a lot of good things I liked." George gave up two ground-ball singles off infielders' gloves, a broken-bat single to Desi Relaford and a RBI on a squibbler to the first baseman. "That's the story of my life," George said. "I was throwing all four pitches for strikes. Again, I didn't walk anybody, which is big for me. I was being aggressive, just trying to make them put the ball in play. I'm not afraid of contact." George paused and then added, "Maybe I should be," and laughed. "I felt really good about the way I threw the ball," George said. "I just didn't get the breaks. It's going to equal out in the end." Guiel meeting: Outfielder Aaron Guiel met with general manager Allard Baird and Pena on Wednesday after a published report came out with the headline: "Guiel: If I'm not starting, I'll probably be departing." Guiel is competing for an outfield job after missing most of last season because of a vision problem that he corrected with two laser eye surgeries. "I just wanted to clear the air with Allard and Tony," Guiel said. "I was glad I could meet with both. Allard and I had a nice conversation. I was probably not misquoted, but the quotes were taking out of context. "I never said if I wasn't starting that I wanted out. All I ever asked for was an opportunity to prove to them that my vision is 100 percent. My eye is 100 percent, but they have to see me perform on the field. "I have a lot of loyalty to this ballclub. The organization signed me out of the Mexican League [in 2000] and gave me my first opportunity to play in the big leagues." Injury updates: Tony Graffanino, who has been restricted to DH duties after having shoulder surgery last season, said his throwing is coming along well and that he anticipates he will be able to play second base on Friday in a "B" games against the Rangers. Pena said third baseman Chris Truby, who has not played since the March 3 opener because of a sore left wrist, will be out at least three or four more days.
Posts: 54,980

03-14-2005, 12:24 AM	#36
tk13 ... Join Date: Nov 2001 Casino cash: $1762500	Bautista pitched 2 2/3 innings today, no runs, 3 hits, a walk and 3 strikeouts as the Royals played to a 10-inning draw with the Giants. Gotay, Guiel, and Emil Brown all continued their torrid hitting by hitting back-to-back-to-back homers. Gotay has clearly been the best hitter so far, he's now hitting .480 with 3 doubles, 4 HR, 9 RBI in 25 at-bats. For the spring, Bautista now has pitched 7.2 IP, 5 H, 3 BB, 11 K, 0.00 ERA. The other interesting tidbit is that in 4 of the last 5 games, the Royals "bullpen" hasn't allowed a run. The starter usually has been going 2-3 innings to get his work in, and that's where all our runs allowed seem to come from, the pitchers following the starter have been nearly perfect. That one game in this stretch where the bullpen was scored on, 3 earned runs came from one pitcher who isn't going to make the team (Roberto Giron), and the only other earned run was given up by Mike Wood. Pretty solid work.
Posts: 54,980

03-14-2005, 12:48 AM	#37
Coach Champs! Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Kansas City Casino cash: $5808476	Good deal about the Royals lately. But what is up with Greinke? __________________ Super Bowl IV, LIV, LVII & LVIII Champions 2020, 2021, 2023, & 2024 AFC Champions 1985 & 2015 Major League Baseball World Series Champions 1980, 1985, 2014, & 2015 Major League Baseball American League Champions 2015 American League Central Division Champs
Posts: 53,221

03-14-2005, 01:00 AM	#39
Pitt Gorilla Banned! Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: NOT Columbia, MO 65201 Casino cash: $2740194	I'm guessing that Gotay and Brown don't make the big club, despite their solid O. With Guiel, I have no idea... __________________ Your son is a bench warmer because of your weak genetics not because of the coach Norlin Mommsen is disgusting.
Posts: 46,131

03-19-2005, 02:26 AM	#44
tk13 ... Join Date: Nov 2001 Casino cash: $1762500	It's a couple days old but good stuff... http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansas...s/11165439.htm Bautista can do no wrong for Royals so far JOE POSNANSKI TEMPE, Ariz. — Every spring training camp needs a phenom, a prodigy, a kid who makes scouts' eyes pop out of their heads. The man on the mound fits the story. He's 24. He's 6 feet 5. He throws a 98-mph fastball. He throws a slider that bears in on you like a car salesman at a dealership. He throws a curveball that dives like Louganis. Some scouts think his change-up is his best pitch. He walks to the mound on Thursday to face the California Angels of Anaheim in Los Angeles County at Camden Yards — or whatever this goofy team is called now — and it's a good time to take a look at the man's statistics. Coming into this game, he has not given up a run yet in the spring. He has struck out more hitters than any other pitcher in spring training. Already, he has inspired Royals pitching coach Guy Hansen to say these words: “He's the most intimidating pitcher I've ever seen in my 30 years of baseball.” “I'll tell you what,” says the harder-to-impress Allard Baird, the Royals' general manager. “This guy's got some serious, serious stuff.” This guy is Denny Bautista, and as he warms up effortlessly, throwing mid-90s fastballs as if that's as easy as blowing bubbles in the back yard, you can't help but wonder how this happened, how the Royals got this phenom. Pitchers like this don't just happen. They don't just appear. They don't just end up with the Royals. The quick answer is the Royals got him from Baltimore last June in a trade for a 36-year-old middle reliever, Jason Grimsley. But the quick answer doesn't seem to add up. Let's explain: It was June, and the word from Baltimore was that the Orioles felt as if they were in playoff contention (they were nine games under .500 and 9 1/2 games out of the wild-card spot). Apparently, the Orioles felt like a 36-year-old middle reliever might be just the thing to push them over the top. So they called about Grimsley. And called again. And again. Baird kept asking for Bautista. And one day — desperation can do things to a team — the Orioles just said yes. Grimsley did not bring the Orioles that playoff spot. He did blow out his elbow. Meanwhile, around Kansas City, baseball people keep asking the same question: “What's wrong with Bautista?” They kept trying to guess what was wrong. Maybe he was wild. Maybe he had off-the-field issues. Maybe he was in the Witness Protection Program. Maybe. Maybe. All they knew for sure is there had to be something, because the Orioles would not just deal a young pitcher with one of the game's most overpowering fastballs and other dazzling pitches for Jason Grimsley. No way. There had to be something wrong. The thing is, the Royals can't find anything wrong with Bautista. “He's throwing all his pitches for strikes,” Baird says as we watch him throw those fastballs. “If he keeps doing that …” And he stops, because he doesn't really know what follows. He honestly does not know how good a pitcher can be who throws Roger Clemens' fastball and Pedro Martinez's change-up and that big curveball and that nasty slider. He's awed by the possibilities. After Bautista finishes warming up, we get word that Bautista has developed a small blister on his finger. It's nothing at all — happens every spring — but because of the blister, he won't throw his curveball or slider. This actually makes Baird happy — he wants to see how Bautista will react without his full arsenal of pitches. If he could, Baird would send Bautista out there with a full body cast to see how he would react. He just wants to see what this kid is made of. He just wants to see what's wrong. And Bautista struggles a bit. Maybe it's the blister. Maybe it's the pressure of trying to make his first team. Whatever, he has some trouble finding the strike zone. He has worked all spring on keeping the ball down — now his pitches are coming in too low. He keeps throwing low fastballs, and he walks Darren Erstad. He gives up a single to Chone Figgins. After getting Vladimir Guerrero to bounce a ball back to him for an out, he loses track of the runners. They double-steal on him. He gives up his first run of the spring when veteran Steve Finley punches a single up the middle. Bautista then works his way out of the jam without giving up any more runs. “He showed me something working out of that without any of his breaking stuff,” Baird says. “That's pretty impressive.” It gets more impressive. The next inning, Bautista breaks two bats with fastballs. He ignores the blister and unleashes a vicious slider. It's clocked at 88 mph — faster than most Royals' fastballs. He also throws his mesmerizing change-up that coaxes Angels shortstop Erick Aybar to hit into a double play. By the end of the three innings, Bautista — even without a single curveball — has so overwhelmed the Angels hitters that Figgins desperately tries to bunt for a single with two outs. He pops it up. Bautista catches it. “Why would you do that?” Baird asks, but he knows why. Figgins believed it was his only chance. That's what it's like to face the phenom these days. Bautista has now pitched 10 2/3 innings in the spring; he has struck out 12. He has an 0.84 ERA. “He's pretty good,” Baird says. Yes, he sure looks pretty good. One year ago, during the season, Denny Bautista pitched two innings for the Baltimore Orioles. He gave up eight runs. Maybe the Orioles saw enough. Or maybe they didn't see anything at all.
Posts: 54,980

03-19-2005, 02:32 AM	#45
tk13 ... Join Date: Nov 2001 Casino cash: $1762500	I don't know, I've tried to be even keel all spring, but I'm starting to believe... I thought Bautista was still a little rough around the edges, and he probably is. I didn't think he'd be ready, but maybe he is. Hard to believe he has the potential to force Greinke into being our #2 starter one of these days. Greinke had a lights out performance the other day. Runelvys Hernandez threw 70 pitches and threw pretty well today. Jose Lima might end up being our 4th or 5th best starter. We'll have to see once the lights come on and it means something, but I'm cautiously optimistic our pitching won't be too shabby... and it all starts with good pitching.
Posts: 54,980