Pirates Promote Chris Bootcheck

by Charlie Wilmoth on Aug 8, 2009 9:02 PM EDT

Hey all, just checking in here from Utah. Regular updates will resume Monday. In the meantime, I'll address a couple bits of news:

The Pirates have placed Donnie Veal on the DL and have promoted Chris Bootcheck. It's nice to see Bootcheck, who's persevered through years in the minors, get a shot he deserves after striking out 55 batters in 42.7 innings at AAA. The Donnie Veal saga, though, just goes on and on. He's now only thrown 24 innings in a season he could have spent developing. I continue to fail to understand the point of the Pirates keeping him around. It can't be helping him, and it probably won't help them, either.

Also, the Bucs have signed their 4th-round draft pick Zackry Dodson. Dodson wasn't near the top of my list of the best arms the Pirates drafted this year, but he'll be another good addition to a system suddenly bursting with interesting teenage pitchers.

Speaking of pitching prospects, lost of the Pirates' recent acquisitions have pitched well in their most recent starts, including Tim Alderson, Nathan Adcock, Brett Lorin and Casey Erickson. Erickson--acquired in the all-Eric trade involving Eric Hinske--is a good candidate for a late-season promotion, as he now has a 1.81 ERA and three times more groundouts than flyball outs in 64 Class A innings this year.

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Bootcheck may have gotten the shot he deserved, but yikes did that shot not go so well.

by matskralc on Aug 8, 2009 9:16 PM EDT reply actions

Veal's DL Status

I beleive rule 5 picks can spend some time on the DL as long as they are active for 90 days. This keeps teams from stashing them on the DL all season but allows for legit placement on the DL in case of injury. however many days short of 90 on the active roster Veal is can be made up next year, but he is probaly close and can make up the rest in september when the rosters expand.

by Pittbballfan on Aug 8, 2009 9:26 PM EDT reply actions

Someone suggested....

he has to spend 90 days active and he has spent 85 active so far so this season. If that is the case it should be fine. As you said he will get the rest of the days during September.

I also don’t agree with Charlie. The point of keeping him around is to see if they can, through the organization develop his command, particularly with the confidence the organization seems to have in Joe Kerrigan. He clearly has a power arm and, as Grabow noted, is much more overpowering if he can harness his talent. I don’t think him taking the 12th pitching spot on the Pirates roster this season was blocking anyone from coming up and having the chance to make an impression. We have rolled through a good number of guys already this season.

As for his development, Charlie is correct that he hasn’t seen a lot of game action, but in Veal’s case working on mechanics, etc. with Kerrigan during side sessions is probably pretty valuable. He is also expected to go to the AFL after the season and work as a starter and will probably get in another 30-40 innings of game action. I think the fact that he will be 26 is not overly important, many pitchers struggle with command early in their career.

Last year people really wanted to get rid of Evan Meek (who happens to be six months older than Veal, btw) when he started so poorly and was so wild. The decision to keep him has clearly payed off as we now have five more years of organizational control and he has developed into a solid contributor in the pen.

I just don’t understand the argument against keeping Veal. What did it cost us and how does it hurt us longer term? The upside may be unlikely or small, however you want to define it, but what is/was the downside?

by David Todd on Aug 8, 2009 9:40 PM EDT up reply actions

I thought Dejan had written that a Rule 5’er had to make up any days missed on the DL the following year, but it’s quite possible I misunderstood something. Anyway, I took that part out of the post.

by Charlie Wilmoth on Aug 8, 2009 9:47 PM EDT up reply actions

Important to remember

That I said almost the exact same things about Evan Meek last season.

by MrPedriqueIfYoureNasty on Aug 9, 2009 9:50 AM EDT up reply actions

and his “lost season” didn’t seem to hurt his development any at all. In fact, it might have helped him because we probably showed a lot more patience with him than Tampa would have. I think that the same might apply to Veal.

by MrPedriqueIfYoureNasty on Aug 9, 2009 9:53 AM EDT up reply actions

yeah, but

Meek’s “lost season” involved offering him back, trading for him, and sending him to AA (later promoting to AAA)…this happened in May.

There’s a pretty big difference in that and Veal’s situation.

by dirtyfrank on Aug 10, 2009 12:21 PM EDT up reply actions

Some things don't change...

Snell in Seattle tonight…

1.1 IP, 2 H, 3 R (so far), 3 ER, 6 BB, 1 K. 60 pitches, 27 strikes.

by Thunder on Aug 8, 2009 10:49 PM EDT reply actions

fortunately for the Mariners…his relief threw 2 pitches and got a DP.

by Thunder on Aug 8, 2009 10:50 PM EDT up reply actions

I went over to read some of the comments on Lookout Landing

and there are a lot of comments about how the stuff is there and the potential he has. Poor saps.

Show me a guy whos afraid to look bad, and I'll show you a guy you can beat every time. -Lou Brock

by Green_Wave on Aug 8, 2009 11:16 PM EDT up reply actions

Tell them to go to any Pirates’ blog or board and search on “Snell.” They’ll think they went to hell.

by WTM on Aug 9, 2009 10:41 AM EDT up reply actions

Apparently he was booed off the field as well. Hopefully he won’t go into Wakamatsu’s office and demand a one-way ticket to Tacoma.

by maguro on Aug 8, 2009 11:20 PM EDT up reply actions

that would be funny though

Show me a guy whos afraid to look bad, and I'll show you a guy you can beat every time. -Lou Brock

by Green_Wave on Aug 8, 2009 11:31 PM EDT up reply actions

It is kind of hard for me not to get down on Milledge a little bit, even with the super-small sample size. The fielding looks bad, the base running is atrocious. Even if he starts hitting like he should, he still appears to have a lot of holes in his overall game. His speed might even be a question. Milledge doesn’t look significantly faster than even Jones on the base paths. He’s made very solid contact in a couple of games and has hit the ball hard in spots, but if you continue to be a minus fielder and minus baserunner, that takes some luster off of the hitting aspect.

Lastings has a huge ceiling and is very young, but he has a long way to go in a few areas of the game in order to be an above-average overall player IMO.

by Gorkys n' Beans on Aug 8, 2009 10:53 PM EDT reply actions

agree

Hoping for a good off-season

Show me a guy whos afraid to look bad, and I'll show you a guy you can beat every time. -Lou Brock

by Green_Wave on Aug 8, 2009 11:17 PM EDT up reply actions

Agree completely

I do think he’ll start to hit some eventually, but he’ll have to hit a hell of a lot more than he ever has before to make up for his atrocious fielding.

He should spend the entire winter working on catching fly balls.

by maguro on Aug 8, 2009 11:18 PM EDT up reply actions

Milledge....

seems to be a guy that has gotten by on pure talent while neglecting the fundamentals. Hopefully the pirates can work with him in the next year or so to develop his all around game. He definitely has the talent and if he put it all together he will be an above average everyday player.

by Pittbballfan on Aug 8, 2009 11:25 PM EDT reply actions