Prospect Insider - Paxton, Pimentel shine

Paxton, Pimentel shine

By Jason A. Churchill

By 03-20-2011

PEORIA, ARIZONA -- Saturday at the minor league complex was Day 1 of the MiLB Cactus League season. The San Diego Padres were the opponent, with the Double-A and Triple-A clubs playing their games on the home side of PSC.

Big leaguers Doug Fister, Josh Bard, Josh Wilson and Dustin Ackley got some work in the Triple-A game, with prospects filling out the rest of the lineup.

The Padres even had some names get a look at Fister, including first baseman Anthony Rizzo, centerfielder Cedric Hunter and third baseman James Darnell.

But the buzz of the day for me was getting a look at James Paxton throw a bullpen session.

Subscribers can click here for radar readings of his four-pitch arsenal and video of the session.

If you are not yet a subscriber, click here to choose your membership.

Also included in this spring training report: Video of Nick Franklin from both sides of the plate and scouting notes on Philips Castillo, Guillermo Pimentel, Christian Carmichael and a 48th-round pick.

paxton,-pimentel-shine

Comments
The following 8 comment(s) for this article are shown below:

1. By: Lailoken on 03-20-2011 11:38:36
Spectacular stuff. Seriously, anyone who is a Mariners &/or minor league baseball fan should pony up for this great work. The footage is awesome too. Definitely a bright future ahead. I may not be the best scout when it comes to mechanics but the sheer number of athletes whose athleticism shows on film, analysis of their skillsets, & reasoned out projections makes an extensive case that this organization is indeed on the right track.

2. By: Lailoken on 03-20-2011 11:41:16
Addendum: in fact, I am no scout at all but I am happy to lean on the astute work of this site.

3. By: edandvick1313@msn.com on 03-20-2011 14:53:41
Where is the video?

4. By: bb4ever on 03-20-2011 15:01:31
I believe the video posted last year of Franklin’s mechanics showed him “gliding”. It’s good to see and read that he is consistent. Many videos of past and current greats i.e. Aaron, Arod, Mantle, Palermo and Ruth exhibit varying lengths of linear motion prior to rotating against a firm front side. Given the M’s emphasis on pitching early on in the minor camp, it’s no surprise that the timing of several of the hitters is a bit off at this point prior to the season.

Let’s keep our fingers crossed he continues to develop and put up numbers similar to last year.

5. By: Jason A. Churchill on 03-20-2011 18:17:36
The reason Franklin's glide/drift, whatever you want to call it, is an issue is because he's limited physically. He needs his legs and mid-section to produce power against good pitching, he can't do it with his arms.

It's fixable, Franklin is smart and driven and enough of it will go away I'd bet.

Nick should have stayed with his previous agent, but there's no reason to freak out about his swing mechanics at this point, not even from the right side. But for now it's a concern for the future. He won't hit for enough power to play everyday in the majors against big league pitching without some abbreviation of the glide.

Everyone should remember, however, that Franklin was ranked at No. 3 for a good reason. Don't look too deep into the negatives.

6. By: bb4ever on 03-20-2011 20:39:37
Yes, I believe I read a post here that said he lacked “physical strength” obviously that was just another mis-read on the kid. Sorry, I can’t buy that he is limited physically. Not after what he did in the “Pitcher Friendly” Midwest league as a teenager. Nonetheless, now that we have exited the steroid era how many shortstops should we expect to hit for power? There was less than a handful that hit more than 20 HR’s in 2010.

Switched agents and his swing mechanics? Did his previous agent serve as Franklin’s hitting instructor?

7. By: PositivePaul on 03-20-2011 22:39:49
Prospect Insider Video: Where you can always count on a good TWSS!

8. By: 200tang on 03-20-2011 23:52:37
Something I've been curious about since reading #4's comment - how much can we learn by comparing hitting mechanics from today's game to someone like Babe Ruth who played so long ago? How much has the game today changed at that level from the early 1900's?

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