At Flushing University today, Taryn Cooper made her case for Philip Humber serving as the linchpin for the injected youth the Mets could really use right now.
Quote:
Thanks to having a Stat person in the FU community, I’ve enlisted the help of a nouveau look at how Humber is progressing in the minors. Currently, his K/BB ratio is 3.05, currently on par with other developing prospects in the minors. Further, this ratio is indicative of better control, something the Mets staff has not been able to be keep up with this year (though that may have to do with Enrico Pallazzo calling our games).
No, I didn’t use this article as a way to market myself- yeah, if you’re reading this and are a fan of F.U., you’re an idiot to have not realized I was the stat-head she was talking about- but Humber is indeed on part with some of the top pitching prospects in AAA right now. However, I will use one of Will Carroll’s theories- K/PA*2-BB/PA. As I’ve noted before, this does, indeed, discriminate against certain prospects- those who prefer to pitch to contact- but it also does serve as a key indicator of a prospects potential. This is because while walks are important, strikeout rates are a better indicator of big league success, since walk rates can be improved upon within time, while strikeout rate are difficult to even maintain as a player commences to move up the ladder.
Here are the results:
Philip Humber: 34.4%
Homer Bailey: 33.3%
Matt Garza: 35.8%
Adam miller: 35.3%
While many people will point out the age difference with Adam Miller and Homer Bailey, Humber has had tommy john surgery, while Bailey and Miller have had several years under their belt in the minor leagues.
Filed under: Philip Humber, baseball
