The Arms 2018

[GTNavyNuke]

Last year we demonstrated that we couldn't predict how our pitchers would do. https://gtswarm.com/threads/the-arms.10754/ So I figured I'd start off this year's futility.

Here's what I've been able to gleam from various posts and stats. I've listed in my perceived potential to help the team this year with a brief comment on why. All players listed as pitcher in any way and Will Shirah (coming in January) are included. Feel free to add ......

Potential This Year (1-10) Name Position B-T Class Comment

· 10 Xzavion Curry RHP/SS R-R So. Great in W&G, 15 starts last year. 82.2 IP and 5.23 ERA as Fr. Overused out of necessity last year, could be best pitcher this year.

· 9 Micah Carpenter P R-R Jr. Potential closer. 2017 team low 2.56 ERA in 31.2 IP.

· 9 Jonathan Hughes P R-R R-So. Good in W&G, 8 starts last year for 5.68 ERA in 25.1 IP. Expect much better this year as last year was first after injury year.

· 8 Jared Datoc P R-R Sr. Potential closer, 2nd most used pitcher last year (57.1 IP) behind Curry

· 8 Jake Lee P R-R Jr. 6 starts last year, total 51.2 IP and 6.10 ERA. Hope high ERA was due to no good alternative last year.

· 8 Keyton Gibson P R-R Jr. Good in W&G. 8.10 ERA in 36.2 IP 2017. 4.40 ERA in 43.0 IP in 2016.

· 7 Tristin English P/1B R-R R-So. Great potential if can stay healthy. Expect rough start as gets back into form.

· 7 Connor Thomas P L-L So. Great in W&G. 2017 had 10.1 IP and 11.32 ERA. We'll see if he has made the jump this year.

· 6 Ben Schniederjans P R-R R-Sr. 9 starts last year. 5.06 ERA in first year back.

· 6 Bailey Combs P R-R Jr. Potential. 2017 14 bullpen outings with 5.21 ERA, 2016 11 bullpen outings with .64 ERA. Hope high ERA was due to no good alternative last year.

· 6 Garrett Gooden P R-R So. Unknown, 2017 4.1 IP and ended year as 1B. Great potential from HS.

· 5 Andy Archer P R-R So. Limited 2017, 9.1 IP and 4.82 ERA

· 5 Will Shirah P L-L Fr. Enroll in January, Hall is high on him FWIW. Perfect Game has him as 2017 Underclass 3rd Team. Stats at http://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/will-shirah/JaNtGMw1EeW-8KA2nzwbTA/gendersport/baseball-stats.htm

· 2 Patrick Wiseman P/IF L-R Sr. Injured last year. First two years pitched total of 10.0 innings

· 1 Jay Shadday P L-L So. Out for at least year with Tommy John

· 1 Brant Hurter P/1B L-L Fr. Broke hand / wrist

· 1 Joseph Mannelly 1B/OF/P L-L Fr. Primarily a 1B in HS which was his ranking area by PG.

· 1 Cole Neuber P/OF R-R Fr. Primarily a OF in HS which was his ranking area by PG.

· 1 Oscar Serratos SS/P R-R Fr. Not really pitcher but listed on roster as one.

· 1 Cameron Turley C/IF/P R-R Fr. Not really pitcher but listed on roster as one.

 

[MWBATL]

I am not sure I have seen much development and progress sin our pitchers from year to year. It seems like whatever talent they have coming in is what they have leaving without any further improvement. Just my uneducated perception, but that is why I remain completely pessimistic about GT baseball right now.

Perhaps I should stop posting entirely in this segment. nobody likes pessimism (not even me).

 

[GTNavyNuke]

I am not sure I have seen much development and progress sin our pitchers from year to year. It seems like whatever talent they have coming in is what they have leaving without any further improvement. Just my uneducated perception, but that is why I remain completely pessimistic about GT baseball right now.

Perhaps I should stop posting entirely in this segment. nobody likes pessimism (not even me).

I struggle a lot with being positive which is why I won't post on football for another few months. Facts are facts. Most of our pitchers don't seem to get a lot better if at all. Of course, the ACC level of competition is a lot higher than they saw in HS. But other ACC teams seem to develop pitchers better; part of the problem last year was depth needing to throw (sic) true Fr in when they weren't ready. Gooden is a good example.

With Hall having been here 25 years, we can't have a lot of provable reasons to be optimistic for positive change but it's a new year. Let's hope that we have a few who have developed so we have a solid 4 starters, two great relievers and decent middle relief.

My guess-estimated starters in order: Curry, Hughes, Lee, Gibson.
Closers: Carpenter and Datoc.
Mid-relievers: English, Ben S, Combs and Gooden.

Rest are gravy if they can contribute meaningfully to fill in for inevitable injuries.

 

[65Jacket]

We really need English to be one of the starters. How in the world can Gooden be so poor after being so good in high school? We also need for Hurter, Shirah , and Thomas to be legit and contribute.

 

[GTNavyNuke]

We really need English to be one of the starters. How in the world can Gooden be so poor after being so good in high school? We also need for Hurter, Shirah , and Thomas to be legit and contribute.

I think Gooden was hurt to some extent last year.

Hurter reportedly broke his throwing hand (scooter) and I wouldn't expect him to play at all this year.

 

[senoiajacket]

Here's hoping for a couple of breakthrough years from somebody on the list. Otherwise, on paper at least, it looks like we will struggle.

 

[FredJacket]

My sense is, collectively, our expectations regarding pitching are not that high. I'm with @senoiajacket ...we just have to hope this year something "good" different happens... instead of the alternative.

 

[THWG]

Last year we demonstrated that we couldn't predict how our pitchers would do. https://gtswarm.com/threads/the-arms.10754/ So I figured I'd start off this year's futility.

Here's what I've been able to gleam from various posts and stats. I've listed in my perceived potential to help the team this year with a brief comment on why. All players listed as pitcher in any way and Will Shirah (coming in January) are included. Feel free to add ......

Potential This Year (1-10) Name Position B-T Class Comment

· 10 Xzavion Curry RHP/SS R-R So. Great in W&G, 15 starts last year. 82.2 IP and 5.23 ERA as Fr. Overused out of necessity last year, could be best pitcher this year.

· 9 Micah Carpenter P R-R Jr. Potential closer. 2017 team low 2.56 ERA in 31.2 IP.

· 9 Jonathan Hughes P R-R R-So. Good in W&G, 8 starts last year for 5.68 ERA in 25.1 IP. Expect much better this year as last year was first after injury year.

· 8 Jared Datoc P R-R Sr. Potential closer, 2nd most used pitcher last year (57.1 IP) behind Curry

· 8 Jake Lee P R-R Jr. 6 starts last year, total 51.2 IP and 6.10 ERA. Hope high ERA was due to no good alternative last year.

· 8 Keyton Gibson P R-R Jr. Good in W&G. 8.10 ERA in 36.2 IP 2017. 4.40 ERA in 43.0 IP in 2016.

· 7 Tristin English P/1B R-R R-So. Great potential if can stay healthy. Expect rough start as gets back into form.

· 7 Connor Thomas P L-L So. Great in W&G. 2017 had 10.1 IP and 11.32 ERA. We'll see if he has made the jump this year.

· 6 Ben Schniederjans P R-R R-Sr. 9 starts last year. 5.06 ERA in first year back.

· 6 Bailey Combs P R-R Jr. Potential. 2017 14 bullpen outings with 5.21 ERA, 2016 11 bullpen outings with .64 ERA. Hope high ERA was due to no good alternative last year.

· 6 Garrett Gooden P R-R So. Unknown, 2017 4.1 IP and ended year as 1B. Great potential from HS.

· 5 Andy Archer P R-R So. Limited 2017, 9.1 IP and 4.82 ERA

· 5 Will Shirah P L-L Fr. Enroll in January, Hall is high on him FWIW. Perfect Game has him as 2017 Underclass 3rd Team. Stats at http://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/will-shirah/JaNtGMw1EeW-8KA2nzwbTA/gendersport/baseball-stats.htm

· 2 Patrick Wiseman P/IF L-R Sr. Injured last year. First two years pitched total of 10.0 innings

· 1 Jay Shadday P L-L So. Out for at least year with Tommy John

· 1 Brant Hurter P/1B L-L Fr. Broke hand / wrist

· 1 Joseph Mannelly 1B/OF/P L-L Fr. Primarily a 1B in HS which was his ranking area by PG.

· 1 Cole Neuber P/OF R-R Fr. Primarily a OF in HS which was his ranking area by PG.

· 1 Oscar Serratos SS/P R-R Fr. Not really pitcher but listed on roster as one.

· 1 Cameron Turley C/IF/P R-R Fr. Not really pitcher but listed on roster as one.

The only pitchers that I think you missed are Chapman and Brace. Chapman was a starter in the white -gold series and I believe that Brace will be a starter by the end of the year.

 

[65Jacket]

I believe I heard that Hurter would be ready for the season.

 

[THWG]

I believe I heard that Hurter would be ready for the season.

That's great news if true!!

 

[FredJacket]

Went back and looked at final statistical "rankings" for 2017 season. Regretting that now...should have left well enough alone. But since I did it... I want to drag you guys down with me. We'll call it therapy... with goal of flushing all the bad/negative stuff before the new year. I'm breaking big news here.... Pitching HAS to IMPROVE. Not sure there is anyway it could have been worse in 2017. Here are some key "team" pitching stats with national rank in parenthesis:

ERA: 5.36 (#193)
K's per 9IP: 7.2 (#174)
Hits allowed per 9IP: 9.33 (#139)
BB's allowed per 9IP: 4.76 (#233)
K to BB ratio: 1.52 (#221)
WHIP: 1.56 (#181)

 

[senoiajacket]

Went back and looked at final statistical "rankings" for 2017 season. Regretting that now...should have left well enough alone. But since I did it... I want to drag you guys down with me. We'll call it therapy... with goal of flushing all the bad/negative stuff before the new year. I'm breaking big news here.... Pitching HAS to IMPROVE. Not sure there is anyway it could have been worse in 2017. Here are some key "team" pitching stats with national rank in parenthesis:

ERA: 5.36 (#193)
K's per 9IP: 7.2 (#174)
Hits allowed per 9IP: 9.33 (#139)
BB's allowed per 9IP: 4.76 (#233)
K to BB ratio: 1.52 (#221)
WHIP: 1.56 (#181)

Was all that really necessary??

 

[FredJacket]

Was all that really necessary??

No...sorry. But for some reason @THWG "liked" it.

 

[THWG]

No...sorry. But for some reason @THWG "liked" it.

I liked it for the info haha. I knew that we were bad in pitching lastt year, but that is horrendous and the unacceptable stat is the BB/9. I mean these are D1 pitchers and tghat is embarrassing.

 

[GTNavyNuke]

Here's an update based on the recent D1 Baseball report and other information.

Potential This Year (1-10) Name Position B-T Class Comment

· 10 Xzavion Curry RHP/SS R-R So. Great in W&G, 15 starts last year. 82.2 IP and 5.23 ERA as Fr. Overused out of necessity last year, I think could be best pitcher this year. Hall talked about having to put Curry in bullpen so he can play infield if others don’t step up fielding and we get other effective starting pitchers. I bet we need him as a starter at least early on.
· 9 Jonathan Hughes P R-R R-So. Good in W&G, 8 starts last year for 5.68 ERA in 25.1 IP. Expect much better this year as last year was first after injury year. Had 91+ mph fastball back in fall. Hall in December thought English could be in top 2 pitchers. And Hughes reportedly has three pitches working now.
· 9 Tristin English P/1B R-R R-So. Great potential if can stay healthy. Expect rough start as gets back into form. In December Hall said English could be #1 starter.
· 8 Jared Datoc P R-R Sr. Potential closer, 2nd most used pitcher last year (57.1 IP) behind Curry. Datoc was first pitcher Hall mentioned as potential closer in December.
· 8 Micah Carpenter P R-R Jr. Potential closer. 2017 team low 2.56 ERA in 31.2 IP.
· 8 Jake Lee P R-R Jr. 6 starts last year, total 51.2 IP and 6.10 ERA. Hope high ERA was due to no good alternative last year.
· 8 Keyton Gibson P R-R Jr. Good in W&G. 8.10 ERA in 36.2 IP 2017. 4.40 ERA in 43.0 IP in 2016.
· 7 Connor Thomas P L-L So. Great in W&G. 2017 had 10.1 IP and 11.32 ERA. We'll see if he has made the jump this year.
· 6 Ben Schniederjans P R-R R-Sr. 9 starts last year. 5.06 ERA in first year back.
· 6 Bailey Combs P R-R Jr. Potential. 2017 14 bullpen outings with 5.21 ERA, 2016 11 bullpen outings with .64 ERA. Hope high ERA was due to no good alternative last year.
· 6 Garrett Gooden P R-R So. Unknown, 2017 4.1 IP and ended year as 1B. Great potential from HS.
· 5 Hugh Chapman P/C R-R Fr. Effective starter in W&G game.
· 5 Andy Archer P R-R So. Limited 2017, 9.1 IP and 4.82 ERA
· 5 Will Shirah P L-L Fr. Enroll in January, Hall is high on him FWIW. Perfect Game has him as 2017 Underclass 3rd Team. Stats at http://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/will-shirah/JaNtGMw1EeW-8KA2nzwbTA/gendersport/baseball-stats.htm
· 4 Oscar Serratos SS/P R-R Fr. In December, Hall talked about Serratos with a “Bugs Bunny Changeup” whatever that is. 94 mph fastball. May be closer.
· 3 Jake Brace P R-R Fr. Ranked as high as 15 RHP in Ga and 293 in US. by Perfect Game. He is a legacy, so I like him.
· 3 Brant Hurter P/1B L-L Fr. May be back for season after broken hand. But expect to take a while to get sharp again.
· 2 Patrick Wiseman P/IF L-R Sr. Injured last year. First two years pitched total of 10.0 innings
· 1 Jay Shadday P L-L So. Out for at least year with Tommy John
· 1 Joseph Mannelly 1B/OF/P L-L Fr. Primarily a 1B in HS which was his ranking area by PG.
· 1 Cole Neuber P/OF R-R Fr. Primarily a OF in HS which was his ranking area by PG.
· 1 Cameron Turley C/IF/P R-R Fr. Not really pitcher but listed on roster as one.

 

[RoosterJacket]

The four pitchers that I think are the keys for GT this year are Lee, Hughes, Gibson, and Thomas. I believe Curry, Datoc, and Carpenter are going to do well based off last year, so the other four I mentioned are ones we need to really step up this year. English and any freshmen pitching well would be icing on the cake (and potentially could push us to having a really great season). Lee, Gibson, and Hughes were all rated highly out of HS and are now in their 3rd year. Each of them have shown glimpses that they are very capable of being quality ACC pitchers, now it’s time to put it together and be consistent. Thomas has been spoken highly of by CDH since he signed and brings a much needed lefty arm.

 

[FredJacket]

Here's an update based on the recent D1 Baseball report and other information.

Potential This Year (1-10) Name Position B-T Class Comment

· 10 Xzavion Curry RHP/SS R-R So. Great in W&G, 15 starts last year. 82.2 IP and 5.23 ERA as Fr. Overused out of necessity last year, I think could be best pitcher this year. Hall talked about having to put Curry in bullpen so he can play infield if others don’t step up fielding and we get other effective starting pitchers. I bet we need him as a starter at least early on.
· 9 Jonathan Hughes P R-R R-So. Good in W&G, 8 starts last year for 5.68 ERA in 25.1 IP. Expect much better this year as last year was first after injury year. Had 91+ mph fastball back in fall. Hall in December thought English could be in top 2 pitchers. And Hughes reportedly has three pitches working now.
· 9 Tristin English P/1B R-R R-So. Great potential if can stay healthy. Expect rough start as gets back into form. In December Hall said English could be #1 starter.
· 8 Jared Datoc P R-R Sr. Potential closer, 2nd most used pitcher last year (57.1 IP) behind Curry. Datoc was first pitcher Hall mentioned as potential closer in December.
· 8 Micah Carpenter P R-R Jr. Potential closer. 2017 team low 2.56 ERA in 31.2 IP.
· 8 Jake Lee P R-R Jr. 6 starts last year, total 51.2 IP and 6.10 ERA. Hope high ERA was due to no good alternative last year.
· 8 Keyton Gibson P R-R Jr. Good in W&G. 8.10 ERA in 36.2 IP 2017. 4.40 ERA in 43.0 IP in 2016.
· 7 Connor Thomas P L-L So. Great in W&G. 2017 had 10.1 IP and 11.32 ERA. We'll see if he has made the jump this year.
· 6 Ben Schniederjans P R-R R-Sr. 9 starts last year. 5.06 ERA in first year back.
· 6 Bailey Combs P R-R Jr. Potential. 2017 14 bullpen outings with 5.21 ERA, 2016 11 bullpen outings with .64 ERA. Hope high ERA was due to no good alternative last year.
· 6 Garrett Gooden P R-R So. Unknown, 2017 4.1 IP and ended year as 1B. Great potential from HS.
· 5 Hugh Chapman P/C R-R Fr. Effective starter in W&G game.
· 5 Andy Archer P R-R So. Limited 2017, 9.1 IP and 4.82 ERA
· 5 Will Shirah P L-L Fr. Enroll in January, Hall is high on him FWIW. Perfect Game has him as 2017 Underclass 3rd Team. Stats at http://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/will-shirah/JaNtGMw1EeW-8KA2nzwbTA/gendersport/baseball-stats.htm
· 4 Oscar Serratos SS/P R-R Fr. In December, Hall talked about Serratos with a “Bugs Bunny Changeup” whatever that is. 94 mph fastball. May be closer.
· 3 Jake Brace P R-R Fr. Ranked as high as 15 RHP in Ga and 293 in US. by Perfect Game. He is a legacy, so I like him.
· 3 Brant Hurter P/1B L-L Fr. May be back for season after broken hand. But expect to take a while to get sharp again.
· 2 Patrick Wiseman P/IF L-R Sr. Injured last year. First two years pitched total of 10.0 innings
· 1 Jay Shadday P L-L So. Out for at least year with Tommy John
· 1 Joseph Mannelly 1B/OF/P L-L Fr. Primarily a 1B in HS which was his ranking area by PG.
· 1 Cole Neuber P/OF R-R Fr. Primarily a OF in HS which was his ranking area by PG.
· 1 Cameron Turley C/IF/P R-R Fr. Not really pitcher but listed on roster as one.

Good stuff, @GTNavyNuke Thank you. I also like/agree with @RoosterJacket ... so much possible potential. Just unknown. Such is nature of college talent & I think... particularly, baseball pitchers.

I guess I'm most interested to see these guys' "stuff":
Thomas - barely pitched last year; but seemed to arrive on scene with a lot of BUZZ
Curry - No one's mentioned it... but I fear some version of sophomore jinx. (I countered that by knocking on wood) He was such a stud for us last year.
English - Boy if he gets to 100% on the mound, that'd be great.
The closer - Datoc? From a distance (mostly on TV), his demeanor strikes me as good for this role. First of all, a senior/leader... but also, while not an intimidating presence, he does seem to always be loose & hard to rattle. One word - CONFIDENT.

Less than 50 days to first pitch!!!

 

[GTNavyNuke]

I love Baseball Cube for stats and sorting capability. Here's a sort of GT pitchers by IP over the last 6 years. http://www.thebaseballcube.com/coll...l=20124&conf=&player=&statType=P&sort=ip&org=

I knew we relied a lot on XC a lot last year, and he was the fourth most used pitcher in the last 6 years by IP. I HOPE that there is no Sophomore jinx and see no reason for one. I'm glad he didn't do summer ball!

Get a Gold and Farmer type performance from two pitchers and we'll be ok .........

40 days to go.

 

[FredJacket]

I love Baseball Cube for stats and sorting capability. Here's a sort of GT pitchers by IP over the last 6 years. http://www.thebaseballcube.com/coll...l=20124&conf=&player=&statType=P&sort=ip&org=

I knew we relied a lot on XC a lot last year, and he was the fourth most used pitcher in the last 6 years by IP. I HOPE that there is no Sophomore jinx and see no reason for one. I'm glad he didn't do summer ball!

Get a Gold and Farmer type performance from two pitchers and we'll be ok .........

40 days to go.

... Kudos to Datoc in 2017. Not a good thing for the staff overall, but as a reliever (no starts), he was 2nd on team in IPs. Need way more out of a starting rotation for success.

 

[twofortheroad]

I have recently heard that we have lost a couple of players, one to academics and one to injury. The injury is a pitcher but I believe it's a upper classman reliever - was not TJ but did involve the arm/shoulder. Could be out around 4-5 months so pretty much the season. Anyone else hear the same? Not sure who the academics one is. I get this info 2nd and third hand so I may have some details a little off so bear with me. Asking for help to corrorabate. with these losses, we should be under or right at the cap for the roster which includes the new guy.

Would agree with the accessments on Zay, he really isn't a starter but we needed him last year and he did an excellent job. I think that Wake Forrest game in the tournament showed us that however, his stuff is good for short windows - 2-3 innings, after that I think that the other team can begin to read his stuff. I see him taking over the Datoc spot after this season. He actually did do some summer ball locally but started later than others.

Also - 3rd base is still up for grabs folks....let's see what happens when they hit the flats for practice in about 2 weeks or so.