Getting a leg up on fresh arms
It seems like only yesterday some in the baseball world were ridiculing the Astros’ piggyback and tandem pitching rotation in the minors, celebrating further when the team abandoned the concept relatively early in the season.
Jeff Luhnow and his whiz kids were trying to prove they were smarter than the rest of baseball, the cynics decried. The Astros abandoned the tandem rotation but moved to six-man rotations on most farm teams, accomplishing the primary goal of keeping the young arms healthy.
Now Luhnow can celebrate a successful and relatively healthy season for the Astros’ top pitching prospects, from Vincent Velasquez at Class A Lexington and Lance McCullers at Class A Quad Cities to Mike Foltynewicz at Class AA Corpus Christi to Asher Wojciechowski at Class AAA Oklahoma City and to Jarred Cosart in the majors. Staying healthy the goal
“I think it’s a testament to our trainers, pitching coaches and how we used them this year,” Luhnow said. “We had the piggybacks early in the year and transitioned to a six-man rotation. In most places, when we switched from the tandem, we actually went to the sixman.
“You look at Velasquez, Brady Rodgers, Foltynewicz, Cosart, (Brett) Oberholtzer, McCullers — they all ended up the season healthy. If we can continue to do that, it’s going to be a benefit. For me, that was probably the biggest success at the farm system: keeping our pitchers healthy.”
Pitching is a fragile commodity, as the Astros learned this spring and early in the season when Alex White, Rudy Owens and John Ely went down after arriving in camp as contenders for the opening-day roster.
Astros fans are clamoring to have George Springer in the majors, but rest assured the franchise will ultimately return to contention if the talented young arms in the farm system remain healthy and live up to the early hype.
It pays to consider that even though the Astros traded Bud Norris, the young starting rotation now is better than it has been all year. Jordan Lyles, Oberholtzer, Dallas Keuchel, Brad Peacock, Paul Clemens and Cosart, who was shut down after his last start, give the Astros a strong pool of starters heading into next season.
The crop of arms behind them might have a higher ceiling, so one can probably assume a dramatic improvement next season if the bullpen is fixed from within and through some free-agent help this winter.
“With Velasquez, Folty, Cosart, (Mark) Appel, we’re developing a sizable, exciting stable of young arms,” Luhnow said.
Foltynewicz, who was 5-3 with a 2.87 ERAover 23 starts with the Hooks after starting the season 1-0 with a 3.81 ERAat Lancaster, was arguably the Astros’ top pitcher in the minors for the second year in a row.
With a jaw-dropping fastball that sits in the mid-90s and reaches 101 at times, Foltynewicz has the tools to be an ace one day
Wojciechowski might be even closer to the majors. No rushing Springer
“I think Asher has established himself as a contender for our rotation next year,” Luhnow said. “He’s going to have a chance to fight for the fourth or fifth spot in our rotation next spring, or if not, be at Triple-A ready to come up.”
Velasquez, a 2010 second-round pick coming off his first full healthy season, seems destined to eventually challenge for a spot at the top of the Astros’ rotation after finally avoiding the arm problems that cost him all of the 2011 season.
No discussion about the Astros’ farm system is complete, however, without mention of that Springer kid.
Springer, who turns 24 next Thursday, totaled 37 homers, 105 RBIs and 45 stolen bases between Class AAA and Class AA this year. The 11th overall pick in the 2011 draft will be in the majors at some point next season.
“George made tremendous strides this year,” Luhnow said. “What was impressive was the consistency of his performance. He did not seem to skip a beat when he got to Triple-A. His power-speed combination is valuable and very interesting. He’s definitely a player that we see being a big part of this team next year.
“There are different decisions when George Springer is ready to contribute. I do see George being a part of our team, and I think he’ll be part of our outfield in 2014. It’s hard to predict with any accuracy when, but he’ll certainly get a shot next year, and he’ll take advantage of it.”