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Rookie
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Re: Through The Ivy: A Chicago Cubs Dynasty with OOTP 13
Meet the 2013 Chicago Cubs - Pitchers
Starting Pitchers
SP Cole Hamels Age: 29 Velocity: 90-92 MPH Throws: L
2012 Stats: 33 GS, 218 IP, 11-13, 4.50 ERA, 198 K, 58 BB (Phillies)
GM's Comments: Hamels was our big free agency signing this offseason. His stats took a hit last season, however, we are expecting him to get back to his all-star caliber form and we're investing big money in him to be the ace of our pitching staff. Hamels struggled this spring but those are just the signs of him working on some new mechanics that he's worked with our pitching coach to improve.
SP Matt Harrison Age: 27 Velocity: 92-94 MPH Throws: L
2012 Stats: 32 GS, 215 IP, 13-9, 3.89 ERA, 142 K, 74 BB (Rangers)
GM's Comments: Another new addition to our team, we acquired Harrison this offseason in a trade with the Rangers for Geovany Soto. Harrison posted very solid stats last season. He had a 1.92 K/BB ratio last season and in my opinion if he can improve that this season, he could be an all-star. He was very impressive this spring and we hope he can continue his form into opening day.
SP Felipe Paulino Age: 29 Velocity: 94-96 MPH Throws: R
2012 Stats: 36 G, 22 GS, 153 IP, 9-5, 4.35 ERA, 127 K, 48 BB (Royals & Cubs)
GM's Comments: We picked up Paulino from the Kansas City Royals in a trade mid-way through last season. He struggled at the start of the year but he pitched very well once he joined us. We signed him to a 2-year extension this offseason and he's going to be very important in our pitching rotation as he's the only righty in it to start the season.
SP Paul Maholm Age: 30 Velocity: 86-88 MPH Throws: L
2012 Stats: 33 GS, 218.1 IP, 16-12, 3.26 ERA, 130 K, 67 BB
GM's Comments: Paul was arguably our best starter last season and he led the team with 16 wins. His fastball can only reach about 88 MPH but he relies on the superb movement and control he has on his pitches. We're going to have Paul as our #4 starter this season to give some back-end veteran support to our rotation. Maholm is set to be a free agent after this season but if he can keep pitching like he did last year we would love to have him back.
SP Travis Wood Age: 26 Velocity: 90-92 MPH Throws: L
2012 Stats: 36 G, 15 GS, 120.2 IP, 5-8, 2.83 ERA, 89 K, 41 BB
GM's Comments: Travis began last season in our bullpen and joined the starting rotation in the middle of the season. He was absolutely phenomenal once he joined our rotation and he ended the season with a 2.83 ERA. He had a solid spring and if he can start this season the way he ended last season, he could find himself on the all-star team this summer.
Bullpen
MR Jeffrey Beliveau Age: 26 Velocity: 90-92 MPH Throws: L
2012 Stats: 17 G, 17 IP, 1-0, 2.65 ERA, 18 K, 6 BB
GM's Comments: Jeffrey spent most of 2012 in AAA and was very good. He recorded 22 saves and had an ERA 3.03. Once we called him up in August he was just as good and he's earned himself a spot in our bullpen as 1 of 2 lefties we have. We're going to be using Beliveau as a setup reliever.
MR Duane Below Age: 27 Velocity: 89-90 MPH Throws: L
2012 Stats: 6 G, 10.1 IP, 0-0, 2.61 ERA, 6 K, 3 BB (Tigers)
GM's Comments: Duane is the other lefty in our bullpen. Like Beliveau, he spent most of 2012 in AAA. In AAA Toledo, he logged 71 innings, primarily as a starter, and had a 4.69 ERA. Below gives us a left-handed option in situation where we need a long relief pitcher to give us a few innings. We acquired Below this offseason in a trade with the Tigers, we gave them LF Rebel Ridling and MR Marcos Mateo.
MR Shawn Camp Age: 37 Velocity: 89-90 MPH Throws: R
2012 Stats: 61 G, 57.2 IP, 5-2, 3.43 ERA, 44 K, 30 BB
GM's Comments: Shawn is one of the oldest players on our team but he's still got it. We gave him a 4-year deal this offseason which will run through 2016. He is getting old, but he still has the ability to get get batters out and was one of our best relievers last season. He doesn't have blow it by you stuff but he can get lots of outs on groundballs.
MR Rafael Dolis Age: 25 Velocity: 96-98 MPH Throws: R
2012 Stats: 62 G, 60.0 IP, 0-1, 1/2 SV, 3.45 ERA, 53 K, 33 BB
GM's Comments: 2012 will Rafael's first full major league season and he impressed us. He has great stuff with a fastball that can reach the high-90's and a nasty slider that is very hard to hit. He has some problems with his control but he's only 25 years old and we expect him to improve his K/BB ratio this season.
MR Carlos Marmol Age: 30 Velocity: 91-93 MPH Throws: R
2012 Stats: 74 G, 78.1 IP, 6-7, 18/24 SV, 3.68 ERA, 114 K, 62 BB
GM's Comments: Marmol started 2012 as our closer but in he blew 6 save opportunities in 24 total save attempts. He did a lot better once we started using him as a setup man. He still has the ability to make batters miss as he he had K/9 rate of 13.10 last season. This is a contract year for Carlos and he's going to need to really impress us if we're going to give him an extension.
MR Kyle McPherson Age: 25 Velocity: 90-92 MPH Throws: R
2012 Stats: 9 GS, 44.2 IP, 3-4, 8.04 ERA, 47 K, 25 BB (AAA Indianapolis - Pirates Affiliate)
GM's Comments: We selected Kyle as a Rule 5 pick this season. If you just look at his stats from last season in the minors, you can see that he struggled... a lot. However, he had a 9.47 K/9 and he has a lot of raw talent. He really worked hard during the offseason and it payed off as he had a 2.77 ERA in 13 innings of work this Spring Training. He pitched so well that he's earned himself a spot in our bullpen this year. His struggles last season were as a starter, hopefully he can relaunch his career as a reliever.
MR Jeff Samardzija Age: 28 Velocity: 93-95 MPH Throws: R
2012 Stats: 18 GS, 101.2 IP, 9-5, 4.16 ERA, 66 K, 47 BB
GM's Comments: We used Jeff as a starter last season and he pitched extremely well for the first 2 months of the season. As the season progressed his performance started to decline and then a torn labrum put him out for the rest of the season. He pitched well during Spring Training but you could tell that he was still recovering a bit from his injury and we don't want to rush him back into the starting rotation. If he pitches well out of the bullpen there is a definite possibility that he could be moved back into the rotation sometime this season
CL Kerry Wood Age: 35 Velocity: 93-95 MPH Throws: R
2012 Stats: 75 G, 79 IP, 7-5, 25/30 SV, 3.53 ERA, 99 K, 36 BB
GM's Comments: Kerry was named our closer mid-way through last season and pitcher very well, he even earned his 3rd all-star selection. Kerry was able to stay 100 percent injury-free last season and that was the key to his success. If he can continue to be healthy I can see at least another good 3 or 4 years ahead of him. His contract expires after this season but if he stays healthy we will almost definitely resign him.
Injuries
Unfortunately, we lost MR James Russell to a very serious injury this spring. James will need to undergo ligament reconstruction surgery and it will be about 13 months until he will be ready to pitch in a game. He was our main lefty out of the bullpen last year and he pitched very well as he put up 2.93 ERA in 58.1 innings pitched.
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08-06-2012, 06:56 AM
Re: Through The Ivy: A Chicago Cubs Dynasty with OOTP 13
