Tag: Jose De Leon

De León Impressive for Dodgers in Cactus League Debut

Published on by Dennis SchlossmanLeave a comment

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While much of the attention fell upon Japanese righty Kenta Maeda in the Dodgers’ 7-2 victory over Arizona in Saturday’s Cactus League contest, the first spring appearance of highly rated pitching prospect Jose De Leon was equally as exciting.

De León entered the game in the sixth for the Dodgers, and quickly allowed a leadoff double to Diamondbacks’ shortstop Nick Ahmed. After an errant pickoff throw to second base (which could have resulted from a case of testy nerves), De León came back with a vengeance and struck out the side to end the inning.

Continuing into the seventh, De León did allow a single, but tallied another strikeout, then ended his outing with a very tidy groundball double play.

Here’s a quick peek of all three of his strikeouts in the sixth inning:

De León was credited with the highly coveted spring training win.

Manager Dave Roberts sounded impressed with De León’s debut performance.

“Jose throwing strikes, keeping the ball down,” Roberts said. “Mixes his offspeed pitches in there. Had a baserunner on, held the runner well. Mixed in a quick step once in a while. Just his composure he had out there was good to see.”

Although a longshot candidate, De León is still in the running for a spot in the Dodgers’ starting pitching rotation after teammate Brett Anderson had surgery earlier in the week for a bulging disc in his lower back.

Maeda also threw two scoreless innings on Saturday while striking out two and giving up only one hit. He threw 28 pitches and faced the minimum six batters, despite giving up a double to Phil Gosselin, who was eventually thrown out trying to steal. With the Dodgers employing a defensive shift to the right side against David Peralta, shortstop Corey Seager was able to cover third base and tag out Gosselin.

“He was very efficient,” Roberts said of Maeda. “There were some swings and misses, he made some good pitches. We were thinking about getting out there again since his pitch count was so low. He made a joke with [pitching coach Rick Honeycutt] and said he was tired. It was good. We were pretty excited.”

Newly acquired utility man Rob Segedin led the Dodgers with two homers, one in the sixth inning and the other in the eighth.

Zach Lee, who is also believed to be a candidate for the Dodgers’ starting rotation, faces the San Francisco Giants and RHP Jeff Samardzija Sunday at 12 p.m. PT in Scottsdale.

The game will be available on both television (SportsNet LA) and radio (KLAC 570 AM).

(Photo Credit: milb.com)

Projecting the Starting Rotation at Oklahoma City

Published on by Dennis Schlossman5 Comments

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Although the starting pitching rotation for the 2016 Los Angeles Dodgers is still very much in doubt, the same cannot be said for their Triple-A affiliate, the Oklahoma City Dodgers.

Truth be told, after a brief analysis of available starting pitchers on the farm, nine different hurlers have a legitimate shot at vying for a rotation spot in OKC. Let’s take a look at all nine pitchers, listing their ages come Opening Day, number of option years remaining, and where they may begin their respective 2016 campaigns.

  • Mike Bolsinger – 28 years, one option remaining
  • Carlos Frias – 26 years, one option remaining
  • Joe Wieland – 26 years, one option remaining
  • Zach Lee – 24 years, two options remaining
  • Ross Stripling – 26 years, all three options remaining
  • Jharel Cotton – 24 years, all three options remaining
  • Frankie Montas – 23 years, all three options remaining
  • José De León – 23 years, all three options remaining
  • Julio Urias – 19 years, all three options remaining

Needless to say, that’s a very crowded yet talented list. Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi may decide to simplify things by moving a few to the bullpen, or more likely, use several as trade pieces in a package for a much needed impact starter at the big league level.

Carlos Frias may command a spot on the 25-man roster, perhaps filling the role that Juan Nicasio held last season as long man or spot starter. Frias made 17 appearances including 13 starts for the Dodgers last season, hurling 77.2 innings to a tune of a 4.06 ERA.

Both Mike Bolsinger and Joe Wieland are also considered MLB-ready, and barring any trade or the need to begin the season in the Dodgers rotation, will certainly fill starting roles for OKC.

After a hot start, Bolsinger ended up contributing 109 innings over 21 starts in the bigs, compiling a 6-6 record with a 3.63 ERA and a 8.1 K/9.

Wieland made two unsuccessful starts for the Dodgers in 2015, but put up relatively consistent numbers for OKC. He threw 113 innings over 21 starts and posted a 4.59 ERA.

Former first-round draft pick Zach Lee had a nightmare of a debut for the Dodgers, but put up solid numbers in Triple-A. Lee hurled 113 innings over 19 starts sporting a 2.70 ERA. He also likely fills a starting slot for Oklahoma City.

Having had Tommy John surgery and sitting out all of 2014, Ross Stripling returned and pitched 67 innings over 13 starts for the Tulsa Drillers last season. He was added to the 40-man in November to protect him from Rule 5 status. Stripling isn’t overpowering, but features a nasty arsenal of breaking pitches much like Bolsinger. Stripling has never thrown at the Triple-A level, and may begin the year at Tulsa just to make room for others at OKC.

Although two completely different pitchers, Jharel Cotton and Frankie Montas find themselves in similar situations. Cotton had been a starter, and was given an opportunity to relieve late last season, while Montas has proven himself as a reliever but projects as a hard-throwing starter.

Cotton, who probably has the best changeup in the Dodgers system, projects better as a starter due to the lack of velocity on his fastball (90-91 MPH). His breaking pitches are his best weapons, leading him to a 10.7 K/9 in almost 100 innings of work last year.

Whether an honest evaluation, or an attempt to make him look attractive to other teams as a trade piece, Andrew Friedman continues to hype the talent of Montas. Friedman believes that his fastball-slider combo is among the best in the minors and often touts his triple-digit fastball. If able to maintain his command as a starter, there’s no doubt Montas will climb to the top of the Triple-A rotation quickly.

Perhaps the two most talented starters among the entire group are José De León and Julio Urias. Although both have ascended through the Dodgers’ system rapidly, neither is on the 40-man roster.

In terms of control, fastball velocity, mental maturity and overall talent, De León is fully developed physically and ready to go. If there’s still a crowded house come Opening Day, he may begin the season at Tulsa, but should make the jump to Triple-A quickly and be ready for a fall call-up when rosters expand in September.

Urias, the prized-possession of the farm, most likely needs one additional season on an innings count due to the fact that he’s still developing physically. He may be promoted to the 40-man at some point depending on the movement of other players, but like De León, should get a taste come September.

Based on no players being moved, and no service needed at the MLB level (assuming the Dodgers sign somebody like Kenta Maeda and one other free agent pitcher), we see things shaping up like this:

  • OKC starting rotation: Bolsinger, Urias, Lee, Montas and Wieland; with Cotton as long man and spot starter
  • De León and Stripling beginning the year at Double-A Tulsa but rising quickly
  • Frias beginning the season as long man in the bigs

Of course, all this could change with an injury or any type of trade. Although the logjam could create some minor headaches for the managers and directors on the farm, it’s certainly a good problem to have — especially when the big league squad needs all the help it can get.

(Photo Credit: MLB.com)

Dodgers Prospects: José De León On the Rise

Published on by Dennis Schlossman4 Comments

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Regardless of how questionable the starting rotation looks for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2016, fans can take comfort in knowing that a handful of future stars are on the verge of making an impact in the bigs.

One such prized prospect is 23-year-old righty José De León.

Born in Isabela, Puerto Rico in 1992, De León played college ball at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and was drafted by the Dodgers in the 24th round of the 2013 MLB draft.

De León is currently ranked the third-best prospect in the Dodgers organization by Ben Badler of Baseball America.

After a full year of rookie ball in 2013, his ascension to star level began to take place when he was named the Pioneer League Pitcher of the Year while playing for the Ogden Raptors in 2014. Later that year, after being promoted to Single-A Great Lakes, he broke Clayton Kershaw’s team record of 12 Ks set back in 2007 by fanning 14 Fort Wayne TinCaps in only his second career-start for the Loons. 12 of his 14 strikeout victims were retired by swinging strikes.

The beginning of 2015 saw De León promoted to High-A Rancho Cucamonga where he continued to shine. On May 29 against the Frisco RoughRiders, he threw 91 pitches over seven innings of work while striking out a season-high 11 batters and only allowing three hits, two walks and one earned run. His total tally for Rancho included 58 strikeouts over 37.2 innings of work, which calculated to a 13.9 K/9. A WHIP of .903 and a 1.9 BB/9 reflected the dominance he showed at the Single-A level. He was promoted to Double-A Tulsa after only 7 appearances for the Quakes.

While with the Drillers, De León fanned 105 batters over 76.2 innings to close out 2015. He posted a 12.3 K/9 and a WHIP of 1.124. His 3.4 BB/9, however, revealed his continued efforts to develop and diversify his off-speed and breaking-pitch arsenal.

Over the course of 2015, De León showed that he was much more serious about baseball as opposed to his earlier years. He ended up dropping 25-plus pounds by the end of the season. His improved fitness and conditioning allowed him to refine his mechanics, while increasing the spin on his slider and noticeably elevating the velocity of his fastball.

De León’s fastball, which has nasty, late movement and sits in the 93-96 MPH range, is by far his best weapon. His slider rates a little above-average but continues to improve. His changeup is by far his best off-speed pitch — he’s not afraid to use it when behind in the count and often uses it as his strikeout pitch.

Many scouts within the organization project De León to be a solid #3 starter down the road, but as time goes by, his ceiling continues to rise. His hard work on and off the field reflects a progressively improving command and pitching arsenal as well as added mental maturity. His rapid development and advancement almost indicate that he has a desire to be the Dodgers #1 prospect on the farm.

Most within the Dodgers’ organization see De León getting his first taste when rosters expand in September of 2016 and being ready to contribute to the rotation in 2017, but with his hard work and his uncanny ability to advance, don’t be surprised to see him on the hill much sooner.

(Photo Credit: milb.com)