Strasburg hits 103 mph

[HollywoodLeo]

Don't get me wrong, despite my earlier post I'd still be happy to draft him if he magically falls to #3, but I'm starting to think he's not as surefire as he's been made out to be.

[padrefanforever]

I understand where you're coming from......but that guys opinion is not shared by everyone......and if you talk with some other people, they praise his mechanics....and marvel at how free and easy he hits triple digits.....

Time will tell of course.....and maybe all those opinions will change.......or maybe this guy is taking a pessimistic approach in the event he's right so he can say......Told you so...

[HollywoodLeo]

A lot of other people praised Prior's mechanics as well.

In fact, a lot of people claimed Prior had perfect mechanics.

[padrefanforever]

Yup...

[love_that_reefer]

And we all know Prior did not have good mechanics. I would love to hear what Rick Peterson has to say but Leo's right. He does look a lot like Prior with his arm action. Not a good sign.

[Providence A's]

DC could easily be scared off by the Boras demands...

even if that does happen, do the Padres even have the money to sign him (not even factoring in if they would or wouldn't be scared off). seems like all off-season people keep talking about how tight their finances are.

[HollywoodLeo]

I don't think any unproven rookie in baseball should be allowed to make over 1 million dollars.

It's dumb enough that unproven rookies can make so much in the NFL, but at least there a rookie can have an immediate impact on his team.

It's even worse in baseball where the chance exists that the guy could get hurt or just plain lose it in the minors before ever playing for the major league team once.

[love_that_reefer]

From stuff I've read, the M's are willing to give up the entire draft just to get Strasburg.

[padrefanforever]

even if that does happen, do the Padres even have the money to sign him (not even factoring in if they would or wouldn't be scared off). seems like all off-season people keep talking about how tight their finances are.

Of course........Morrad has already said that payroll will be going back up to mid 70's- low 80's.......and I could easily see him making a statement signing if Stras did fall to #3........but as Reefer said he's hearing that the M's would sell their 1st born for him......so it probably wont happen.........but DC I don't really see being a player for him

[padrefanforever]

And we all know Prior did not have good mechanics. I would love to hear what Rick Peterson has to say but Leo's right. He does look a lot like Prior with his arm action. Not a good sign.

Their release points are nowhere near the same....... the only thing these two have in common is that they are both pitchers.....

Also it's been said for years that Prior had excellent mechanics

[Providence A's]

The Nationals had a large offer for Teix out there supposedly, why wouldn't they be willing to pay less for the top SP spec? I'll be shocked if they pass on him. I also don't really want the Mariners to get him either.

[love_that_reefer]

Their release points are nowhere near the same....... the only thing these two have in common is that they are both pitchers.....

Also it's been said for years that Prior had excellent mechanics

Their arm angles are the same and no, Mark Prior did not have good mechanics. He had poor mechanics which lead to his shoulder problems. The same thing that will happen to Joba and from the looks of it Starsburg.

[padrefanforever]

Thier release points are no where near the same......Stras lets go of the ball up by his ear, Prior way out in front of himself.....

Recent article Pristine mechanics caused Prior pain

Our eyes deceived us, of course. Prior has not thrown a pitch in the major leagues for nearly three years. What won us over for its aesthetics – the way his arms mirrored each other, the deliberate pace, the smooth finish – may have been just the opposite. There’s a long-held school of thought that Prior’s delivery was gold-plated, a false idol, and it turned one of the gifted right arms of this generation into a mangled mess of ruined talent.

It had always been said that his mechanics were near perfect.....this isn't new
2002 article by Baseball Digest

Not this time, House said. Not with Prior.

House is a new-age coach, relying on coaching and playing experience and also his Ph.D. in psychology. He has taken all that science--computer, medical, nutritional and psychological--can offer to come up with a plan for developing pitchers.

"Mark has been exposed to, and taken advantage of, the best research available," House said. "He has been the poster child for what is, objectively, non-traditional baseball knowledge.

He's not going to fail."

Guaranteed?

"It's not my opinion," he said. "With motion analysis, blood chemistry, mental-emotional makeup and nutritional makeup, he matches up statistically, objectively."

The point to this is simply that EVERYONE though his mechanics were perfect.....and only now are they all back peddling.....

[love_that_reefer]

That's not true at all. Rick Peterson saw his flaws in his mechanics before Prior was drafted and made his report to the A's. The main point is that Prior's mechanics were extremely flawed which lead to his shoulder problems. Strasburg's arm action is very similar to his. Look at the elbow action on them. Near identical! More to mechanics than release point. Even the first article you posted called Prior a "false idol". There's a reason. Prior's mechanics were without a doubt flawed and most scouts ignored it because he was a big, gifted pitcher from USC who had good stuff. Scouting is a lot more advanced now. Want to know more about Mark Prior's flawed mechanics, read the SI article on Lincecum. I'm not going to debate Prior had poor mechanics because its evident he did and I have the backing of the American Sports Medicine Institute.

[Kingdom]

The Nationals had a large offer for Teix out there supposedly, why wouldn't they be willing to pay less for the top SP spec? I'll be shocked if they pass on him. I also don't really want the Mariners to get him either.

That's been their M.O. lately, to try to throw the kitchen sink at one player even though it's just highly unlikely the player bites and then they sit and do nothing afterwards (I mean, it was probably like pulling teeth for them to give Dunn a 2 year deal). I don't know who they drafted last year, but I would not be surprised if they had tried playing hard ball with the kid.