Comments on: A little more on Michael Ynoa, other A’s prospects

By: Jan K Oski

Jan K Oski — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 18:13:03 +0000

Could the A’s win the title of the best cellar team in the MLB? They’re 2 games up on the Dibacks. Back to my Golden Bears…

By: Joe Stiglich

Joe Stiglich — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 23:15:36 +0000

So many young pitchers to talk about — and so many that are rebounding from injuries — that it’s easy to leave someone out! I did ask Keith Lieppman about Simmons during our conversation, and the A’s are just hoping for better health for him. He was shut down with a shoulder problem, but it’s nothing considered real serious. The A’s want Simmons to develop an ‘out’ pitch — maybe a cutter or split-fingered fastball — and I’d imagine he spends a lot of the AZ Fall League working on one of those pitches …

By: Bee Hylinski

Bee Hylinski — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 18:49:12 +0000

Hi, Joe,

Great posts on the prospects in the A’s system. I’ve been up to about 5 River Cats games this year and have watched Wallace, Cardenas and Carter. They are impressive. As always, there is the question of whether their success can translate into the majors. We’ll just have to see.

You didn’t mention James Simmons, probably because he is has been on the DL for the last few weeks, and when he came off, he has struggled mightily. He should recover his stuff at the Fall League and be ready to go next Spring. He often gets overlooked as he doesn’t have a mid-90′s fastball, so he is a more of a finesse pitcher. They tend to take longer to develop and spend more time in the minors than guys who can throw heat. Keep and eye on him.