As Brett Cecil continues on his journey back to the Majors, the 25-year-old has had some ups and downs this season. Over last off-season, the lefty hurler dropped significant weight and ran into problems with his location and fastball velocity this spring, as he learned to adapt to pitching with his "new body".
He had been improving with Double-A New Hampshire, in recent outings. Through 7 starts, Cecil had posted a 3-2 record with a 3.71 ERA. Over his previous 4 starts, Cecil had posted a 1.66 ERA and most recently, his velocity was back in the 90's.
Cecil got the start for NH in Trenton on Friday night and his velocity maxed out at 88 MPH. In the outing, a no decision, Cecil threw 5 2/3 innings while allowing 10 hits, 2 earned runs and 3 walks while striking out 5.
After the game was suspended with a 2-2 tie in the 8th inning, due to rain, I spoke with Brett about his progress, his adaptation to the weight loss, how his manager Sal Fasano has impacted his season and plenty more. Check out the media player below to hear the full interview.
As a bonus, here's a video clip of Cecil striking out Trenton Thunder player Luke Murton.
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Showing posts with label Brett Cecil. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brett Cecil. Show all posts
2012-06-02
2010-09-11
Game 141 Recap: Live And In Effect
So, the 1 Blue Jays Way free ticket giveaway extravaganza was no doubt a success.
Most of the details are a little hazy still, so I decided not to fight it.
Fuck paragraphs.
Was able to get seats in the 2nd row, at the box office, after the game had started.
There was some expected add/drops to the line up during game day.
Couldn't find Esteban in an empty bar.
Navin bailed but did it early.
Jimmy Triggs called moments after arriving at the airport and made an unexpected appearance.
My buddy Ty, who lost a massive Jays related bet and still hasn't paid the heavy price, was a late addition.
Got chirped by Ike Stake and Jimmy Triggs for inviting a couple of dudes I've never met to a ballgame.
Was asked if I met Jeremy on Lava Life.
Cecil sucked.
Before I sat down it was 6 - 0 for the Devil Gays.
I heckled our own mascot with this, captured in time by Andy:
"Diamond flew away, eh Ace? Tough break."
Bautista hit 2 bombs, the second one to tie the game up at 8 in the bottom of the 7th.
Fact: Ian and I have seen 2 games together and Bautista has hit a total of 4 HR in those games.
This is the only thing I felt the need to tweet all game:
That was fucking awesome! Tie game. #jays
Aaron Hill made a game saving play on defense.
Gregg sucked.
Carl Lindeman Crawford got fucked the fuck up.
At one point I remember looking down at my feet and seeing 4 full beers.
Had to play peace maker with a guy that I was calling 8 Ball and Cue Ball all night.
Ian did a really good job on his recap.
Many thanks to everybody for a very entertaining evening.
2010-08-26
Game 126 Recap: Live And In Effect
Seeing a game with Jimmy is an experience that every Jays fan really should partake in. It's always a blast but there is one small downside, normally I can't remember much of the actual game at all. Game 126 was no different. Thank goodness for PVR.
The Good:
- Vernon actually hitting like a clean up guy! 3 for 4 with a single, triple and a homer. He ended up with 4 RBI, 2 of them coming with 2 out.
- How about the hustle and heart shown by slugger J-Bau? He beat out an easy force play at second base, with 2 out, which ended up chasing starter Phil Hughes from the game. Nice call by umpire Jerry Meals. Still doesn't make up for his complete uselessness behind the plate in Game 124.
- Brett Cecil working out of a bases loaded jam in the top of the 2nd. It's a completely different game if he doesn't get out of that inning with no runs allowed. He ended up going 8 strong innings for the win.
- The group of fans in the outfield seats in right that continually chanted: Yankees SUCK. All game!
Much was made early on in the season about umpire Joe West's comments regarding the pace of play for a game that the Yanks and Red Sucks played. At the time, Joe was made out to be the villain.
For the record: I think West is a douchebag.
But after watching catcher Jorgay Posada make 6 trips to the mound in the first 4 innings, I gotta say West may be on to something. That total doesn't even include the 2 visits by the pitching coach and the 1 trip by the manager. In total, 9 times a Yankee went to the mound to discuss something with their pitcher in the first 4 fucking innings.
The Ugly:
In classic Yankees fashion, the game was not over till it was in fact over. Somehow their hitters managed to get down to their final strike on 5 separate occasions before finally registering 3 outs in the top of the ninth. In those at bats they ended up getting 2 walks, a single, a HBP and then mercifully, the fly out to end the game. Love em or hate em you have to respect that.
Of Note:
Brett Cecil's ERA in his first 13 starts of the season: 4.39
Brett Cecil's ERA in his last 8 starts not including this gem: 3.14
2010-08-07
Game 109 Recap: Live And In Effect
My 2nd row Jays' dugout seats provided a fantastic view point of the unfolding events of the night.
Here are my observations.
First, the good: Brett Cecil plain dealing! Recovering from a 3 hit 1 ER first to shut down the Rays offence, over 7 IP allowing only the 1 ER over 4 hits, and 9 K's. Stranding 5 Tampa Runners including grinding out a tough 5th inning that featured a leadoff walk to Upton, and a single to Sean Rodriguez. A double play courtesy of Evan Longoria eased the stress a bit, until Willy Aybar walked to put runners at 1st and 3rd. With Ben Zobrist at the plate, Cecil reached back for a 94mph fastball that Zobrist is still looking for to K and end the threat. An uneventful 8th and 9th courtesy of Camp and Gregg sealed the deal.
The Bad: Really tough for me to find anything bad in a Jays' win, but if I had to choose, Garza stymied the Jays' bats all night showing his no-hitter form early and often.
The Ugly: The Rays' defense. 2 errors lead to 2 un-earned runs. Despite a 8IP complete game, with no ER's, Garza proved to be the hard luck loser.
The continued struggles of Aaron Hill. From my vantage point, he looked plain over matched. Credit Garza, but Hill looked behind on a couple of mis-hit, lazy fly balls to RF.
Today's matchup features Brad Mills fresh on a recall from AAA Las Vegas (1-0) against James Shields (10-9). The much anticipated debut of J.P. Arencibia is slated for todays game.
2010-06-11
The Change Up
So I got this theory. It has to do with this pitch.
Your Toronto Blue Jays have three players who are going deep into games, in a row, in the starting rotation. All of them feature this pitch in their repertoire and use it between about 20 and 30 percent of the time. They all throw their fastballs right at about 50 percent of the time. Check it:
The Theory:
All of these pitches (fastball(s) and change up) use the exact same arm angle, release point and arm swing. They have to in order to be effective. It is the most natural and least taxing way to throw a baseball. No violent twisting or snapping. Just free and easy.
Our trio of studs are doing it 7 or 8 times out of every 10 pitches.
I think there may be a correlation between that and the amount of effective innings they have been able to log. I acknowledge the change up is a deadly pitch to try to hit, even when the hitter guesses that it might be coming. But I respectfully submit that it is not the pitch itself but the fact that the way it needs to be thrown puts little to no strain on the arm/elbow/shoulder. And that is why our boys are able to pitch deep into games virtually every start.
Simply put, their wings don't hurt.
If I may give a suggestion to the manager, you may want to break these guys up in the rotation. Perhaps use the All Star break as your excuse and reset them, like this:
Marcum
Romero
Morrow
Cecil
Whoever
That way you don't have three guys in a row that feature basically the same stuff.
Your Toronto Blue Jays have three players who are going deep into games, in a row, in the starting rotation. All of them feature this pitch in their repertoire and use it between about 20 and 30 percent of the time. They all throw their fastballs right at about 50 percent of the time. Check it:
20.7% change ups
19.9% fastballs
28.3% two seam fastballs
-----
68.9%
8 of his 13 starts he has pitched at least 7 innings
31.9% change ups
32.4% fastballs
19.6% two seam fastball
------
83.9%
7 of his 12 starts he has pitch at least 7 innings
Brett Cecil (sans Oakleys)
25.9% change ups
27.1% fastballs
24.4% two seam fastballs
-------
77.4%
4 of his 10 starts he has pitched at least 7 innings
The Theory:
All of these pitches (fastball(s) and change up) use the exact same arm angle, release point and arm swing. They have to in order to be effective. It is the most natural and least taxing way to throw a baseball. No violent twisting or snapping. Just free and easy.
Our trio of studs are doing it 7 or 8 times out of every 10 pitches.
I think there may be a correlation between that and the amount of effective innings they have been able to log. I acknowledge the change up is a deadly pitch to try to hit, even when the hitter guesses that it might be coming. But I respectfully submit that it is not the pitch itself but the fact that the way it needs to be thrown puts little to no strain on the arm/elbow/shoulder. And that is why our boys are able to pitch deep into games virtually every start.
Simply put, their wings don't hurt.
If I may give a suggestion to the manager, you may want to break these guys up in the rotation. Perhaps use the All Star break as your excuse and reset them, like this:
Marcum
Romero
Morrow
Cecil
Whoever
That way you don't have three guys in a row that feature basically the same stuff.
2010-04-26
We Are Not Even Rebuilding, Yet.....
This topic has been floating through my mind for quite sometime.
re·build
[ree-bild] verb,-built or (Archaic
) -build·ed; -build·ing.
) -build·ed; -build·ing.
–verb (used with object)
1.
to
repair, esp. to dismantle and reassemble with new parts: to rebuild an old car.
2.
to
replace, restrengthen, or reinforce: to
rebuild an army.
3.
to revise, reshape, or
reorganize: to rebuild a shattered career.
–verb (used without object)
4.
to
build again or afresh: With the insurance
money we can rebuild.
So the line the brain trust has been using to describe the 2010 version of your Toronto Blue Jays in my opinion is bullshit. We are not rebuilding, yet.
If you look at our Opening Day line up this year and compare it to last year, you will notice a downgrade in talent. That is not rebuilding. That is simply plugging holes.
In my mind, a rebuild is when you take a few young players, who clearly have no business playing at the Major League level, and run them out there so that they can get some valuable experience without worrying about the results so much. Think: 2009 pitching staff. Guys like Cecil, Rzep, Mills, Ray, Richmond got experience that will hopefully make them better the next time around.
A few things have to happen before we can call it a rebuild:
- Trade Lyle Overbay
- Trade Scott Downs
- Trade Jason Frasor
- Trade Alex Gonzalez
- Trade John Buck
The problem we have here in Toronto is that we have no one knocking at the door, with the exception of Brett Wallace and J. P. Arencibia. They should be up with this team, right now, in hopes they are able to mature as players. But Boy Wonder is very conscious of their service time as he should be.
So therein lies the rub. We cannot rebuild, yet. We have to run out the vets all season and hope the preform well enough that someone is stupid enough to give us good talent for them in a trade. This will happen close to the trade deadline at the end of July, if at all. There is a possibility that we are forced to keep these players all season and decide whether or not to offer them arbitration in hopes that they decline and we get compensation draft picks for the 2011 Amateur Draft after they sign with a different team via free agency.
This season should be called a transition year. Boy Wonder had very little to start with and he needs some time to get the talent required to rebuild. He has shown the ability so far to trade for those types of players. Brandon Morrow comes to mind.
Looking Forward:
We, the people, need to keep it in perspective. We are not a good team and I doubt that will change anytime soon. We must live in the moment and cheer for our boys. Wins and loses are not as important as personal stats right now. We have to get our free agents to be going but only so that they can be shipped off to a team in the hunt.
Nobody said it was going to be easy.....
2010-04-23
Game 17 Recap: I Have No Fingernails Left
Nice shades Gustavo Jr.
This will be brief. My fingers hurt and it's making it tough to type.....
The Good:
Brett Cecil pitched a great game for us against a very tough opponent.
His line:
6 and two thirds innings, 6 hits, 4 ER, 1 BB, 8 K and he got the win.
But he got left out there for one inning to long and he got tagged. I understand why The Cito ran him back out there (low pitch count, hitting his spots, etc) but why the fuck was no one ready in the pen?
Jose Bautista had a great game with both the stick and the glove. He saved a big run in the bottom of the sixth on a nice play to his left. He did not get an out on the play but was able to keep the ball of the infield. With the bat he went 3 for 5 with 3 doubles. He looks a little better suited to hit down in the order.
Actually having a lead off guy. Fred Lewis is music to my eyes.....It's been too long since we had a guy that puts pressure on the defense with his legs. He ended up 2 for 4 with a double and a walk. He was able to get some great jumps off Garza and should steal us quite a few bags.
Aaron Hill looked a little lost for the first few at bats. But he managed to get his timing together enough to launch a dinger to left. He also walked.
The Bad:
Jason Frasor.
The Ugly:
Jason Frasor.
The Bottom Line:
We win a game that was way to close considering the effort we got from our starter. We were up 5 - 0 and 6 - 1. Final score ending up being 6 - 5 Good Guys.
Tomorrow we got Ricky and his 1.57 ERA on the hill for a 6:10pm start. Your Toronto Blue Jays will be looking for their 11th win of the year.
2010-03-03
One and Done?
Gustavo burst out onto the major league scene as a 24 year old, relative unknown in 2005. His 34 starts were tied for the third most in the AL and he went 13 - 9 in 203 innings. He finished 5th in Rookie Of The Year voting, receiving 10% of the total vote and 2% of the first place vote. Prior to that magical season, in 2004, he had pitched 167.1 innings at 3 separate levels. And prior to that, in 2003, he pitched only 69.1 innings total.
| Year | Team | League | GP | GS | W | L | SV | CG | Sho | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | K | ERA |
|---|
| 2004 | Toronto | AL | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14.0 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 2.57 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Syracuse | AAA | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11.2 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 2.31 |
| 2004 | New Hampshire | AA | 25 | 25 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 141.2 | 113 | 53 | 46 | 15 | 49 | 109 | 2.92 |
| 2003 | New Haven | AA | 46 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 69.1 | 78 | 39 | 32 | 1 | 29 | 55 | 4.15 |
He hurt his wing early in the 2006 campaign and has not returned to form since.
Courtesy of TSN:
Transactions / Injuries / Suspensions
| 09-May-08 | Designated for assignment by the Toronto Blue Jays. |
|---|---|
| 12-Mar-08 | Optioned to Syracuse (AAA). |
| 17-Jan-08 | Re-signed by the Toronto Blue Jays to a one-year contract. |
| 01-Oct-07 | Missed the last 136 games of the regular season (left elbow injury). |
| 04-Sep-07 | Transferred from the 15-day DL to the 60-day DL (left elbow injury). |
| 30-Jul-07 | Voided the option to Syracuse (AAA). |
| 27-Jul-07 | Missed 78 games and optioned to Syracuse (AAA). |
| 30-Apr-07 | Left elbow injury, 15-day DL. |
| 04-Mar-07 | Re-signed by the Toronto Blue Jays to a one-year contract. |
| 23-Aug-06 | Missed 66 games (elbow injury). |
| 10-Jun-06 | Elbow injury, 15-day DL. |
| 30-May-06 | Missed 17 games (elbow injury). |
| 16-May-06 | Elbow injury, 15-day DL (retroactive May 11th). |
| 18-Feb-05 | Re-signed by the Toronto Blue Jays to a one-year contract. |
| 19-Sep-04 | Contract purchased from New Hampshire (AA). |
If you need a refresher, here are his minor league stats from 2006 to 2009 here they are courtesy of Minor League Stats dot com:
| Yr | Age | Team | Lg | Org/Lev | IP | FIP | BF | H | 2B | HR | W | IW | K | AVG | BABIP | WHIP | GB% | LD% | FB% | IF/F | HR/F | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 25 | Total | 15.3 | 3.56 | 82 | 28 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 16 | 0.373 | 0.466 | 2.28 | 61.0% | 6.8% | 32.2% | 26.1% | 5.3% | ||||||
| 2006 | 25 | Dunedin | FSL | TOR/A+ | 4.7 | 3.94 | 24 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0.300 | 0.400 | 2.14 | 66.7% | 0.0% | 33.3% | 20.0% | 0.0% | ||||
| 2006 | 25 | Syracuse | IL | TOR/AAA | 10.7 | 3.34 | 58 | 22 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 0.400 | 0.488 | 2.34 | 59.1% | 9.1% | 31.8% | 27.8% | 7.1% | ||||
| 2007 | 26 | Syracuse | IL | TOR/AAA | 10.7 | 4.46 | 43 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0.333 | 0.364 | 1.50 | 45.7% | 28.6% | 25.7% | 10.5% | 11.1% | ||||
| 2008 | 27 | Dunedin | FSL | TOR/A+ | 47.3 | 5.81 | 209 | 72 | 16 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 22 | 0.369 | 0.384 | 1.77 | 31.5% | 24.2% | 43.3% | 10.8% | 11.7% | ||||
| 2009 | 28 | Total | 108.7 | 4.47 | 438 | 100 | 22 | 9 | 41 | 0 | 62 | 0.254 | 0.282 | 1.30 | 38.2% | 20.1% | 39.4% | 11.6% | 6.6% | ||||||
| 2009 | 28 | Reading | EL | PHI/AA | 5.0 | 2.87 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0.211 | 0.250 | 1.00 | 50.0% | 6.3% | 43.8% | 12.5% | 0.0% | ||||
| 2009 | 28 | Lehigh Valley | IL | PHI/AAA | 103.7 | 4.49 | 418 | 96 | 22 | 9 | 40 | 0 | 59 | 0.256 | 0.283 | 1.31 | 37.7% | 20.8% | 39.2% | 11.6% | 6.9% | ||||
| Career | 182.0 | 4.73 | 772 | 213 | 48 | 20 | 63 | 0 | 105 | 0.303 | 0.334 | 1.52 | 38.9% | 20.5% | 39.0% | 12.2% | 8.3% |
For those that don't know what some of the stat lines mean click here for THT Glossary. You may want to bookmark that one ;)
His projections for 2010 courtesy of CHONE:
| Player | Age | G | GS | Won | Lost | IP | Hits | BB | SO | HR | HB | Runs | ER | ERA |
|---|
| Gustavo Chacin | 29 | 15 | 15 | 3 | 6 | 78 | 89 | 31 | 42 | 13 | 3 | 50 | 46 | 5.31 |
He will be reunited with former pitching coach Brad Arnsberg in Houston. Please note: Arnsberg was in his first year as pitching coach for us in the 2005 season.
Verducci Effect:
Named for Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated, this is a negative forward indicator for pitcher workload. Verducci, found that pitchers under the age of 25 who have 30-inning increases year over year tend to underperform. Will Carroll independently found that pitchers who break the "Rule of 30" tend to get injured. Carroll renamed this 'rule' the Verducci Effect in honor of the man who initially found the evidence.
Our boy "Smells like Victory" was named in the article as a victim of the effect. For all you fantasy pool players out there, click here for this years candidates.
Initially this theory met some resistance. THT refuted Verducci's findings the next day and concluded: Pitchers who see a large increase in workload are more likely to continue to be successful than those who don’t. To see their article in it's entirety, click here.
- Marc Rzepczynski, Aug. 29, 1985
- Brett Cecil, July 2, 1986
- Kyle Drabek, Dec. 8, 1987
- Zach Stewart, Sept. 28, 1986
Rzep: 124.3 in 2008, 154.3 in 2009
Cecil: 125.3 in 2008, 155 in 2009
Drabek: 34 in 2008, 163 in 2009
Stewart: 34 in 2008, 108 in 2009
Righthander Kyle Drabek had Tommy John surgery in 2007 and I'm not sure what effect, if any, that will have on his innings cap. I think he will top out at about 190 innings this season and be ready to go in 2011 with no innings restrictions, that is if he does not suffer from the Verducci Effect this season.....
I think it is fair to say that the two young lefties, Rzepczynski and Cecil, will have their innings capped at right about 185 this year or roughly 28 starts. I also think it is fair to say that their innings can be manipulated easier at the minor league level. I see both of these guys, barring injury, pitching in our major league rotation in 2011 restriction free. They are right on schedule.
Righthander Zach Stewart was drafted as a reliever and is the prime candidate to suffer from the Verducci Effect out of this group moving forward. It is imperative that we do not allow him to exceed 140 innings pitched this season. Even that may be too many. He will then need another year in the minors to build his stamina up to around 170 innings in 2011. I think of him as a guy that will be in a position to enter the rotation sometime in 2012.
In Conclusion:
These four guys are the future of our Major League starting rotation. We must be patient with them and resist the urge to rush them to the majors for the upcoming 2010 season "just to see what they got". New pitching coach Bruce Walton has brought with him a new philosophy. He seems to believe the innings cap can be manipulated if his pitchers tweak their off day routines. To read all about it, click here.
This upcoming baseball season will not be a pretty one to watch in Toronto. But hang in there guys, these four pitchers are the future and we must keep in mind that they are still a year away at best.....and we must also never forget what happened to young Gustavo Chacin.
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