01-29-2010, 12:00 PM
<!--quoteo(post=77961:date=Jan 29 2010, 09:40 AM:name=rok)-->QUOTE (rok @ Jan 29 2010, 09:40 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->How far along is Cashner? I remember when we drafted him, some people were making off the wall predictions that he could be called up after one MiL season. And one would assume that he is bound for the pen, not the rotation, correct?<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
KLaw rated Cashner as the 79th best prospect in all of baseball. here's his take on him.
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->Cashner closed at TCU -- which has really improved its baseball profile in the past few years (including landing the top unsigned player from the 2009 draft, lefty Matt Purke) -- but has worked as a starter in the Cubs' system. It's a big arm, with a fastball at 93-98 mph even over multiple innings and a hard slider with very good tilt in the mid-80s, with his slider command ahead of his fastball command when I saw him. He has a changeup but rarely uses it; it has some tail but mostly just glove-side run. He gets ground balls but it's not extreme, and I don't think his home run rate from 2009 indicates some preternatural ability to keep the ball in the park. What's odd about Cashner is that for a guy with a power arm, he doesn't miss a lot of bats, and neither his control nor his ground-ball rate is high enough for him to be a good starter with a low strikeout rate. If he has to return to the pen, he'll be dominant there, but the Cubs will probably let him continue to start and see if he can improve his command and find a way to miss more bats.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
KLaw rated Cashner as the 79th best prospect in all of baseball. here's his take on him.
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->Cashner closed at TCU -- which has really improved its baseball profile in the past few years (including landing the top unsigned player from the 2009 draft, lefty Matt Purke) -- but has worked as a starter in the Cubs' system. It's a big arm, with a fastball at 93-98 mph even over multiple innings and a hard slider with very good tilt in the mid-80s, with his slider command ahead of his fastball command when I saw him. He has a changeup but rarely uses it; it has some tail but mostly just glove-side run. He gets ground balls but it's not extreme, and I don't think his home run rate from 2009 indicates some preternatural ability to keep the ball in the park. What's odd about Cashner is that for a guy with a power arm, he doesn't miss a lot of bats, and neither his control nor his ground-ball rate is high enough for him to be a good starter with a low strikeout rate. If he has to return to the pen, he'll be dominant there, but the Cubs will probably let him continue to start and see if he can improve his command and find a way to miss more bats.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->