10 Observations: More backfield updates, Bailey Falter, Henry Davis, Kyle Nicolas
More looks from the backfields, plus notes on Bailey Falter and other major leaguers
Murphy 3/3: That was not a good inning for Bubba Chandler against the Yankees. It started well, but quickly dissolved into a disaster of an outing. One notable thing, the slider remained sharp, and he commanded it well. The fastball is electric and will be one of the main reasons he’s successful in the majors, having that second pitch (especially against righties) he can throw for strikes when he can’t land the fastball is a good sign.
Murphy 3/3: Hunter Barco topped out at 97 mph in his game against the Yankees. Things went roughly overall, but the steps the stuff has taken since the first time I saw him in Bradenton have been impressive.
It’s easy to lose him in the crowd of prospects, but if the stuff maintains, he may get a look this season.
Murphy 3/3: Bailey Falter. Analytics. That’s it.
Seriously though, I don’t get how you can’t buy into analytics/pitch shape or whatever you want to call it after watching him pitch. With his success with throwing a low-90s fastball, as much as he does, means something has to be working for him.
There may be some frustrating moments, but he is the definition of a solid back-of-the-rotation starting pitcher.
Murphy 3/4: Henry Davis should be the backup catcher. It’s probably that simple. Not only does he not have much to solve offensively at the plate in Triple-A, he’s also shown some strides behind the plate this spring.
WTM and I discussed Joey Bart’s situation in one of the gameday chats, and there’s a very easy breakdown for allowing Davis optimal playing time while also getting Bart the at-bats he deserves as the starter.
Murphy 3/4: Konnor Griffin had maybe his worst at-bat we’ve seen this spring against Michael Fulmer. For as advanced as he is, that was probably the best breaking ball he’s ever seen while being located exactly where the pitcher wanted it.
He’s probably seen some good breaking balls, but not many in a row that were placed perfectly.
Live and learn. Funny enough, going to Single-A, he may not see another breaking ball like that for a while.
Murphy 3/5: Oneil Cruz is a large human and can hit the ball a long way. There will always be some give and take with him but he seems to be in a position to give a lot more than he takes away.
Murphy 3/5: With the complete lack of options at shortstop long-term, 2025 seems like the perfect year for Tsung-Che Cheng to finally take a step in the right direction.
He’s off to a good start this spring, putting some good swings together, including a home run earlier in the week. Spring, yes, but a solid one from one of the few guys in the upper levels that you feel confident with playing shortstop defensively.
WTM 3/6: Back in 2023, Isaias Uribe was a rare Pirates Latin American pitching prospect who showed some promise. He’s a lefty with fairly advanced command and a chance to add velocity. Unfortunately, he missed all of 2024; whether it was TJ or something else, I don’t know. On Thursday, he was throwing live batting practice at Pirate City. It seems likely that he’s a go for 2025.
WTM 3/6: Remember Brennan Malone? Acquired way back in 2020, with Liover Peguero, for Starling Marte? He’s been hurt almost continuously ever since then. Three surgeries, I think all of the shoulder variety. A friend spoke to him a few days ago and he said he’s the healthiest he’s been since high school. Hopefully, he’ll get his career restarted. He’ll be eligible for free agency after this season.
Murphy 3/8: Kyle Nicolas seems about as advertised in spring training. The stuff is good; it’s about whether he will be in the zone. Fastball has been up to 99 mph and has four strikeouts in five innings pitched in spring. He also has four walks in that same time.
One thing I did notice in his game on Saturday was that the curveball looked a lot better, and he aggressively used it a lot more that game. It was a pitch he used 22% of the time, throwing it three more times than his slider. Hitters had a .174 expected batting average against it and a -3° launch angle.
Keeping it in the zone is important, yes, but also while in there, maybe he can find some more success by upping the curveball usage a bit more this year?
WTM 3/8 (Bonus item): I was going through photos I took at Pirate City the other day and realized I had one of a tall first baseman I wasn’t sure about. Well, it’s Tony Blanco, Jr., who isn’t usually hard to identify. He looks like he’s in better shape now. I’d read somewhere that he was trying to accomplish that to avoid the injuries he’s had.
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Another int’l signing: 6’5” RHP Jose Rondon.
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