My first introduction to Mike Minor was during the 2009 Draft. When he was selected by the Atlanta Braves, Harold Reynolds said you can throw the stats out the window with Minor.
I really didn’t get what Reynolds meant at the time because I rarely understand the things that come out of Reynolds’s mouth. However, after watching Minor’s debut last night against the Houston Astros, I kind of see what Reynolds was talking about.
Minor made his MLB debut last night
Despite his short-arm motion, which I am not a fan of, I really liked what I saw out of Minor in his major league debut. He was in the low-to-mid 90′s all night and featured an impressive changeup that was around 81-83 for most of the night. That nine-to-10 mph difference on his fastball and changeup is what a pitcher is looking for.
I was also really impressed with Minor’s poise on the mound. After Michael Bourn led off the game with a single and then stole second, Minor didn’t let Bourn play with his head on second base.
How many times do we see a young pitcher let a fast runner on second base distract him and the game slows down to a snails pace? Minor actually sped the game up with Bourn on second.
On the first two pitches to Jeff Keppinger (who was batting third by the way…ouch), Minor didn’t even bother to look at Bourn on second. He got the ball and fired it home. On the third pitch, Minor looked back at Bourn twice, so Bourn couldn’t time Minor to the plate. That just shows me that Minor has a pretty good idea of what he wants to do out there.
The final line for Minor: 6 IP 5 H 3 ER 1 BB 5 K
I will say that Minor’s worst moment of the night came in his first major league AB. He singled to right, but Hunter Pence threw him out at first and robbed not only of his first major league hit, but his first RBI as well.
Here are some other facts about Mike Minor…
Age: 22
Throws: Left
Bats: Right
College: Vanderbilt University
Drafted: Seventh overall pick in the first round of the 2009 Draft
Minor League Stats:
2009 Single A: 0.64 ERA with 17 K’s, and a 0.71 WHIP in 14 IP.
2010 Double A & Triple A: 3.44 ERA with 146 K’s, and a 1.56 WHIP in 120.1 IP
Keith Law Ranking and Analysis:
Ranking: N/A
Analysis: N/A
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