I know he's been a popular man here tonight... but I gotta give a lot of the credit to how Zeke is pitching now to Ausmus. When Astacio first came up, Chamo was handling him... and all of his pitches were up up up. Brad does a great job of calling for ALL his pitches, and he's stubborn at making him work the outside corner. If Zeke can hit that outside corner with his electric fastball, he can become a very very good pitcher. He reminds me a lot of Wade Miller when he first came up... without the funky delivery that predisposes him to injury. (speaking of which, did anybody else notice that the Red Sox had to skip Miller's last start because of his still problematic shoulder... he was able to go tonight and still ended up getting the win despite giving up 4 runs in 6 innings.
I've been out of Houston for over a year now, so I've never seen Zeke pitch. Does he have #1 or #2 type stuff? Was he a highly regarded prospect?
He was brought along real slowly by the Phillies, and didn't really start pitching full-time till after he turned 22 (he's now 25). He's got a plus fastball, a sinking fastball, and a plus splitter (or some sort of pitch that dives down... even the announcers aren't sure what to call it). Other than that, he really doesn't throw much else with any regularity. He has a slider that I don't think he can locate... and he may mix in a changeup. He was sort of a throw-in in the Billy Wagner trade. Then he proceeded to lead the Texas league in K's last year... and with Bucholz floundering with his arm problems/performance issues, the 'Stros were definitely happy to get something of quality in the deal. Right now, I'd say he's got the potential to be possibly a #2, if he continues to work on his other pitches and continues to work on his control. Its hard to say he could ever be a true #1 guy, given the fact that he's a rookie at age 25... but you never know.
Zeke was a part(not the primary acquisition) of the Wagner trade with the Phillies. He had a good K/BB ratio at the time of the trade but wasn't a K artist by any stretch. He also was old for his level. But last year at AA Round Rock, he started striking guys out. And that is why he was given a chance to win a spot in ST and he moved way up on the prospect ladder. From what some people who saw him a lot in Round Rock told me, he has #2 SP potential. Also, having Ausmus catch you instead of Raul Chavez really helps a pitcher. I'm so glad he's catching Oswalt and Zeke now, and Backe when he comes back. Hope that helps.
Lets keep the Major League references going! "Want me to drag him out of here, kick the sh*t out of him?"
Freaking Phil Garner and his marvelous moves... I know most of us were thinking "WTF?" when he pinch hit for Zeke in the top of the 6th, turns into 3 extra runs.
Another good outing for Zeke. Garner seems to make the right moves at the right time this season. 5-0 Good Guys!
UGLIEST PICTURE OF THE YEAR AWARD TO: Zeke's picture on mlb.com. Check it out. Looks terrible even for Zeke.
