December 30, 2014

Minor League Update

Venezuelan Winter League Pitchers

by Jeff Moore

Printer-friendly

Adys Portillo, RHP, Padres (Aguilas del Zulia): 17 IP, 16 H, 13 K/15 BB, 7.94 ERA.
Winter league numbers require context due to the small sample sizes, different hitting environments in different leagues, ends of long seasons, etc. At no point in the baseball universe, however, is it a good thing to walk more batters than you strike out. Extreme control issues have plagued Portillo since he signed for $2 million in 2008, and they don’t appear to be getting any better, even after he switched to a relief role this season.

J.C. Sulbaran, RHP, Royals (Tiburones de La Guaira): 4 GS, 17 IP, 18 H, 13 K/5 BB, 5.82 ERA. Best known as the player the Royals got in return for Jonathan Broxton at the 2012 trade deadline, Sulbaran stagnated at Double-A in 2013 but bounced back with a solid season in 2014. Upon their acquisition of Sulbaran, the Royals moved him into the bullpen, but the right-hander never took to the change. He returned to the Double-A rotation this season and once again found mild success. There’s not a lot of upside with Sulbaran, but having just turned 25 and with a solid foundation of innings built up throughout his minor-league career, he should serve as rotation depth for the Royals as early as this season and could settle in as a spot-starter/long man.

Deolis Guerra, RHP, Pirates (Navegantes del Magallanes): 17 IP, 13 H, 20 K/8 BB, 4.24 ERA.
Something tells me the Johan Santana trade isn’t going to work out for the Twins. It’s difficult to mention Guerra without bringing up the 2008 mega-deal, given that he’s done little of note since, failing to reach the majors before the Twins finally cut ties with him this winter. Still, he’s just 26 and has always had a good changeup, a pitch that has helped him miss bats in the upper minors the past few years (with a season lost to thoracic outlet syndrome mixed in as well). The Pirates picked him up on a minor-league deal with a spring training invite in November in hopes that the Ray Searage magic touch will give them a free reliever.

Nestor Molina, RHP, Red Sox (Cardenales de Lara): 11 GS, 48 2/3 IP, 59 H, 32 K/12 BB, 4.62 ERA.
A former prospect who was talented enough that many teams wanted him but not so talented that any were afraid to give him up, Molina has bounced from the Blue Jays to the White Sox and now to the Red Sox without passing Double-A. He was coveted enough to get Sergio Santos straight up in 2011, but battled injuries the following year and stalled. His best quality has always been that he’s an extreme strike-thrower, but his inability to miss bats at higher levels left him around the plate too much. He has an invite to spring training with his new set of Sox but is probably nothing more then depth at this point.