Written by Greg Fertel
|
13 February 2008
- Age: 22
- Height: 6?2?
- Weight: 175 lbs
- Acquired: Drafted 1st Round Supplemental in 2004 out of Sacramento College
- Position: Starting Pitcher
- Throws: Right
Scouting Report: Jeff Marquez is all about the live fastball. He throws both 2-seamers and 4-seamers are 92-93 mph, with plenty of movement and sink. His control has been steadily improving and now can legitimately be called strong. His best secondary pitch is a plus changeup, and he also has a curveball.
History: The Yankees grabbed Marquez as a soon to be 20-year old out of Sacramento in the 1st supplemental round in 2004, sending him to the short season leagues. Marquez pitched well, flashing the great sinker. In 2005, Marquez struggled at times in Charleston, which is pretty common for a ground ball pitcher in the low minor leagues. Defense generally gets worse when you go down lower in the minor leagues, and Marquez relies upon his defense. The Yankees recognized this and promoted him to Tampa in 2006, where he struggled this time with injuries, limiting him to under 100 innings. The injuries were minor - muscle strains and the like. His control improved over 2005, and he started to strike out more batters while posting a 2.00 GO/AO ratio. The signs were great, and Marquez headed to Trenton.
This Season: The bad news first: Marquez's strikeout rate dropped dramatically this season. His K rate in 2006 was 7.99 per 9, and it fell to 5.45 this season. That's getting dangerously low. Marquez has a heavy fastball, but he's no Chien-Ming Wang. He needs to strike out more than 5.45 in order to function. The good news: Marquez further improved his control, stayed healthy for the entire season, and withstood the assault of high-minors hitters. The final line was 155 innings in 27 starts, a 3.65 ERA, 5.45 K/9, 2.55 BB/9, and 0.64 HR/9, and a 1.36 GO/AO ratio.
Outlook and Movement: Now on the 40-man roster, Marquez is only an injury away from the major leagues. He'll compete with Steve White, Jeff Karstens, Chase Wright, Alan Horne, and Kei Igawa on the depth charts. I'd expect an improvement in strikeout rate while most of his other indicators stay the same. The Yankees will try to stretch Marquez out and really get a major league workload out of him in 2007. I'm going to wager that we won't see him for more than a spot start this season until September, and he really enters the equation in 2009. Or, the Yankees could showcase Marquez for a trade. He's really perfect trade bait when you have Alan Horne, Ian Kennedy, Phil Hughes, and Joba Chamberlain in the organization.
Ranking: Eric and I both agreed at put Marquez at #7. Ashish had him back a little at #11. I think that after being spoiled by the Big 3 and to a lesser extent Alan Horne, a lot of people get a little jaded on Marquez. Look at him for what he is: a 22 year-old former 1st rounder who is about to enter Triple-A with good stuff and a clean bill of health. He's a league-average innings eater, who could look a whole lot like Joe Blanton. What remains to be seen is if Marquez can leverage his heavy fastball and good control into 220+ innings in a MLB season. 220 innings of a 4.20 ERA? I'll take it.
Next: Alan Horne
