Written by Greg Fertel | 01 June 2007

I've had a lot of people ask me for a scouting report on Edwar Ramirez. The truth is, he's come about so quickly that I don't even know what he really throws. Ramirez was an independent league signing last year. Since then, he's struck out 95 batters (15 per 9) in 57 innings, walk 16 (2.52 per 9), and allow 5 earned runs (0.78 ERA). In short, he's been the most dominant reliever in the minor leagues during that time at the age of 26. I know what most of you know. Ramirez throws a light (high 80s, low 90s) fastball, but his real story is his changeup. I haven't seen it, but apparently it's a pretty deadly pitch. Can a right handed reliever survive in the majors with this combination? It's certainly possible. The changeup is the great equalizer. One reader asked me why batters just don't sit on the changeup. Batters can't just sit on the changeup because Ramirez will throw you three straight fastballs and you won't have a chance. It's also also a pitch with less chance for catastrophic error than most breaking balls. It's pretty difficult to hang a changeup. So, that's Edwar, now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

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