Andrew Brackman's Misleading Performance

Written by Greg Fertel | 23 August 2010

Despite Andrew Brackman's high ERA(5.10) to start the season in Tampa, it was clear that he had improved and his promotion to Trenton after pitching just 60 innings for Tampa showed that the Yankees agreed. However, that impressive start has not fully transferred over since Brackman's promotion. Now, don't get me wrong, Brackman has been good all season long. I just don't think his performance for Trenton matches up that well to what he was doing early in the season for Tampa.

Now, this is nothing new. Most pitchers don't immediately do as well when they're promoted to another level, and the jump from High-A to Double-A is a tough one. But, on the surface, it may seem like Brackman has maintained his dominant performance all season long.

His ERA has dropped from 5.10 to 3.53 and his FIP has risen from 3.33 to just 3.65. His strikeout rate has remained constant since being promoted to Double-A, which is always an encouraging sign. The big difference has been in Brackman's walk rate.

It would have been naive to think that he could have sustained that minuscule 3.5 percent rate, but seeing the number increase by nearly 275 percent is not what I had hoped for. His groundball rate has also dropped, but I'm not concerned with that. If he's keeping that number at 50 percent or higher, he'll be fine as he continues to climb the ladder. If his K:BB rate stays at just 2.19, I would not be surprised to see him struggle.

I'm not sure how many more innings the Yankees will have Brackman throw this season; last year, if you include his stint in Hawaii, he pitched 119.1 innings. He has passed that, I wouldn't expect the Yankees to push him too hard this season.

I've heard some people suggest that he finish out the year with the Scranton bullpen to get a little experience in Triple-A. I don't think that this would be the right course of action. Brackman is already 24-years-old, but I don't think the Yankees need to be that aggressive with him. He can start next season in Trenton, and if he turns it up a notch, the Yankees can quickly promote him to Scranton. I don't think there's any rush to get him there right now, though.

Picture courtesy of MLB.com/Julie Jacobson