Jeremy Bleich, LHP: Prospect Profile No. 9

Written by Greg Fertel | 20 February 2010

Jeremy Bleich was selected by the New York Yankees with the 44th overall pick in the draft, part of the supplemental first round. The pick was instantly criticized by many, as no one really knew much about the young lefty.

People immediately went and checked Baseball America's top 100 draft prospects and Bleich was nowhere to be found. This resulted in a ton of confusion surrounding this pick. After learning more about Bleich, there were still plenty of questions surrounding him.

His college numbers didn't stand out at all. In both 2007 and 2008, his RA stood above 5.00 and he never was able to maintain a strikeout to walk ratio over 2.

There were some encouraging signs. In his final season at Stanford, Bleich's strikeout rate rose to 8.16 per nine innings after being at just 5.42 to the season before. However, his walk rate also rose, from 3.01 to 5.25.

Furthermore, it seemed like Bleich was more of a pitchability guy: a pitcher who sits maybe 89-90 and gets by on poise and control. Considering his walk rate, this was not good accompanying news.

Add in the injury concerns that surrounded Bleich(he missed two months with a strained elbow ligament), and I was not a fan of the Yankees choice at all. It didn't seem like Bleich was sandwich round material and the Yankees didn't pay him like he was either. The Yankees signed him for a below-slot deal, something I would recommend the Yankees never do. Not because they shouldn't be trying to save money where they can, but because they should be drafting the more talented prospects who have leverage to sign for above slot.

After signing near the deadline, Bleich had Tommy John Surgery debuted and pitched three innings for Staten Island at the end of the season. In 2009, the relatively inexperienced Bleich started at Tampa, and had a season that started out great, but didn't finish that way..

The Good

• His performance at Tampa: 3.58 FIP, 3.54 tRA
• Ground ball rates: 50.4 percent in Tampa; 46.1 percent in Trenton
• Only a slight platoon split
• Health: started 27 games and pitched 144.1 innings
• Unlucky in Trenton: .378 BABIP

The Bad

• His performance at Trenton: 4.43 FIP, 5.33 tRA
• Walk rate almost doubled in Trenton: 2.36 to 4.34
• Wild: he hit six batters in 65 IP in Trenton after hitting none in Tampa
• K:BB ratio for the season stood at 2.07; he needs to do better than that

The season was a mixed bag for Bleich, and showed that he might not be the fast-mover we expected him to be. It certainly was a starting point and something for him to build off of, though. While the results in Trenton weren't there, scouts seem to be higher on Bleich right now than they have been since the Yankees drafted him.

In a recent discussion with Chad Jennings, Mark Newman picked Bleich as a guy who could move quickly in 2010 and had the following to say about Bleich:

"In some ways he had an outstanding year. His stuff was really good. He was getting it up to 94 with regularity. His stuff was better than it was in college, his command wasn’t quite as good. I’ll take that, because the command will come. I really believe that."

When Bleich was drafted, I thought he was the type of guy who tops out at around 92. To hear that he hit 94 frequently is a great sign. Left-handed starting pitchers who can reach the mid-90s with their fastball don't come around that often.

A more neutral source also was impressed with how Bleich's stuff has improved. In an interview with NoMaas, Baseball America's John Manuel said, "Stuff-wise, Jeremy Bleich has better stuff among NYY LHPs," when comparing him to the more hyped Manny Banuelos.

Aside from his improved fastball, Bleich works with a changeup and curveball. Depending on the day, any of these pitches can be his primary out pitch. He generally gets more strikeouts with his curve, but some days he has a good feel for his changeup and can use that to get outs.

Like any young pitcher, Bleich has a lot to work on. He needs to get his command back to where it was in Tampa and become more consistent with his pitches. As his fastball velocity has risen, so has his stock. It's pretty much a sure thing that Bleich will start 2010 in Trenton, where he will look to get past his previous Double-A struggles.

And just a final tidbit, some of you may like to hear that Bleich grew up a Yankee fan, as his family is originally from Brooklyn. And his favorite player? Andy Pettitte.

Here's a one-pitch video, courtesy of Mike Ashmore:

Photo Credit: Mike Ashmore