springfield @ corpus christi

by longhornscardinals on May 28, 2007 1:15 AM EDT

So, two baseball games in two days, and two different Cardinal farm teams. Some friends and I woke up Saturday morning and decided to make a trip to Corpus, mostly to check out the Cardinals but also because I have a friend from high school pitching for the Hooks. Unfortunately, he didn't get in... anyway, just thought I'd share what I saw for ya'll once more, probably for the last time.

Jaime Garcia: This kid can DEAL. I sincerely believe he's going to a stud in the majors one day. Nice, clean delivery. Struck out probably 6 or 7 over 6 2/3. Gave up 2 runs, one earned (home run that barely cleared the wall). He's got a great fastball, or so it seemed from my position.
Both Cardinal relievers were solid. Didn't see anything extraordinary but did their job.
Joe Mather: Mather is ENORMOUS. He was playing right field and I walked by him and he towered over me, and I'm 6'3". Can tell how he hits all those home runs. Didn't do much at the plate, really.
Hoffpauir: went 3 for 3, has a nice swing, not much power, but plays a VERY solid second base. My boss commented on his defense, though my boss is an avid Astros fan. Don't really know much about him, is he a big time prospect?
Bryan Anderson: Pinch hit and hit a very hard liner. Was hoping to watch him catch a game, but he has a smooth swing.
Finally, Rasmus: Had a rough night, going 0-4 with a walk and two strikeouts. Despite this, he's got a sharp eye. His first at-bat was probably an 8 or 9 pitch walk. I don't think he had an at-bat where he saw fewer than 5 pitches. Plus, he wears his pants baggy like an old-schooler, and I dug it w. a shovel.

That's all I've got. Hope I gave ya'll some decent insight on a couple of Cardinal farm-hands.

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Thanks a ton, Longhorn

I, and I'm sure everyone else, greatly appreciate the updates on the farm guys. We can all look at the box scores or even the game logs and get a general feel for what a guys is accomplishing, but actual eyes giving a firsthand account of how these players play is invaluable. Again, many thanks.

I saw Garcia once last season when I was on a trip to Florida, and I wholeheartedly agree with you. He is the real deal, big time. Beautiful arm action. Simple, clean, no wasted movement, nothing unnecessary. Big league curve, wicked fastball. He almost puts me in the mind of what you might get if you combined Barry Zito and Mark Mulder. Zito's curve, Muldoo's sinker and changeup. Very impressive. My only concern was it seemed as if he got offline at times and fell off to the third base side a bit much. Out of curiousity, did you notice if he did that at all while you were there?

As for Hoffpauir, he's not a big time, high watt kind of prospect, but he is a grinder. Not a great bat, nice glove, high energy, a little bit of speed, things like that. Sort of an Eckstein type, I believe, but a little bigger.

I've never seen Anderson in person, but he makes an awfully nice impression on anyone I've heard from. I'm hoping to get a look at his swing, as well as his defense, sometime this year. Take a couple of days off and go down to Springfield.

Acquire Rocco Baldelli!

by the red baron on May 28, 2007 4:31 AM EDT reply actions