Pitching Grips

Albert Cesare/The Enquirer/USA Today Network via Imagn Images George Klassen ’s initial big league outings were clunky. He allowed seven runs in just 4 2/3 innings over a pair of April starts, which, combined with an index fingernail contusion, has him back at Triple-A Salt Lake for more seasoning. That doesn’t mean his future isn’t promising. The 24-year-old right-hander ranks second on our Los Angeles Angels Top Prospects list , and 57th on our Top 100 . Moreover, he was described by Brendan Gawlowski as having “some of the best stuff in the [Angels] system.” An inability to consistently land his plus stuff in the strike zone is currently Klassen’s bugaboo. He issued free passes to 10 of the 32 batters he faced in his two starts in the majors — one against the Reds, another against the Mariners — and while big league jitters were certainly a factor, George Kirby he’s not. As Gawlowski wrote in his scouting report, “Klassen’s command remains below average… [and] there are markers i...

2:00 Brendan Gawlowski : Hello everybody. A little list housekeeping to start… I wrote up the Rangers system yesterday, and Eric tackled Sacramento last week. He’s currently working on the Nationals and I’m writing up Kansas City. Hopefully both will be live by this time next week. 2:01 Brendan Gawlowski : I also went out to Everett last week and wrote up some notes on a few Top 100 guys — Farmelo, Bremner, Celesten — and a few other guys, including Luke Stevenson, who has a chance to make the list on our next update. 2:02 Brendan Gawlowski : It appears Johnny Level has homered again 2:03 Brendan Gawlowski : I’ll have Brecht and the Spokane/Vancouver game in the background, maybe we can all follow along with that together too 2:03 Brendan Gawlowski : Otherwise, let’s get going 2:03 Insert Witty Name Here : Have you watched Painter’s games at all this year? SSS of course, but curious...