A Look at the Portland SeaDogs

Well, as you know I attended the Portland Sea Dogs at new Hampshire Fisher Cats series. I got to see some players of the future, and some really big time prospects (and Matt Sheely).

 So here is a scouting report and series recap.

Players:

Casey Kelly: Kelly pitched yesterday and I was very impressed. I saw him warm up before the game and noticed he did have much velocity. But when the game started, he sure did! His fastball averaged around 92-94, and topped out at 96. He had some sort of two seamer or cutter at around 88-89. His changeup sat around 81-84 with terrific downward movement, and his curveball appeared to be his "out" pitch. It fooled batters and was a nice two strike pitch for him.

 What impressed me the most was his location down in the zone. Wherever Expo put the glove was where Kelly's pitch was going to be. His one hiccup was the high changeup he let Travis Snider take yard.

Ryan Lavarnway: He was the guy I was going into the series looking at. Less than a week removed from Salem, he most impressed me with his power. He hit some bombs in batting practice, and I mean some absolute bombs!

Last night he went 2-4 with 2 RBI. The other games in the series he went 2-5 with 2 R and 5 RBI, and then 1-2 with 2 R, 2 RBI, and a BB.

The only thing that concerns me with Lavarnway is his defense behind the plate.

Kyle Weiland: This was the first time I got to see Weiland pitch, and he dazzled. I loved his slider, though he needs to learn to control it a little better. That slider had so much movement, but maybe for the worst. He changed speeds nicley, and topped out a 94-95 MPH.

Anthony Rizzo: I have always looked at Rizzo as the 1B of the future. I got to see him for the first time in Spring Training, and he was hitting bombs. I got to see him again this series, and things have not changed.

What I like about Rizzo is his ability to hit to all fields. He is not afraid to take an outside pitch to left field, witch is a good sign for a young left handed hitter. Rizzo is that proto-typical power hitting 1B that has been compared to Todd Helton.