the Generals

:-) Great line, lad.

Brad Mills has a fastball that runs 84 to 87 mph, according to Gameday today.  But he throws strikes and gets batters out.  Is he the kind of pitcher who will be dismissed as a "soft thrower" or "junk thrower"?   Does it matter?  Should it matter?  His first 5 innings today were pretty impressive, but I'm sure some critics will never be impressed by a Mills-type pitcher.

Meanwhile, it appears certain that Mills will be returned to Vegas as soon as Snider is recalled -- presumably on Friday.  But there could be a vacancy (or two) in the Jays pitching staff as early as Sunday, when the trading deadline arrives and the Jays (probably) trade a reliever or two.  If there's a pitching vacancy, who should get the first call?  Should it be Zep, based on his major-league experience?  (Although the rules of his optioning might require a longer stint in the minors -- I'm not sure of the technicalities on that, but apparently Zep was ineligible to be recalled for the start against Baltimore today.)  Or should it be Mills who is recalled, to give him a longer and fairer chance in the majors?  Or should it be a reliever such as Accardo, or Carlson, or Roenicke?   I'd be interested in people's opinions.

Just wondering how the rotation is shaping up for the weekend against the Indians. Marcum - Cecil - Litsch? Morrow or Romero jumping back in on Saturday or Sunday? Probably not with Mills going down ... Though I wouldn't mind a six-man rotation to end the year ...

Just read on Rotoworld that the Jays have some interest in Kelly Johnson from the D'backs. Looks like AA is trying to reunite the Braves infield of 2009. If the rumor is true, it may mean that a Bautista trade is in play. KJ is arbitration eligible next year.

(Assuming he's done after 7) Way to go, Brad!

Bastian has said a few times to expect a six-man rotation in September in order to get Morrow and Cecil through to the end - but that still won't help Mills.

Really? Rzep a lock to finish the year?

I'm sure some critics will never be impressed by a Mills-type pitcher.

Well, I have two words for those morons.

Tom Glavine.

My concen with Mills is the same concern I've always had with those types.  When deception is your calling card, you become above average.  When hitters start to figure out your deception, you have a higher chance of floundering or struggling.  It doesn't mean Mills can't be a competent MLB starter, but I personally still see him as a bullpen arm. 

Or Shaun Marcum, even. I went to a game earlier in the year and had to listen to to a couple yahoos behind me point and laugh every time the scoreboard showed Marcum's fastball topping out at 87. Hitting 95mph seemed more important than actually getting batters out.

Pitching is all about "deception". As long as his K-rate stays up, I'm not too concerned.
But, yeah, I think long relief is where he should go to begin his career - ala Earl Weaver.

Sure it helps to throw 95.  But you can go along way with deception, movement and the ability to hit spots.

I agree that there would be nothing wrong with putting him in the bullpen for the remainder of the year, perhaps with a spot start or two as needed.  There isn't an opening at this moment, but the night is young...

Nice to see Purcey in a high-leverage situation today.  And nice to see him passing the test.  He might, indeed, have closer potential.

Stellar 2010 debut for Mills. Hard to see him succeeding consistently against AL teams, but who knows? If he keeps pitching like this, he should get an opportunity with someone, if not the Blue Jays. If I were an NL GM, I might see if I could swing a deal for him.

I sat right behind home plate in second row. Mills has a mothe[explicit]r of a changeup. It moves on two planes and has a 14-mph velocity difference off his fastball, 11 off his cutter. It had some Orioles righties ducking out of the way, swinging late, bouncing out meekly to first. His curveball wasn't working well, but the Orioles still looked hopeless all night.

Tom Glavine might be a bit optimistic as a comp, but you can definitely see why some people think Jamie Moyer. I'd suggest Dallas Braden.

"His curveball wasn't working well, but the Orioles still looked hopeless all night"

Might want to make that "the Orioles still looked hopeless all season."

And even that's an understatement.

I agree that deception is part of Mills game. He has somewhat unique arm action and angle. It seems like pretty aggressive action but it is repeatable and does not vary at all between the change, fastball and curve. Even Romero, who has an excellent change, sometimes appears to alter his arm action when throwing it (versus his fastball); something I didn't see with Mills last night.

Hard to see him succeeding consistently against AL teams, but who knows?

Moyer did it, despite getting beaten up pretty badly by the Red Sox (.303/.363/.542 over his career).  Generally pitchers of this type are more dependent on the defence behind them than power pitchers (Moyer had some great defences behind him in Seattle).  Looking at a very foggy crystal ball, the Jay infield defence is shaping up to be very good, but the outfield defence not so much at this point. We'll watch Mills' GB rate, as well as his K rate.

Great picture of Mills in action in the Star today.  I think it's a great illustration of why pitchers get injured.  The torque on his shoulder, elbow and forearm are incredible.

http://www.thestar.com/sports

Is that a circle change grip?

That would be his curve ball

I know how little I know about pitching, but that Mills' picture is something else again.  At the top of the delivery, the back of his hand is facing forward, so that he has to twist it 180 degrees prior to release.  I have seen 45 and 90 degrees before, but not 180 degrees.  You'd think that the effect would be like a spin shot in tennis or ping pong. 

I know that every young Jays lefty gets compared to Jimmy Key, but Mills is the first one that actually reminds me of Jimmy. Complete with the bullpen fastball.

How does Mills compare to Jimmy Key?
The hitters get a different look if Mills is followed by a hard thrower like Morrow. Could this be an advantage to the Jays say against the beasts of the east. We need anything we can get.
Soft and successful:- Glavine,Moyer,Woody Williams,F Tananna,W Terell etc...
A hard thrower like Kelvim Escobar kept me waiting forever and never delivered for the Jays.
IMO Mills can be as good as any of our regular SPs.
In 2008 Mills streaked through the minors. Then he had the team made in 2009 spring training except that Romero dominated in his last 2 spring starts while Mills struggled.

I really believe that he will be quite successful. I know that it was only Baltimore BUT 2 hits and 0 runs is fantastic.

to wit:

 

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_yKSo5xPjLpM/SYt9pxoPESI/AAAAAAAAGf0/WY66Jf_64R4/s200/jimmy-key.jpg

I like Mills - hope he lands in San Diego or Seattle - but reading the Oriole players  comment - no love or respect

for Mills

If you want a laugh, go to the wikipedia pages for either Bill Hall or Carlos Delgado.

They allege that Delgado was signed by the Jays today and traded for Bill Hall. 

Breaking NEWS

Rotoworld and Bluejays.com are reporting that the Jays are getting one of the players in the Oswald trade... Anthony Gose - wait for it FOR: Brett Wallace!!

Gose is a 19 year old speedster who plays FANTASTIC CF - but can't hit a lick! In 09 he stole over 70 bases - this year he is just 36 for 63 in steals - a horrible success ratio. Obviously - AA sees something in both Wallace (bad) and Gose (good) that i don't see. But then that's why AA gets the big bucks.

WOW! (Not necessarily a good WOW)

Unless: that means Snider to 1st, Bautista in RF, Lind DH in which case I LIKE IT - we keep jose and IF the kid ever learns to hit he just might be Wells replacement in CF.