Will Thompson get "Ponson'd"?

[Fan_In_NY]

He pitched to LA's big league team yesterday, but here are the guys that he pitched against in his first start.

David Newhan
Endy Chavez
Some Gomez
Damion Easley
Julio Franco
Some Carp
Ruben Sierra
Some Ambres
Sandy Alomar, Jr.
Mike DiFelice
Ruben Gotay
Anderson Hernandez

That looks like the Mets...

[Socnorb11]

He pitched to LA's big league team yesterday, but here are the guys that he pitched against in his first start.

David Newhan
Endy Chavez
Some Gomez
Damion Easley
Julio Franco
Some Carp
Ruben Sierra
Some Ambres
Sandy Alomar, Jr.
Mike DiFelice
Ruben Gotay
Anderson Hernandez

That looks like the Mets...

That is the Mets.

I think he was saying that although Looper faced a good LA lineup yesterday, the lineup that he faced against the Mets in his last start was pretty weak.

[cardfaninfla]

I have to wonder how it can be a terrible idea before we see what the outcome is. Oh I know, you already KNOW that LaRussa is planning on starting him over any other candidates despite what happens in spring training. This is almost as good a the old SaintLouisSportsFan's our season is over thread.

It's the complete opposite of SLSF. SLSF was dismissing a team that had five very capable pitchers plus one of the best offenses in the league.

I'm dismissing a 32 year old career reliever that hasn't started since he was pitching in A ball and hasn't thrown more than three innings at any time during his major league career. Plus his best pitch is a 93-mph fastball with zero movement and a slider that gets routinely crushed by lefthanded hitters.

And I don't KNOW that La Russa is planning to start him despite his ST training results, so drop the condescension. I will say that he has an 85-90 percent chance of winning it though.

Now, I believe I've come up with a multitude of reasons why I don't think Looper can be a starter. You've yet to make an argument FOR Looper, only AGAINST Thompson. Would you care to take a stab?

Well let's see you started a topic off with "getting Ponsond". Ponson outpitched reyes in spring training last year so you bring up Wainwright who as I understand it was never really in the competition. If Thompson wins the job and I am completely happy with that.

Why do I think that Thompson may have problems as a starter.
1. He has fewer pitches he can throw for strikes athan Looper does. He basically has a change and an 88 - 90 fastball.

2. He actually tried it in the minors and was shut down due to arm trouble, menaing he had trouble handling the work load.

3. I actually think Thompson likes relieving more, at least he has said this.

to the comment about they have an idea of who they think should win the jobs... okay I have a hard time faulting the pitching coach and manager for having a plan. But if the only guy you can run out there as a reason that there really isn't a somewhat open competition is Ponson, he outpitched the guy he was competing against plain and simple.

[Jocephus]

The increasingly valuable Brad Thompson then came in and continued his spring — dashing through 3 1/3 innings with his sinker. He got quick, predictable outs (five groundouts) and some missed swings on his signature diving fastball.

“He’s set a record for fewest pitches to a lot of hitters,” La Russa said. “He was having two-, three-pitch hitters. They’re aggressive but he had a lot of movement and he’s getting quick outs.”

Thompson has done well this spring in the starters’ competition that it prompted a question about a dilemma – do the Cardinals put him in Triple-A to be groomed as a starter or do they put him the bullpen, where he was earmarked for years ago as a prospect? In the wake of Josh Kinney’s season-ending surgery, the sudden need for a setup man, and a third sterling outing by Thompson, Duncan’s answer was unequivocal.

They will find a spot in the majors for Thompson.

“I don’t think we’re going to be afforded the luxury of Thompson not being on our club,” Duncan said. “I think he’ll be too important for us to consider something like that, whatever role he plays.”

http://www.stltoday.com/blogs/sports-bi ... fastballs/

[planet planet]

“I don’t think we’re going to be afforded the luxury of Thompson not being on our club,” Duncan said. “I think he’ll be too important for us to consider something like that, whatever role he plays.”

http://www.stltoday.com/blogs/sports-bi ... fastballs/[/quote]

They could have found a more diplomatic way of stating this.

I don't believe in jinxes, but even if I did, it's spring training. Did everyone know this?

Shh. Adam Wainwright takes a spring no-hitter into his start against Baltimore in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., tomorrow. He has seven innings hitless in two starts this spring.

[fulldeck]

“I don’t think we’re going to be afforded the luxury of Thompson not being on our club,” Duncan said. “I think he’ll be too important for us to consider something like that, whatever role he plays.”

http://www.stltoday.com/blogs/sports-bi ... fastballs/

They could have found a more diplomatic way of stating this.

Duncan did word that strangely.

[Jmodene]

Not at all. It would be a luxury if we could indeed send Thompson down to Memphis, where he could start on a regular basis and prepare himself for a major-league starting job (better for Thompson in the long run), rather than having to make the transition at the major-league level (if he winds up as the 5th starter).

But with Kinney's injury, we don't have that "luxury"; we'll either be using Thompson in Kinney's 8th-inning setup role, or he'll go into the 5th-starter slot with Looper going back to setup.

Made perfect sense to me.

[fulldeck]

When you flesh out his comments like that they do make sense. Thanks.