Brent Strom Praises Rookie Starters for Quickly Adjusting to MLB
The Diamondbacks have had a pair of rookies make impressive debuts this month. Ryne Nelson and Drey Jameson have combined for 20 scoreless innings across three starts. These scoreless starts couldn't have been easily predicted. Nelson and Jameson were called up with an ERA of 5.43 and 6.95 in Reno. As we've learned over the last fourteen seasons, surface numbers in Reno aren't completely indicative of a player's performance or development.
When asked about what impressed him the most, D-backs Pitching Coach Brent Strom said "none of them have seemed overwhelmed by the atmosphere and the situation" and the pitchers "have been able to compartmentalize and realize this is a game, albeit at a higher level". Strom also credits the young pitchers, including Tommy Henry, for trusting their stuff and pitching with the confidence that they belong in the big leagues.
Strom considers the tough environments in Amarillo and Reno as a testing ground, because if a pitcher gives up a home run but continues to be aggressive and attack the zone that is a sign he could pitch in the big leagues. Looking back to Thursday night's start by Jameson, there were three balls hit that might have been home runs if they were hit in Reno. Two of those three balls ended up being outs, the third was a double. After Manny Machado's 6th inning flyout to the wall, catcher Carson Kelly jokingly told Jameson that he wasn't in Reno any more.
When asked what the organization is looking for from their pitchers in Reno before promoting them to the big leagues, Strom said they want to see if they're still willing to attack the strike zone after giving up a home run. They're also looking at peripherals, pitch shapes, and swing-and-misses. On a follow-up question, Strom noted that some of the Trackman units can be shaky so they need to be looking at the correct things.
Both Nelson and Jameson have shown they can handle big league hitters in a small sample. The key for them both will be execution going forward as teams adjust, having a better idea of how to attack them.
