Future Redbirds

Boggs was the anchor of the Palm Beach rotation this season, going 10-6 with a 3.41 ERA in 27 starts, and was 2nd in the Florida State League in strikeouts. For those of you who don’t know very much about Mitchell Boggs, he’s a right handed pitcher/QB who wavered between his desire for football and baseball. He accepted a baseball scholarship to Georgia, but transfered to Tennessee-Chattanooga his sophomore year. As a backup quarterback, he saw about as much action as Jim Sorgi, so he decided to go back to Georgia to play baseball. He had 2 relatively uninspiring seasons on a lackluster team, pitching mostly in relief. He did finish the ‘05 season as the team’s closer and impressed the Cardinals with a low to mid-nineties sinking fastball, enough so that he was selected in the 5th round of the 2005 draft. After being drafted, Boggs started 14 games for New Jersey and put up a 3.89 ERA. He struck out 61 in 72 innings, walking 24 and allowing 77 hits. His performance warranted a start at high class A Palm Beach.

His season was inconsistent, he had an impressive June and August and a dismal May. One game in June he took a no hitter into the 9th, and finished with a one hit shutout. He finished 5th in the league in ERA out of all qualifying pitchers (3.41), 4th in FIP (3.31), 4th in K/9 (7.82) and had the 2nd highest BABIP in the league (an ungodly .340). The extremely high BABIP comes from a few factors, one Boggs has trouble changing speeds on his pitches, 2 outside of 41 games of Terry Evans in right field, the rest of the defense for Palm Beach was downright woeful.

Strengths: Boggs gets good life on his fastball, which he can cut and sink. He works in the high-eighties to low-nineties, but can dial it up to 94 at times. His 1.7:1 GB/FB rate and .44 HR/9 rate evidences the good sink he can get. His slider is average, but gets a decent break and serves as a strikeout pitch. He made a successful jump from the bullpen to starting and has embraced the pitch to contact philosophy the Cardinals preach. He has decent control, a strong frame and has clean mechanics.

Weaknesses: As I mentioned, has trouble changing speeds which makes him more hittable. Averaged around 5 1/2 innings per start, not terrible for an A ball pitcher but you’d like to see him go deeper into games. Decent K rate will likely not hold as he climbs up the rungs of the system.

Future: The Cardinals love sinker-ballers, and Boggs has one of the heavier pitches in the system. He profiles as the back of the rotation starter, a guy with moderate strikeout ability with decent command who will let his defense do the work. He could move back to the pen and be an interesting middle reliever, but the Cards are content with him being a starter. Developing an off speed pitch would greatly increase his value. His hit rate is troubling, and he’ll be moving to much more unfriendly quarters at Hammons Field.