Future Redbirds

Joe Mather is on a tear as of late, and what the heck is going on with Kenny Maiques?

THREE UP

Joe Mather: “Joey Bombs”  is putting on a show reminiscent of the one he put on in AA last season, yet even better. Since coming off the disabled list Mather has been a one-man wrecking crew. He’s hitting .321/.433/.617 in 98 plate appearances. He’s homered 3 times in his last 6 games, and twice in his last two. His batting eye has been outstanding, he’s walked 14 times to 12 K’s. If it weren’t for such a crowded outfield situation already with the big club, one would think Mather would be in the big leagues now.

Allen Craig: He was nearly listed in our last edition of three up, three down, but on the downside. Craig is slugging .652 for the month of May, and hitting for a .326 average. He has yet to draw a walk this month, but it’s great to see his power return. 6 of his last 13 hits have gone for extra bases.

Nick Stavinoha: The former long-snapper has yet to hit for the type of power he showed in college or at the QC, but he’s hitting .433 in his last 10 at bats, and .381/.416/.548 in 126 at bats for the season. He’s not drawing a ton of walks or hitting for a lot of power, and he just turned 26, so it’s hard to get too excited about him. But he’s also not striking out often and hitting a lot of line drives, thus the high average.

THREE DOWN

Colby Rasmus: Ugh. It’s not like his tools has just disappeared, but good grief. I’ve seen way too many 0 for 4, 0 for 5, 2 or 3 K nights in the DFR’s lately. Colby has made 130 outs, more than anyone in the minors. In the month of May Colby’s hitting .178/.240/.267, striking out in nearly a third of his at bats. If there is a silver lining, it’s that he’s hitting for a 23% line drive rate this month, and less groundballs. His BABIP is an unlucky .233, so when he’s making contact it’s finding somebody, but he has to cut down the K’s. I still believe, but it just seems like it’s been such a long time since we’ve seen the Colby we all have come to love.

Kenny Maiques: I’ve seen Maiques pitch on several occasions last year, and he was dominant, throwing a 94 MPH fastball with nice movement, and a wicked slider reminiscent of K-Rod. I’ve interviewed Maiques, and he seems like he has a good head on his shoulders. I went as far as to rank him my #9 prospect going into the year, I liked him that much. So I have no idea what the heck is going on, but behold the oogliness: 12.1 innings pitched, 10 earned runs, 20 walks, 6 hit by pitches, 5 wild pitches. Sadly, Maiques is highly unlikely to be able to reinvent himself as power hitting outfielder.

Brandon Buckman: Buckman burst on the scene last season in the QC, hitting .341/.384/.590 in 286 plate appearances. But he’s found the spacious ballparks of the FSL not to his liking. He’s drawing walks, but just 5 of his 32 hits have gone for extra bases. He has a Glausian-like 1 HR in 120 at bats leading to a paltry .325 SLG.