Bruce Zimmermann 2019

[weams]

http://www.milb.com/player/index.jsp?player_id=669145#/career/R/pitching/2019/ALL

[weams]

@Tony-OH

 

(2018) "Acquired in the Gausman trade, unheralded Baltimore native LHP Bruce Zimmermann has put up a 1.50 ERA and a 12/3 K/BB ratio in three Bowie starts over 15 IP. He started the year in the Sally League and is just in his 1st full professional season.  

He was drafted in the 5th round in 2017, three rounds after Zac Lowther. He might not have overwhelming stuff, but it's time to start watching him a little more closely."

[Luke-OH]

Here’s what I wrote after watching a few starts last year.

[ChuckS]

Sounds like John Means with the fastball a couple tics lower.  

[Luke-OH]

3 hours ago, ChuckS said:

Sounds like John Means with the fastball a couple tics lower.  

John Means with a little more deception, little less command, half a grade better slider, and half a grade better changeup before Means gained velocity and improved his changeup significantly. 

[Tony-OH]

Someone told me his fastball was up to 95 last night! Can;t verify that though. Is using his four-seamer more up in the zone and his slider and changeup was getting swings and misses last night.

[Luke-OH]

2 hours ago, Tony-OH said:

Someone told me his fastball was up to 95 last night! Can;t verify that though. Is using his four-seamer more up in the zone and his slider and changeup was getting swings and misses last night.

If he’s t95 sitting low 90s, he’s a backend rotation piece, he knows how to pitch and has useful offspeed pitches but was being held back by a poor fastball.

[Tony-OH]

31 minutes ago, Luke-OH said:

If he’s t95 sitting low 90s, he’s a backend rotation piece, he knows how to pitch and has useful offspeed pitches but was being held back by a poor fastball.

I watched some of his start yesterday. Batters weren't barreling up his fastball very often and he seemed to work it up much more in the strikezone. I could get velocity off the video, but batters weren't very comfortable.

[Slade-OH]

Hey Hangouters. It’s been a while since I posted on here.

But, I figured it’s time to return and start a thread about my cousin Bruce Zimmermann since I’ve been going to most of his starts now. 

Here’s a bio of who Bruce is and how he got to where he is now. 

Bruce grew up here in Maryland in the Woodstock area.

He attended Cardinal Gibbons for one year before that school got the axe and then transferred to Loyola where I got to play on the same team as him my senior year in 2012.

Bruce flew under the radar with college coaches and scouts alike throughout high school, despite emerging as the staff ace at Loyola his senior year.

He finally got a D1 offer later that summer in 2013 from Towson. He would ultimately make their rotation and recorded ERA’s of 5.00 and 7.64 his first two seasons. 

Not exactly promising but he took a step big step forward as a starter in summer ball of 2015, now throwing 89-91 mph. That attracted the attention of Mount Olive College, a D2 powerhouse down in North Carolina. 

Because he wouldn’t have to sit out a year going from D1 to D2, Bruce transferred to a program that frankly offered him a much better opportunity for success.

Bruce emerged as Mount Olive’s Friday night starter his junior year and out together an impressive junior season: (3.21 ERA over 98.2 innings, 104 hits, 11 walks, 112 K’s).

In the 2016 draft, there were some scouts that reached out to him about possibly being a late round pick but that fell through.

So he got to work and became determined to make himself hard to ignore in 2017.

He had an even better year, anchoring a rotation of a team that finished ranked #5 in the country. Senior year numbers: (3.18 ERA over 99 innings, 89 hits, 24 walks, 129 K’s)

This time he had the scouts full attention and was considered one of the top senior sign prospects in the country. 

Come draft day, he would hear his name called in the 5th Round by the Atlanta Braves, signing for a mere $10,000 but that’s how it goes when you’re a senior with no leverage. 

Bruce has always had a chip on his shoulder dating back to high school so it’s no surprise to me how determined he was to quickly shed the “just a senior sign” label.

He got off to a promising start in short season ball: (3.09 ERA over 23.1 innings, 21 hits, 9 walks, 28 K’s)

But the real test would be can he translate that to a full season level.

He did that and then some in 2018. Bruce absolutely dominated the SALLY league and made the all star team. Low A numbers: (2.76 ERA over 84.2 innings, 74 hits, 18 walks, 99 K’s)

The Braves were so impressed they decided to test him by skipping him up to AA. Bruce was up for the challenge, punching out 10 in his first AA start. 

As fate would have it, Bruce would hear his name called at the trade deadline, being sent back home to Baltimore in the Kevin Gausman trade. 

His outings after that his AA debut were hit or miss with the more patient batters in AA giving him some challenges with limiting the free passes. But overall, not a bad start in AA: (3.14 ERA in 28 innings with Braves, 25 hits, 19 walks, 26 K’s. 5.06 ERA in 21.1 innings with Baysox, 25 hits, 7 walks and 16 K’s).

How would he follow that up?

So far, so good.

He currently sports a 2.53 ERA in 6 starts over 32 innings, with 25 hits, 10 walks, 29 K’s, and a .210 opponent average.

 

 

 

[Slade-OH]

Here’s a report (at the end of this post) on his pitches directly from the man himself.

Quick note: I’ve been at a three home starts and can verify he’s hit 95 several times in each start. Not sure about 96 though. 

He made a point of emphasis (much like John Means) to increase his velo this offseason and did so successfully. He worked with the same trainer that worked with Corey Kluber several years back before his breakout for what it’s worth. I remember him only being 89-92 on that same Bowie stadium gun last August. He’s been comfortably 91-94 in each start I’ve watched this year.

He’s pitching up in and in the zone more now versus righties and primarily throwing from a 4-seam grip after being a 2-seam grip guy last year. So that could also be a factor in the average velo bump. 

Report from Bruce: “Yeah primarily a 4 seam 92-94 top 96 this year. 2 seam 90-92, CH 80-83, SL I think has been 83-86 and CB 79-82. Attacking with the FB CH combo. Slider is sharper than my CB but CB is coming along well this season. Willing to throw in any count. Wanted to mix my pitches more cause I was 70% last year so bring that down a bit”

[Slade-OH]

Video of one of his strikeouts from his outing on May 10. Definitely the best I’ve ever seen him, minus the final inning where the ump squeezed him on several pitches which led to him walking the bases loaded. Our contingent behind home plate had been heckling the ump so we might be partially to blame for that lol. Finished with 11 K’s and just 2 hits allowed over 5.2 innings.

https://youtu.be/VXyUp4qwFIE

 

[Slade-OH]

14 hours ago, Luke-OH said:

If he’s t95 sitting low 90s, he’s a backend rotation piece, he knows how to pitch and has useful offspeed pitches but was being held back by a poor fastball.

Yes he is. He’s been 91-94, occasionally bumping 95 in all three starts I’ve watched at Bowie

[ChuckS]

9 minutes ago, Slade-OH said:

Yes he is. He’s been 91-94, occasionally bumping 95 in all three starts I’ve watched at Bowie

If this is true, that has to bump up his stock quite a bit.  That fastball is the same range that John Means is in and Zimmerman's supposed to have a better slider and changeup according to Luke. 

Thanks for the info Slade.  Turns out we may have at least one prospect from that disaster of a Gausman trade that ends up being a solid major league contributor.  

[Slade-OH]

12 minutes ago, ChuckS said:

If this is true, that has to bump up his stock quite a bit.  That fastball is the same range that John Means is in and Zimmerman's supposed to have a better slider and changeup according to Luke. 

Thanks for the info Slade.  Turns out we may have at least one prospect from that disaster of a Gausman trade that ends up being a solid major league contributor.  

I would agree. I’m biased of course but he’s been the best starter in Bowie so far in my opinion. And the stats back it up.

[Luke-OH]

35 minutes ago, ChuckS said:

If this is true, that has to bump up his stock quite a bit.  That fastball is the same range that John Means is in and Zimmerman's supposed to have a better slider and changeup according to Luke. 

Thanks for the info Slade.  Turns out we may have at least one prospect from that disaster of a Gausman trade that ends up being a solid major league contributor.  

Better slider for sure, but better changeup before Means improved his changeup this offseason. Means’s current changeup is playing as plus.