John Means 2020

[Frobby]

Whether John Means can repeat his success from last year is a huge question for the Orioles.    Doug Brocail sounds bullish.

Brocail said, from his first bullpen this spring in Sarasota, Means looks both improved and dialed in.

“He was already hitting spots,” he said. “Curveballs better, sliders better. Changeup doesn’t have as much hop, has a little more sink and fade to it, which is going to really help him. He pitches up and in and down and away to spots. He knows what he is doing out there. This is a kid that worked his tail off to get to this position.

“Things are only going to get better for John. He’s gotten his two breaking balls way better than they were. He is starting to throw them with a little bit more velo. He’s starting to get more tilt and sweep with both of his pitches. You can look one spot, you can’t cover two,” Brocail said of Means, who finished last year pitching to a 3.26 ERA his last eight starts.

https://www.masnsports.com/steve-melewski/2020/02/doug-brocails-strong-praise-for-john-means-and-alex-cobb.html

 

[Pickles]

If this kid doesn't repeat what he did last year,  or get close, this could be a historical bad staff. Of it isn't/wasn't already.

[ChosenOne21]

His ERA was more than a run lower than the advanced metrics would suggest. It wouldn't shock me if he regresses some. That said, Means has done everything in his power to get better, the slider got better as the year went along giving him a third pitch, and this organization will get everything out of him if they can with their technological pitching coaching. If his ERA is over 5 for any long period of time this year, I'll be shocked

[Frobby]

1 minute ago, ChosenOne21 said:

His ERA was more than a run lower than the advanced metrics would suggest. It wouldn't shock me if he regresses some. That said, Means has done everything in his power to get better, the slider got better as the year went along giving him a third pitch, and this organization will get everything out of him if they can with their technological pitching coaching. If his ERA is over 5 for any long period of time this year, I'll be shocked

Honestly, almost nothing shocks me when it comes to pitchers.    

[TommyPickles]

I'm hopeful that Means will have another strong year.  I think the ERA may tick up a little, but I'm hoping he also throws more innings.  He threw 155 last season (3.60 ERA, 131 ERA+).  I'd love to see him toss like 180-190 IP, with about a 3.90 ERA, 120 ERA+.

He's real fun to watch.

[tntoriole]

I think I am going to call him Johnny. 

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

If Means can come close to his 1.135 WHIP from last season, he is going to be good again even if he doesn't have a "plus arm". Means is probably the player I'm most curious about on the 26 man roster. Ok it's probably Davis, but that's more from a freak show angle. 

 

[connja]

He's definitely a candidate for major regression, considering he was never a top prospect.  What a great story if he can maintain 2nd or 3rd starter profile.  This is a big year for him (and us).  

[fitzi22]

John Means 2019 season was a tale of 2 halves( not unlike most of his teammates).  In the first half of the season when teams didn’t have much video on him he pitched to the tune of 2.50 ERA and 1.077 WHIP, good enough for an allstar selection.  But in the second half he pitched to a much more pedestrian 4.85 ERA and 1.203 WHIP which is average to below average for a starter.  So will the real John Means please stand up.  He needs to make adjustments as the league has adjusted to him. This will be the driving force this season as the team tries to evaluate who our guys really are. 

[Frobby]

1 hour ago, fitzi22 said:

John Means 2019 season was a tale of 2 halves( not unlike most of his teammates).  In the first half of the season when teams didn’t have much video on him he pitched to the tune of 2.50 ERA and 1.077 WHIP, good enough for an allstar selection.  But in the second half he pitched to a much more pedestrian 4.85 ERA and 1.203 WHIP which is average to below average for a starter.  So will the real John Means please stand up.  He needs to make adjustments as the league has adjusted to him. This will be the driving force this season as the team tries to evaluate who our guys really are. 

You need to look at how he did from Aug. 24 to the end of the season.   Basically, he had a hiccup for 5-6 starts, then recovered.

[ChosenOne21]

8 minutes ago, Frobby said:

You need to look at how he did from Aug. 24 to the end of the season.   Basically, he had a hiccup for 5-6 starts, then recovered.

I don't have anything analytical to back it up, but what I noticed is that his slider went from being a pretty much useless pitch to being an effective, but not spectacular one. Regardless, it was enough to help him recapture some of the success he had when the league was still figuring him out

[HowAboutThat]

7 hours ago, Frobby said:

Whether John Means can repeat his success from last year is a huge question for the Orioles.    Doug Brocail sounds bullish.

 

 

Well duh, what’s he gonna say…

I have every hope that he can do as well as he did last year, but the last person you go to for unbiased assessment is his own pitching coach

[HowAboutThat]

This actually begs a much more significant question:

New have several real prospect pitchers coming up this season and next: Wells, Lowther, Kremer, Baumann, Akin, etc.

not all of them will pan out of course, but what are the chances we will trade Means, if he shows well, in anticipation of the arrival of a bunch of guys who will adequately replace him?

[Frobby]

11 minutes ago, Philip said:

Well duh, what’s he gonna say…

I have every hope that he can do as well as he did last year, but the last person you go to for unbiased assessment is his own pitching coach

Well, he’s giving reasons that are interesting.    I’m not so interested in him saying generally nice things, but I like hearing about specific improvements the pitcher has been working on in the offseason.   

[HowAboutThat]

25 minutes ago, Frobby said:

Well, he’s giving reasons that are interesting.    I’m not so interested in him saying generally nice things, but I like hearing about specific improvements the pitcher has been working on in the offseason.   

I understand that, but the point remains. “Spin” isn’t just what the ball does.