Any thoughts on Mike Bauman going to the bullpen role?

[Sydnor]

The Athletic (Sarris) had an article discussing pitchers who had improved their stuff this spring, and Baumann made the list. The article was based Stuff+, which looks at the physical properties of pitches, and indicated that Baumann’s Stuff+ rating this spring was 124 (Bradish was 117, Gausman was 127). Here’s what the article had to say about Baumann:

It’s not the fastball with Baumann this spring (last year, his fastball was his best pitch by Stuff+). Only the sparsely-thrown changeup was above average by Stuff+, and that came in such a small sample (on such a tricky pitch) that it’s probably more instructive to say that the change only got a whiff three percent of the time it was thrown. So in some sense, Baumann was a one-pitch guy on a team that was starting to get crowded in the rotation.
 

 

Well, the Orioles acquired two more starters in the offseason, and Grayson Rodriguez looks ready, but Baumann’s arsenal has taken a leap forward, with both his slider (118 Stuff+) and curve (112 Stuff+) rating as well above average now.

The slider has two inches more drop and two inches more horizontal movement, too. It passes the eye test, with a firm 90 mph and two-plane movement:

A slightly firmer curve (+1 mph) may revert back to where it was, but a little more ride on the fastball, and more movement on the slider, has made Baumann into a legit three-pitch pitcher. And all of these numbers have held up even as Baumann has pushed his pitches per appearance over 50.

https://theathletic.com/4317119/2023/03/17/sarris-spring-training-stuff-surgers/?source=user_shared_article

[waroriole]

If his Stuff+ is so good, how come every team tees off on him? Instead of looking at this kind of thing, just watch that straight as an arrow fastball and you’ll know why. 

[CaptainRedbeard]

Baumann had a 12 K/9 in AAA last year but has not been able to miss bats at all against MLB hitters. He has no path to being a SP this year and is in his last option year so it’s definitely time to see if he can can translate the swing and miss as a short reliever. He has big fastball velocity but clearly that’s not enough on its own, so hopefully the cutter/curve can elevate the whole profile. 

[Sydnor]

3 hours ago, waroriole said:

If his Stuff+ is so good, how come every team tees off on him? Instead of looking at this kind of thing, just watch that straight as an arrow fastball and you’ll know why. 

If this is directed at me, which it seems to be, I’ll respond that if you read what I wrote, I in no way endorsed what the article said. I simply shared something by a reputable author that I thought people might be interested reading, particularly given that it is behind The Athletic’s paywall. Most of the time, that’s all I do. If that bothers you, you can mute me.

[Jim'sKid26]

Bauman has intrigued many of us with his combination of physical size and FB velocity. "Big Mike" has a SP's body and has flashed impressive stuff in the minors. I found Saris's article interesting and informative about the apparent change in Big Mike's secondary pitches. Does he now throw more or less FBs in short relief? Is he a late innings guy with a power arm or a multiple innings guys with 3/4 pitches? This transition should be interesting to follow.

[AnythingO's]

Didn't Bauman have an injury a few years back and he wasn't the same guy afterward or am I confusing him with someone else like Zim??

[waroriole]

1 hour ago, Sydnor said:

If this is directed at me, which it seems to be, I’ll respond that if you read what I wrote, I in no way endorsed what the article said. I simply shared something by a reputable author that I thought people might be interested reading, particularly given that it is behind The Athletic’s paywall. Most of the time, that’s all I do. If that bothers you, you can mute me.

Not sure why you’re so defensive. It’s definitely just a response to Stuff+. Not sure how to rely on a metric that tells me Baumann has plus stuff. 

[Jammer7]

44 minutes ago, waroriole said:

Not sure why you’re so defensive. It’s definitely just a response to Stuff+. Not sure how to rely on a metric that tells me Baumann has plus stuff. 

He does have great stuff. If he can command it, not leave it in the middle of the zone, he’ll be very good. Stuff doesn’t mean that he is dominant. 

[AdamK]

Had to look at Bauman's game logs because it feels like he has been grooving pitches middle/middle lately. This certainly was the case last night in the 10th where his first 3 pitches were a homer, a double and a loud fly ball (out) to CF... then a wild pitch shortly after. 

Feels like his last outing was the same story in Seattle (the Mullins robbed a homer, next at bat is a homer game...) but that was 10 days ago with 2 scoreless appearances in-between. 

 

At this rate, he's too volatile to keep in our pen.

 

[dystopia]

Everyone knew as soon as he was brought into the game yesterday that the game was over. 

[Aristotelian]

3 minutes ago, dystopia said:

Everyone knew as soon as he was brought into the game yesterday that the game was over. 

That's a bit of an overstatement. I would agree Atlanta's chances of scoring at least one went way up. 

[IllinoisOsFan]

2 minutes ago, Aristotelian said:

That's a bit of an overstatement. I would agree Atlanta's chances of scoring at least one went way up. 

Bauman sucks so bad these days that even the Braves score off of him while playing the Mets. 

[wildcard]

Baumann has an option left.    If the O's want to get Coulombe, Hall, Wells and Means on to the roster, Vespi, Fuji and Baumann might be vulnerable.

[Moose Milligan]

19 minutes ago, dystopia said:

Everyone knew as soon as he was brought into the game yesterday that the game was over. 

Yeah, I knew it was going to go south.  

[Can_of_corn]

11 minutes ago, IllinoisOsFan said:

Bauman sucks so bad these days that even the Braves score off of him while playing the Mets. 

The Braves have a very impressive offense and well they were playing the Mets...