Chris Tillman

[Leitch]

I will also say, the new pitch Kranitz has him working on - the cutter - could be the pitch that Tillman can use to keep the ball in the park.

I assume that by this, you mean that Tillman will improve his groundball rates with the addition of a cutter in his repertiore.

But for real? Just because he's a flyball pitcher doesn't mean he's gonna give up 40 dingers next year. He's going to miss plenty of bats and he'll probably induce lots of infield flies and popups. With the sweet arsenal he's got now.

[Greg Pappas]

When Andy MacPhail discussed what he wanted in return for star pitcher Erik Bedard, with then-Mariners GM Bill Bavasi, MacPhail insisted upon Adam Jones AND Chris Tillman as the center-pieces of the deal. Bavasi was so enamored with the O's lefty that he also agreed to add reliever George Sherrill, minor league reliever Kam Mickolio, and talented low-minors starter Tony Butler- to satisfy MacPhail's demands.

Lauded by most as a great trade by MacPhail, Jones and even Sherrill -as Major Leaguers- have gotten the most attention... with Sherrill becoming the Orioles closer before his trade, and Jones showcasing the skills that may find him becoming a star center-fielder. However, MacPhail and our scouts saw serious potential in young Chris Tillman. They were not alone in their assessment, as many were very high on Tillman's skill-set and upside. I believe that MacPhail and his Scouting Department were -and remain- high on Tillman's promise... that of a front-of-the-rotation starter. Kudos to the O's for identifying Tillman as a 'must have,' and furthering the cause to secure a strong 'inventory' of high-quality young starters.

Did you know (Frobby does)... that Chris Tillman is still merely 21 years old, turning 22 in mid-April, and is younger than Brian Matusz, Brandon Erbe, and even Zach Britton?

Some will say that Matt Riley, Adam Loewen, and Hayden Penn were very young too, and youthful promise doesn't necessarily translate to success... and that's not only fair, it's true. Chris Tillman's upside and quality stuff doesn't mean much without delivery upon that promise. That can be said for any player at any position in any sport. But besides the wary caution of what could be another young hurler overwhelmed and ill-prepared to handle ML hitters and never finding 'it', there is the positive potential of what could be... and that is a real star.

Tillman was selected 49th overall (2nd round) by Seattle in the 2006 MLB Draft, out of Fountain Valley High School in Anaheim, CA. After getting his feet wet with 30.2 Rookie/Short-Season innings in '06, Tillman began to show everyone why scouts were so high on him. He advanced to High-A ball and finished a promising first full pro season with 28 starts, 135.2 IP, a 4.84 ERA, 61 BB's/139 K's (4.0 BB/9, 9.2 K/9), 0.9 HR/9, 9.2 hits/9, and 1.47 WHIP. It wasn't that the stats were overwhelming, but the steady demeanor and ease of which he did things impressed. His stuff was always considered very good, but he was now on the map as one to watch... all as a 19-year old.

The O's identified that 'special something', and after dealing for Tillman in February of '08, they decided to push the youngster to AA, where Tillman shined. Beginning the season as a just-turned-20-year-old, Tillman rewarded the O's faith in him, blooming into a top-shelf prospect. Jumping to AA Bowie, Tillman was very good, matching the prior season with another 28 starts and throwing 135.2 IP. This time however, the Californian's stats showed marked improvement... 3.18 ERA, 65 BB's/154 K's (4.3 BB/9, 10.2 K/9), 0.7 HR/9, 7.6 hits/9, and 1.33 WHIP.

Tillman followed his outstanding showing in AA by handling the jump to AAA Norfolk this past year, and posted even better numbers (lowering his BB/9 to 2.4 and WHIP to 1.15) than he did in Bowie- before his rough Big League introduction.

Don't let the rough showing in Baltimore worry you too much... as scouts are enamored of Tillman's abilities and any team in baseball would be thrilled to have him. But no other team has Chris Tillman, we do... and I know I'm not alone in being very excited about 'what could be'.

[Frobby]

Don't let the rough showing in Baltimore worry you too much....

It wasn't even that rough a showing. His ERA was under 5.00 most of the time he was pitching, and rose from 4.71 to 5.40 in a rough final outing. Have him start fresh in the spring and I expect good things.

[RShack]

It wasn't even that rough a showing. His ERA was under 5.00 most of the time he was pitching, and rose from 4.71 to 5.40 in a rough final outing. Have him start fresh in the spring and I expect good things.

Right. He was the 5th best SP we had last year.

4 guys (Bergy, Koji, Guthrie, and Matusz) were better than him.

6 guys (Hernandez, Berken, Hendrickson, Eaton, Hill, and Simon) were worse.

Not only was he the 5th best we had, but he also performed like a legit #5 SP, which is more than those other 6 guys can say...

[jdmyprez]

My prediction for Tillman is that he holds his own enough that he becomes the centerpiece of a midseason deal that brings us something mighty nice in return.

[Sports Guy]

It wasn't even that rough a showing. His ERA was under 5.00 most of the time he was pitching, and rose from 4.71 to 5.40 in a rough final outing. Have him start fresh in the spring and I expect good things.

But his peripherals weren't that great...They showed his ERA to be lucky.

[mikezpen]

Tillman was a fly ball pitcher last year. Hopefully, an improved change-up and developing a cutter gets batters off his fastball somewhat.

[Frobby]

But his peripherals weren't that great...They showed his ERA to be lucky.

He did a lot of pitching with runners on base and didn't strike out too many guys. I still think he came through it pretty well. With his stuff, he will get better but I was satisfied with how he did in his first run through MLB.

[melankfo]

I have a bad feeling we'll wish we would have traded him this offseason.

I too expect him to struggle especially with the longball at OPACY and get demoted for Arrieta or maybe even Britton.

I share this concern, though I'm more positive on him. He reminds me of a young Jim Palmer with his natural tendency to throw a high fastball. In Palmer's day they called many of those strikes, but not anymore. So far, when he brings those pitches down enough to be called strikes, they often get hit hard -- some totally out of the yard. I see his potential, but this high fastball tendency can be a hard thing to change -- coming from a pitcher's natural delivery. What do others think?

[Ruzious]

What I think is - now he knows what he needs to work on. What I really like about him is - how he and Matusz (the can't miss kid) - seem to be pure baseball players. I got the feeling they eat, sleep, and live baseball 24/7. Aside from his stuff, you can see how competitive he is on the mound. There's no wide-eyed deer-in-the-headlights look we saw with guys like Penn, Olson, and Liz. The O's pitchers got squeezed by the umps last year, he was queezed as much as anyone, and that got to him at times. Now, he's hopefully done with that initiation.

[TinCup]

KISS principle.....at this point, I'd rather still have him on my staff than not!

[crowmst3k!]

My prediction for Tillman is that he holds his own enough that he becomes the centerpiece of a midseason deal that brings us something mighty nice in return.

I don't like this prediction. By saying "centerpiece", you're implying that the Orioles are planning on trading multiple players for one? Why trade Tillman if he is just "holding his own"?

Trading high ceiling starters at this point is ill-advised. I'll maintain that point until 1-5 in the rotation are solid, consistent MLB starters. Tillman has tremendous stuff, and once he locates his FB better, I predict he'll be an absolute ace.

[DrungoHazewood]

I have a bad feeling we'll wish we would have traded him this offseason.

I too expect him to struggle especially with the longball at OPACY and get demoted for Arrieta or maybe even Britton.

Formula for TrERA = (HR*(81*13)+(BB+HBP-IBB)*3-K*2)/IP

Same as FIP, except that you multiply the HR allowed part by 81.

[Going Underground]

Some people in the Orioles management want Tillman to start out in AAA this year. Some people in the orginization think of him as a TOR starter and others as a mid rotation guy. I guess like anything else time will tell.

[DrungoHazewood]

I assume that by this, you mean that Tillman will improve his groundball rates with the addition of a cutter in his repertiore.

But for real? Just because he's a flyball pitcher doesn't mean he's gonna give up 40 dingers next year. He's going to miss plenty of bats and he'll probably induce lots of infield flies and popups. With the sweet arsenal he's got now.

There's nothing magical that precludes a flyball prone pitcher from doing well at OPACY, which is Trea's implication. George Sherrill might just be the single most flyball-prone pitcher in major league baseball and he was a perfectly fine closer here.