#41 Aaron King. LHP. BD: 04-27-1989. 6'4", 205 lbs.
2009 Stats: Low A- 7-6, 3.70, 104.2 IP, 52 BB, 88 K's, GO/AO= 0.84.
King is another big LHP except he's relatively young and unpolished. He has somewhat of an unorthodox windup and delivery that is high effort( in one video I saw he raises his back foot all the way up to his tiptoes at the start of his delivery). He had a good season for Augusta, especially in the second half with a 4-1 record and a 2.75 ERA over his last 10 games. While his K/9 improved to 9 over that stretch, his BB/9 actually got worse to 4.95. I have seen mention of a fastball hitting 95 MPH, but I've also read that he sits in the high 80's. Aaron is a tough kid to rank. I ended up lumping him with the "field" prospects and putting him in the low A tier. It will be very interesting to see his progress. I would say his ceiling is Jonathan Sanchez, which I think we would all be very happy with.
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Hey DrB,
ReplyDeleteKnew he had to be soon ..And like alot of the other pitchers you have mentioned, he should be very interesting to watch..I remember last spring, that guy John Sickels had King as one of his sleepers. And then by mid-season was moaning about the choice. However, after the 2nd half turnaround by King, I think he maked him down as a "hit". I can see the giants aggressively moving him to SJ..We'll see..
SteveVA
If Aaron King is pitching for San Jose this season, I think I will make seeing one of his games a priority just to see for myself. I feel like he might be the pitching prospect I know the least about.
ReplyDeleteAs an Augusta season ticket holder, I was at most of Aarons starts.I think he has serious potential, but is not ready for a promotion to High A. His command is seriously lacking as is his composure on the mound.
ReplyDeleteAdam
The starting pitching should easily be the strong suit for the upcoming San Jose Giants. Eric Surkamp is a stud. His curveball is the lefthanded equivalent of Lincecums, and his change is pretty darn good also. The only thing he's lacking is a fastball. His fastball velocity and control are a little suspect, but he could almost get by without one.
ReplyDeleteBtw I recently came across this blog and I love it. You do a tremendous job keeping up with the Giants upcoming prospects
Adam ( from Augusta)
Adam - Thanks for the first hand knowledge and scouting of King..Did he improve in the poise and command department during the 2nd half? SO, your thinking a start at LOW A to see if he can repeat his 2nd half before moving up? I can see that for a 20 year old...
ReplyDeleteLike you, I hope to get some upclose anmd personal views of the Giants prospects this coming season as the Richmond Stadium is less than one hoour away..Looing forward to the likes of Kieschnick, Neal, Noonan, Gillespie and some of the Doc has reviewed
SteveVA
Adam,
ReplyDeleteSince you've seen King pitch several times, I wonder if you can shed any light on the velocity question. To me, that's the key. I know velocity isn't everything, but it is the difference between a prospect with a high ceiling and one who is more likely to peak as a #4 or 5 starter.
I am planning to do daily minor league updates once the season starts. Maybe you can chime in with first hand accounts in the comments whenever you get a chance to attend Augusta games? They would be welcome!
Steve,
By all means check out the Richmond team. I guarantee you will be blown away by Thomas Neal. I really think he is our LF of the future. The guy I always think of when I see him is Jim Ray Hart, only with more athleticism.
King was the hardest throwing lefty from last years Augusta team. He was typically 88-92 in the first few innings with a pretty significant dropoff around innings 3 or 4. I personally never saw 95 but I did hear that he threw harder before he changed his leg kick.
ReplyDeleteAdam
Adam,
ReplyDeleteThanks, that helps a lot. That's not out of line with what I've read.
DrB