New York Mets fans have been waiting for a super pitching prospect to come along since the doctor, Dwight Gooden, checked in more than 20 years ago.
They thought it would be Jason Isringhausen, or Paul Wilson, or Bill Pulsipher in the 90s. All three flopped with the Mets.
The new kid Big Apple-bound who appears to be a real deal hurler is Mike Pelfrey, a 6-7, 210 pound colossus of a pitcher from the Scott Boras stable of players.
Prior to pro baseball, Pelfrey did not exactly lead a charmed life. Mike grew up poor, in a family that moved around a lot. His parents divorced when he was 3, and his biological father faded from view. It wasn’t until recently that Mike began speaking with him. His mother remarried, and Mike considers his stepfather his real dad. Baseball was his outlet.
He was named Kansas High School Player of the Year in 2001 and 2002. He was selected in the 15th round of the 2002 draft by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays but opted to attend Wichita State, where he went 33-7 with a 2.18 earned-run average in three seasons. He struck out 366 batters and walked just 69.
Pelfrey went 12-3 with a 1.98 ERA for Wichita State last season. He was considered the best pitcher in the June draft, but because he’s hooked up with hardball agent Scott Boras, he didn’t go until the Mets selected him with the ninth pick. They paid him a $3.8 million bonus, the most they’ve ever handed out to a draft selection.
Mike started this season at Class A Port St. Lucie and lasted just four games (2-1, 1.64 ERA) before jumping to Double-A Binghamton, where he posted a 4-2 record and 2.71 ERA. In 16 minor-league starts, he struck out 103 and walked 28.
The Mets had seen enough, and on July 7 Pelfrey was summoned to New York to replace an injured Pedro Martinez. He promptly won his first two big-league starts, but reality struck back in his next appearance, an 8-4 loss to the Houston Astros in which he left in the fifth.
Through those three starts, he was 2-1 with a 5.38 earned-run average.
Pelfrey, 22, consistently throws in the mid-90s and has topped out at 97. His best pitch is a two-seam fastball with natural movement, which he says he throws “85 percent of the time.” He also throws a four-seam fastball, a curveball, changeup and a mid-80s slider.
He blamed a lack of success with his secondary pitches for his poor outing against the Astros, saying that “hitters were sitting on my fastball.”
Given the jump that he made into the shark tank at Shea, no one questions that he handled himself exceptionally well given his limited professional playing time.
He is an aggressive pitcher who’s not afraid to show batters who he thinks owns the plate.
“He has the power and the baseball instincts to be a big-time talent,” one National League scout says. “If he can develop his other pitches and make the adjustment from Wichita to New York, he’ll have a long and successful career.”
- Jim MANDELARO
