Quote:
Originally Posted by muted79
can you post a little breakdown on Tom's ratings, pitches, stamina etc? Great read as always
|
Sure. I created Tom with the potential to develop into a dominant power closer. Therefore, his signature pitch is a nasty fastball, which he can bring at speeds in the 98-100mph range. His fastball has a potential rating of 19/20. Jonathan Broxton, Stephen Strasburg, Daniel Bard, and Justin Verlander throw comparably good heaters.
The other pitch in Tom's repertoire is a changeup, which is also a plus-plus pitch. Most of the other closers in the game throw a slider, so Tom is a little different in this regard. His change's potential is 15/20. Jon Lester and Matt Capps have similar changeups at their disposal.
That combination gives Tom a Stuff potential of 21, which is comparable to Broxton, Joakim Soria, and Joe Nathan. In fact, I deliberately set Tom's potential ratings close to those of other outstanding closers.
Tom's potential for Movement is 15, and his potential for Control is 17.
However, I also made him very raw, reflecting his youth and the fact that in Canada, he might not have faced the same level of competition as a teenager that a kid in, say, Georgia or Texas might face.
His actual ratings for Stuff and Movement were 13 and 12 as an 18-year-old, and they've improved to 15 and 13 now.
As you might have guessed from the story, Tom's issue right now is Control. His current rating is 5/20, and it didn't improve at all from his initial rating.
Tom's Stamina is 7/20, and his ground ball percentage is 59%. He's an average fielder (10/20) and a terrible hitter although, as a closer, he might almost never come to bat. He also struggles with his ability to hold runners close (5/20).
Like a lot of teenaged fireballers, Tom has to learn to throw strikes when he wants to, or he'll probably stall out somewhere in the minors.
Then, again, that degree of uncertainty makes for a good story. I deliberately created Pat O'Farrell as a potentially good, but not great, player. He enjoyed some outstanding fortune and some talent spikes, and became an all-time great.
Thanks for the request...I hope this answered your questions.