A's Prospects Fuel Excitement in Win Over Reds

Mark Kotsay told MLB.com, "Today, if you really dissect it and look at fastball command, the consistency of landing pitches in the zone, that’s the final touch. He’s figuring that out, and we’re going to work on that. That’s kind of the last polish for him. He’s got the weapons to pitch in the big leagues."

That arsenal included a four-seamer that was averaging 94.6 miles per hour, but also got up and touched 98. The data from Baseball Savant may not have been differentiating his pitches, however, as they have one four-seamer sitting at 87.1, which is roughly the speed of his slider, and nearly ten mph below his previous pitch, a four-seamer. More often than not he was sitting 95-97 with the heater.

Jump's slider sat at 86 mph, while his curveball was at 83.1. He was having a hard time landing the slider in the zone, and didn't get anyone to chase one of the six he threw.

The hope among A's fans is that he'll be able to join the rotation sometime in the first half of the season, which would make the team's pitching staff look a lot deeper pretty quickly.

Another prospect opening some eyes

We wrote yesterday that with the injury to Colby Thomas, there's a chance that an outfielder could step up and make an impression on the coaching staff, and included Henry Bolte in that mix of players.

Bolte wasted no time attempting to seize the opportunity in front of him, getting a start in center and going 2-for-3 with a run scored and a strikeout before being replaced in the top of the sixth inning. While his singles weren't the hardest hit balls that produce eye-popping results, he did hit them 95.4 mph against Reds closer Emilio Pagán and 89.2 against reliever Tony Santillan.

One reason for optimism this season when it comes to Bolte is that he had a nagging wrist issue last season, which he had fixed up with a cleanup procedure during the offseason. After hitting just nine homers last season, perhaps we see the 22-year-old start to unlock a little more of his power.

If he's able to find that power stroke and cut down on the strikeouts a bit, he could be an immensely valuable bat for the A's to call up this season. While the A's have made some cuts to the roster recently, with Thomas and Lawrence Butler out of action currently, and both Denzel Clarke and Carlos Cortes off playing the WBC, there will be at-bats to go around this spring, and with at-bats comes opportunity.

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