Vermont, Bonderman and Capellan

I just got back from my vacation in Vermont with my girl friend Simona. This was more of a sightseeing trip than a baseball trip but I did get to see one game in one of the oldest baseball parks in the country. I saw the Vermont Lock Monsters host the Lowell Spinners at Centennial Field built in 1922. Parts of Centennial Field look as they have not been renovated is 85 years but it is a quaint ballpark and it was a pleasant baseball experience. It's funny that the Spinners were there because I live minutes from Lowell and don't usually have to travel 4 hours to see them.

I was away from the internet and out of touch for the most part but I did see the Tigers play the the Twins on Sunday thanks to the ESPN Sunday game of the week. If you could only watch one Tiger game in the past week, this was the one to watch. It's old news so I won't recap it but it was great to see Bonderman avoid the "one bad inning syndrome" and be dominating for 8 innings. Especially gratifying was the fact that his performance came in a tight 1-0 game. Marcus Thames 8th inning homer was one of the highlights of the season so far.

I was so out of touch that I did not know until today that the Tigers had acquired Jose Capellan from the Brewers on Sunday in exchange for Chris Cody. This trade came out of nowhere but it's not too surprising given Dave Dombrowski's history and the types of pitchers involved in the the trade. Jose Capellan is a flame thrower and Chris Cody is a soft tosser and we all know that DD loves power pitchers.

Capellan is a 26 year old right-handed reliever who throws in the mid to high 90s with good movement but does not have any great secondary pitches. Both his slider and change-up are works in progress. In 71 innings for the Brewers last year, he had a 4.39 ERA and a 58/31 K/BB ratio. He was reportedly dominant at times but not at all consistent. He did not make the team out of spring training this year and has only pitched 12 innings with a 4.50 ERA since his call-up last month.

Chris Cody is a 23 year old left-hander who was outstanding at West Michigan this year. He compiled a 1.77 ERA and 92/15 K/BB ratio in 91 1/3 innings. That kind of performance at any level puts a pitcher on my radar but his fastball generally tops out in the mid 80s and he was not regarded as one of the top Tigers pitching prospects.