June 9, 200421 yr Arnie Munoz Will Likely Start on Saturday By Jason Gage June 9, 2004 FutureSox.com It appears that the White Sox have made their decision on who will be the 5th starter on Saturday and that Arnie Munoz will take the mound. Munoz made a brief appearance in yesterdays start for the Barons. He went two innings, giving up no runs on one hit. The Barons ended up losing 4-3 to Huntsville, who scored three runs in the bottom of the ninth. Munoz, who is in his first season as a starter, has been the Baron's ace and is one of the best pitchers in the Southern League. This season he is 6-2 with a 2.13 ERA in 12 starts. In his 67.2 innings of work he has limited opponents to just 46 hits, while striking out 59. He has a very impressive .99 WHIP on the season. Munoz is not the two pitch pitcher he was last year. Munoz features his same fastball (86-88 MPH) that goes well with his devastating curveball, which is one of the best in the minor leagues. Munoz also throws an improving changeup and a good slider to give him a complete arsenal. Typically Munoz keeps the ball down in the zone and when he misses on his breaking pitch the ball almost always ends up in the dirt, rather then hanging over the middle part of the plate. However, this does make him susceptible to the wild pitch, which means White Sox catchers should be ready to block some pitches. He has done a good job of limiting his wild pitches this year (2). FS Take: Of all the 5th candidates so far, Munoz is the most likely to succeed. He not only has decent control but is the lone pitcher of the group to have a true strikeout pitch. Munoz' curve ball is plain nasty and when mixed with his other pitches, he is very hard to hit. If Munoz gets the job done, he still may only see limited time in Chicago, since General Manager Ken Williams is actively shopping for a front line pitcher. Some names that have been mentioned are Freddy Garcia, Kris Benson, and Ben Sheets. Another thing to watch with Munoz is how his arm holds up as the season wears on. While he has pitched a good amount of innings in the minors (for a reliever), he has never been a starter and with his small frame, there are some concerns that he could wear out. Munoz pitched a career high 79.2 innings in 2001 with Kannapolis. However, it should be noted that in 2002 he pitched 72.1 innings with the Barons and then followed that up with a relatively hard work load in the 2003 Winter League. Munoz will be pitching on 3 days rest, so like all previous minor league call ups, he will be on an odd schedule. However, since he only worked two innings of work his last start, his arm should be considerably more fresh and its my personal belief that this option is better then the Sox not letting him make the start and pitch with a few days of extra rest.
June 9, 200421 yr I heard someone say he was an awesome fielder on the level of Mark? Is that true? If so, no wonder he has been dominating everywhere.
June 10, 200421 yr We might walk up on Saturday, is it even worth going, or should we not go at all? Don’t even say that. I have tickets for that game (First White Sox game of the year for me) and I’m not really that excited since a fifth starter will start the game. Still, I wish him the best. BTW, you should go.
June 10, 200421 yr Author We might walk up on Saturday, is it even worth going, or should we not go at all? Go...this is the one I really think can do it.
June 10, 200421 yr Author I heard someone say he was an awesome fielder on the level of Mark? Is that true? If so, no wonder he has been dominating everywhere. Only seen him a few times so I couldn't tell ya, but thats a major plus if he is.
June 10, 200421 yr is his curve like a slurve or a tight over the top curveball...i remember seeing it in spring training two years ago but i don't htink i saw him throw the curve cause he was working on his changeup or somethin like that.
June 10, 200421 yr Author When I saw it in spring, it seemed like a big breaker that usually went out of the strike zone or hit the bottom part of it. The only time I've seen him pitch was in spring though, so I don't know if he was working on something or not. I'm assuming thats the same curve he always throws cause he was throwing the same thing in the bullpen session.
June 10, 200421 yr hmm...i'm really looking forward to it... Lets have him be our rich harden, except for a complete half season not just five games
June 10, 200421 yr hmm...i'm really looking forward to it... Lets have him be our rich harden, except for a complete half season not just five games f*** that -- I'll take 5 games. -- 5 games gets us to the ASB. 5 games would have won us the division last year. 5 games is huge.
June 10, 200421 yr When I saw it in spring, it seemed like a big breaker that usually went out of the strike zone or hit the bottom part of it. The only time I've seen him pitch was in spring though, so I don't know if he was working on something or not. I'm assuming thats the same curve he always throws cause he was throwing the same thing in the bullpen session. It is a hard biting downward breaking curveball. It does not have a "loop" like some big breaking curveballs. He has tightened it up some, making it break less than it used to, however it still breaks very sharply. I am not sure if his "slider" is exactly that. It looks more to me that he just throws a harder version of the curveball sometimes. I don't see the horizontal break down and away like a typical slider. Perhaps it is just the angle I see it from.
June 10, 200421 yr It'll be very interestin to see what happens with him if we do trade for a starter. If he's real impressive he could stay in the bullpen for sum1 like Mike Jackson, but if he's demoted, I wonder if it'll be back to down to B-Ham or Charlotte?
June 10, 200421 yr Author It is a hard biting downward breaking curveball. It does not have a "loop" like some big breaking curveballs. He has tightened it up some, making it break less than it used to, however it still breaks very sharply. I am not sure if his "slider" is exactly that. It looks more to me that he just throws a harder version of the curveball sometimes. I don't see the horizontal break down and away like a typical slider. Perhaps it is just the angle I see it from. Ya, it is definately a late breaking curve. One that doesn't start to really bite till very close to the plate, which is why its so freaking nasty. Damn thing just falls off the face of the earth. Of course seeing him in Arizona doesn't really do wonders since the breaking pitches don't break well there. Despite that it still looked very good to me.
June 10, 200421 yr f*** that -- I'll take 5 games. -- 5 games gets us to the ASB. 5 games would have won us the division last year. 5 games is huge. LOL..Good point. I f***in pray Munoz is the guy.
June 10, 200421 yr I am kind of wondering why the Sox haven't thought to bring up Josh Stewart still. Stewart didn't pitch too bad when he was up here last season and his biggest problem was lack of run support. He seems to be pitching fine in the minors.
June 10, 200421 yr I am kind of wondering why the Sox haven't thought to bring up Josh Stewart still. Stewart didn't pitch too bad when he was up here last season and his biggest problem was lack of run support. He seems to be pitching fine in the minors. Stewart has an ERA of about 4 in Charlotte I believe. He hasn't really set the world on fire, and doesn't hav many K's.
June 10, 200421 yr If Arnie does get the job done (and say he gets the W) will he be the Sox’s 5th starter for now on? Meaning... no more Freddy Garcia talks and all of that.
June 10, 200421 yr Ok, lets just say Arnie pitches well. 5 innings 3 or less runs and we win. That's great right. right. What does that do for our chances to get another starter? Does it delay it? Just curious, I want our starters to help but I would rather have a trade right now.
June 10, 200421 yr Author If Arnie does get the job done (and say he gets the W) will he be the Sox’s 5th starter for now on? Meaning... no more Freddy Garcia talks and all of that. No, I think the Sox know they need a front line starter to go deep in the playoffs as well as to better their chances of making the playoffs. However, if Munoz does good, you may see him moved to the bullpen following the trade and then him and Cotts would fight for the 5th spot next year. Plus, it seems like Cotts may be the guy on the way out when they make the trade, most teams seem to be interested in him.
June 10, 200421 yr No, I think the Sox know they need a front line starter to go deep in the playoffs as well as to better their chances of making the playoffs. However, if Munoz does good, you may see him moved to the bullpen following the trade and then him and Cotts would fight for the 5th spot next year. Plus, it seems like Cotts may be the guy on the way out when they make the trade, most teams seem to be interested in him. Thanks for that Chisoxfn. I agree that the Sox do need a pitcher that can help em go to the playoffs.
June 10, 200421 yr I look forward to Arnie Munoz starting. We can only hope that someone decides to accept the challenge and rise to the occassion. Does anyone know the WGN schedule?
June 10, 200421 yr If we can score some early runs for the guy, he may have a chance. I have little faith in anyone. For ten years I watched Bullwinkle try and pull a rabbit out of a hat until I finally gave up. I'm not nearly as patient now.
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