June 22, 200421 yr June 21 Introducing Yusmerio Petit Last week, I got an email from a reader named Josh Orenstein telling me about a minor leaguer I'd never heard of -- Yusmerio Petit. My guess is not many of you have heard of Petit either. Well, the guy is good. Petit is a 19-year-old Venezuelan-born RHP in the Mets system. At Single-A Capital City this year, he's 8-1 in 13 starts, with a 2.14 ERA, 101 strikeouts, and 20 walks in 71.1 innings. He's not just a one-year wonder, either. In 2002-2003, Petit made 25 starts, with a 2.35 ERA, 147 strikeouts, and 26 walks in 130 innings. Petit appears to be a stats-versus-scouts kind of guy. In the Baseball Prospect Book this year, John Sickels said of Petit, "Scouts aren't sold on him... His fastball is average, and given his small size [6'0", 185], it doesn't look like he will pick up a lot of additional velocity. He knows how to pitch, though, and I expect he'll have no major problems in full-season ball." He hasn't. The only weird thing is Sickels' last comment: "If he passes the Double-A test, he could emerge as a Nelson Figueroa type." What the hell? What is a "Nelson Figueroa type"? Nelson Figueroa has a 4.52 ERA in 233 career MLB innings, with just 5.48 strikeouts per 9 innings. How is that remotely comparable to Petit? I mean, I could see that as a downside or something, but Sickels makes it seem like this is a good thing. Anyway, Petit has yet to struggle in pro baseball. He's now pitched 201.1 pro innings, and has a 2.28 ERA and a 248-46 K-BB ratio. That's 11 strikeouts per 9 innings. Petit has also given up just 9 homers in his career. Statistically, he has yet to show a weakness. It's early, but keep an eye on him. Posted by: Matthew Namee
June 22, 200421 yr That's why we need more scouts in Venezuela and the Dominican Republic, hell, why not send some down here as well.
June 22, 200421 yr Author Petit is in the futures game this year. Maybe he should get the start against Blanton for the World team.
June 22, 200421 yr Author BMac anyone? BMAC's Era's and HR numbers have been significantly higher. That being said, he still has some impressive numbers. Once he can learn to avoid the longball, LOOKOUT. Arizona League » White Sox 06/24 to 08/29 2002 W L SV ERA G IP H R ER BB KO HR 4 4 0 2.76 14 78.1 78 40 24 15 79 6 Pioneer League » Great Falls White Sox 06/17 to 09/03 2003 W L SV ERA G IP H R ER BB KO HR 9 4 0 3.65 16 101.0 105 49 41 15 125 7 South Atlantic League » Kannapolis Intimidators 4/8 to 6/20 W L SV ERA G IP H R ER BB KO HR 7 5 0 3.93 14 87 77 41 38 20 106 10
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