Is to find out where the organization slots Jay Jackson. It could be a sign that he has to work to win over their trust a bit more. Certainly, the organization still views him quite high by most accounts, but he may have to pay his penance for last year’s transgressions. Furthermore, the mixed rumors that came out in regards to some things will make it interesting, as there could be some issues at AA and AAA. Actually, as a whole side note, I was fascinated how national publications didn’t catch a strong whiff of what happened, and yet, Cubs fan sites did. But that’s more a sign of the fanatical Cubs fan base.

That said, for the most part, everything I’ve heard, about Jay, about this past summer, makes me think that his was a transgression of youth. Maybe that’s a bit more hope than something concrete, but I feel comfortable in not being too worried. The bigger issues for Jay this upcoming year is tweaking his delivery and improving his control. The latter could obviously be impacted by the former. All the scouting reports will note his clean mechanics. That’s sort of true. His arm action is fairly clean. That said, he has to use his entire body a bit more. It isn’t even a case of being a thrower – he’s that as well, but without utilizing his full body he could run into some potential health issues down the line. Some will say it is quite a serious issue – indeed there’s footage that makes Jay’s delivery look, to say the least, ugly. It didn’t seem that extreme when I saw him, but as I am a fan, my view could be clouded a bit as I’ve been quite high on him and also, I go to games to take a break..

There is still a lot to like. I always point out to those that downgraded him at the end of the year from where he was mid-season

a) He really only had one bad month
b) He was aggressively pushed and had he been in A+ all year and maintained the rates that he had, people would be hyping him up like crazy.

At his best, he’s a guy who hits the low-mid 90’s with his fastball. I found it odd that people were slow to recognize that his fb velo jumped, but it did. It was always expected, as he was more athlete than pitcher, so experience was going to help. He sits more comfortably in the low-mid 90’s now. He’s also shown the ability to run it up there in the upper 90’s in short stints. Now, is it a dominating fb? From most indications and my view, it’s good, but it doesn’t have consistently strong movement yet. That said, experience and improved delivery may help in that regards. There’s still some that think a bit more polished of a delivery would help velo and movement, so that’s something to watch. The old scouting reports point to a plus slider and a solid, improving curve. An argument has been made for much of the season that his curve was equal, if not better, than his slider now, and as some postseason reviews have indicated, there’s enough folks that think that way. Anyhow, that’s two quality breaking pitches. He also throws a changeup, but it needs work.

I’m still very high on him and I believe that he has the most starting potential. Well, Cashner has the most starting potential, but I don’t believe in him as a starter enough yet. Actually, the argument could be made that CArpenter has the most starting potential. He still sits in my top 5, sliding down a bit due to other’s moving up (Currently is sitting 3rd for me behind Starlin Castro and Brett Jackson, but I’m still tinkering and always trying to gather information and still debating Vitters somewhere from 2-4). My argument for slotting Jay ahead of Andrew has always been this – I value starting potential far more and utilize it as a part of my rankings. Furthermore, while Cashner could be an elite pen arm, a pguy with 2 plus breaking balls and the ability to pump a mid-90’s fb could be a very good late inning pen arm type as well.

Couldnt remember what he looked like, Hopefully Casey keeps up the tradition with the Cubs

if people want a sleeper mid-end rotation arm to follow, Craig Muschko would be that guy (well, he would be one option, there’s a couple more in the system). Like Coleman, stuff is average. He was also old for A+ last year. That said, he showed excellent control (1.7 walk rate), so if he can maintain a decent K rate, he could be a guy to check in on. The Cubs are said to be very pleased but realistic about him. That said, I think, despite the competition, that he will likely earn a starting spot in AA. May very well be a Mitch Atkins type, but someone to ponder.

no one is claiming him to be an ace (well, at least I’m not). I’m not claiming him to be a mid-rotation type. To suggest that he isn’t viable seems to suggest that he has no shot at being a rotation arm at any point in his career. If that isn’t your intention, then forget this post. But there are guys who have succeeded with 4 average pitches in the bigs through their ability to locate and attack, which Casey can do for the most part (outside of his dead arm period in July). Add in that, if the cutter/slider develops, and it has the potential to be above average, then he’ll take another step forward.