Young Gun Profiles: Phil Hughes

Hello Yankee fans! I'm going to start a new mini series on my blog here to profile and discuss each member of "The Big 3". Quick side note: we are almost a mere week away from the first spring training game, and I cannot express how excited I am to watch some baseball again!

Lets start with Phil Hughes. I was inspired to do this after reading this article on Yankees.com. Phil Hughes has been widely considered one of the best (if not THE best) pitching prospects in all of baseball. However, his debut season doesn't seem to stand out as much when Yankee fans are so taken with Hughes' teammate Joba Chamberlain's debut. Hughes started off strong in his rookie season, but was quickly derailed with a hamstring injury. After his return from the DL, Hughes struggled with the slight loss of velocity on his pitches. This is shown in his first month back in August, putting up a 1-2 record in 32.1 innings with an ugly 6.40 ERA.

However, Hughes learned something in August that will put him miles ahead of every other pitcher his age. He learned how to adapt. He learned how to get big league hitters out without his best stuff. Hughes learned how to get up on that mound without his A game and still get the job done. As evidenced by his ugly August, this took a fair amount of trial and error, but he gained a valuable lesson that some pitchers never learn, and one that most pitchers don't learn until they have far more experience. Hughes, however, was forced to learn right out of the gate.

And boy did he learn something. In September, Hughes was brilliant. He posted a 3-0 record in 5 starts, pitching 29.2 innings and an impressive 2.73 ERA. Hughes continued into the post season, collecting the Yankees' only win in the ALDS, pitching 3.2 innings of relief for an injured Roger Clemens and collected 4 strikeouts in lights-out ball.

What does this mean for 2008? Judging by what I've heard coming out of the Yanks' camp so far, Hughes has his velocity back. If Hughes learned to get hitters out with only his B-game, I cannot wait to see what he can do with his A-game back. I predict a successful 2008 for Phil Hughes.

Now, on to a more detailed look at Hughes' arsenal. He throws a hard fastball that sits around 93-95, and he commands it very very well. Hughes can even reach back and hit 96-97 if the situation demands it. I've heard comparisons to Curt Schilling in terms of the quality of his fastball.

Next, Hughes' best pitch: the curveball. A few years ago, Hughes didn't even know how to throw a curveball. Nardi Contreras worked with Hughes to learn a curveball, and not only did he learn how to throw it, but he developed what is generally considered the best curveball in the minor leagues. This is his strikeout weapon, and he has stellar command with it. I just recently found out that his curveball is in fact a knuckle-curve with a solid 1-7 break. His fastball is great, but his knuckle-curve is easily what makes Hughes so good.

Hughes also has a good changeup. Its not as developed as his other pitches are, but the Yanks have been working with him as they did with his curveball. He isn't as comfortable with the change as he is with his other pitches, but it has progressed significantly and I expect it to become another pitch Hughes can use to consistently keep hitters off balance.

Hughes' old bread-and-butter pitch used to be his slider, before he developed his deadly curveball. He rarely throws the slider in games anymore, but the only reason I'm writing about this one too is because I could definitely see him dust it off and use it in a tight spot. The hitters won't see it coming because it is most likely not in his scouting report. That is just my opinion, I could be wrong and we'll never see him throw a slider, but if I were Dave Eiland, I would encourage Phil to throw it every now and then in a bullpen session to keep it sharp just in case.

Not to beleaguer the point, but I am going to throw a few quotes out there from an old prospect profile of Hughes when he was in AA Trenton writen by EJ Fagan, a very talented blogger who covers the Yankees' minor league system over at Pending Pinstripes. Fagan wrote this a year ago. I wish I could have found a more recent one, but Hughes isn't really considered a prospect anymore, thus no more prospect profiles. And I don't feel like paying money to get access to one of those websites that publishes scouting reports. I'm poor.

Fagan on Hughes' ceiling: "None. None at all. Hughes has the ability to be a once in a lifetime pitcher. He has the ability to be the best pitcher in the major leagues. There is nothing stopping him. There is nothing more than I can say. He won't put up Pedro Martinez 1999-2000 numbers, but besides that you can compare him to any rookie phenom that has come up and dominated in recent years. Jorge Posada said that Hughes has a better arm than anyone on the Yankees - including guys like Mariano Rivera and Randy Johnson."

Fagan on comparing Hughes to another pitcher: "A healthy Mark Prior. I used the same comparison for Betances, but I need to draw a distinction. If Betances overcomes the traditional obstacles associated with any minor league pitcher drafted out of High School, he can top out at Mark Prior's level and style. Phil Hughes has indeed overcomed those obstacles and has found himself at the brink of the major leagues with Mark Prior-like performance levels and almost the exact same pitching style. They both had 95 mph fastballs. They both located their fastballs with Mussina-like precision. They both had filthy curveballs. They both throw a similar changeup. Prior posted a 2.43 ERA in 211 innings in 2003 at age 22. Hughes is capable of the same. Hopefully he will not be cursed with the same injuries (which the Yankees have done their best to prevent)."

Fagan on comparing Hughes to our other top pitching prospects: "Tyler Clippard has his control. Ian Kennedy has his brain. Joba Chamberlain has his power. Christian Garcia has his curveball. Jeff Marquez has his changeup. Phil Hughes has it all. I have never seen a pitcher without a weakness in the minor leagues before I saw Phil Hughes. Usually power pitchers have a lack of control, or control pitchers lack power, or power pitchers with control lack secondary pitches, or they have injury issues, or they are 25 before they figure everything out, or they are inconsistent. Hughes has no weakness. All of his numbers would be phenominal if he was 24 years old, but Hughes put up these K/BBs, K/9s, BB/9s and ERAs as a 19/20 year old in AA. We're looking at something special folks, and he could be the ace of a new dynasty."

Needless to say, I'm very high on Phil Hughes. This kid is going to be something special. I'll try to profile Chamberlain and Kennedy as soon as I get a chance...until then, hang in there until baseball starts up!