Wednesday

Rosen reports on Luis Cota and Adam Donachie

Lost in all the draft hoopla, Luis Cota had an inspiring start for High Desert at Mavericks Stadium on Monday night. Coming off a seven-inning start against the punchless Lake Elsinore Storm in which he did not allow an earned run, Cota returned home to the high winds and light air and dominated the first place Inland Empire 66ers for 7.1 innings. Cota struck out seven while walking just one batter and scattering four hits.

From the first pitch, he was throwing darts and was helped by his ability to get that first pitch over for strikes. His slider was consistently thrown for strikes as well - and he was able to throw it in any count, at any point in the game. Cota even threw his change-up for strikes, meaning that the experienced batters in this league couldn't just wait back for his fastball.


Luis Cota has been pitching much better lately.

He struck out possible league MVP candidate and acclaimed Mariners' prospect Mike Wilson twice, and also retired Matt Tuiasosopo on a tapper to the mound before Tuiasosopo tried to bunt his way on later in the game, though unsuccessfully as Adam Donachie fielded the bunt, spun towards first base, and gunned down Tuiasosopo by several steps. Cota is yet to make three quality starts in a row, but will have another crack at the inconsistent Lake Elsinore lineup likely on Saturday night.

  • Donachie's defense has always been playable at higher levels, and despite his .294 average and twelve home runs in 2005, doubts were still raised about his offensive ceiling. This year, he has improved at recognizing breaking pitches, and not lunging at sliders outside of the strike zone. He hit a home run to straight away center field Monday night, well over the hitter's backdrop in a blast I would estimate at 410-425 feet.


    Donachie is hitting .291/.380/.419 this season.

    Because he was a former switch-hitter, Donachie feels more comfortable against lefthanded pitching. After batting nearly .450 against lefties last year, he is hitting nearly .350 against them this year. Two of his three homeruns are against lefties, including a mammoth shot off highly touted Diamondbacks prospect Matt Chico, who is now succeeding in double-A.

    Donachie's arm is nearly unrivaled in this league, as he has thrown out 53% of basestealers, many of them from his knees. He forces teams to rework their offensive strategy, as the Mavericks have drawn the fewest stolen bases attempts in the entire league. Catchers don't have to hit .300 to make a major league roster, and with the way his arm has played as a professional, it seems Donachie could find a niche for a couple years in the major leagues as a backup/platoon catcher out of the mold of Jason LaRue. -JR
  • 6 Comments:

    At 6/08/2006 12:31 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

    "Matt Tuiasosopo" -- Is there any relation to the terrible Raiders backup QB?

     
    At 6/08/2006 12:50 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Brothers

     
    At 6/08/2006 2:42 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Man, Tuiasosopo is such a cool name. Try saying aloud several times in a row...

     
    At 6/08/2006 10:39 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Matt and Marcus Tuiasosopo are brothers.

     
    At 6/08/2006 11:58 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Donachie sounds like he has the defense to be a backup guy, but I'm skeptical when someone puts up good numbers when repeating a level, especially when he's a bit old for his league.

     
    At 6/09/2006 5:29 PM, Blogger Dave said...

    Hey guys...Sorry about the delays. It's almost like someone above doesn't want me to write about the draft. First blogger is screwed up off and on for three days, and then the Internet connection at RC Headquarters craps out. It looks like it's working OK now, but it's been off and on. I'll see what I can get done.

    Anyone else see Blake Wood pitch today on ESPN? He looked pretty sharp. Nice breaking ball, good fastball. 6.2 shutout innings. I'll try to write up something about him this weekend.

    As for scout, I don't know anything more than I did earlier this week. I'll keep everyone posted about the switch when I find out more about the timeframe. Both Kevin and Jon Rosen have agreed to stay on with RC at scout.

     

    Post a Comment

    << Home