April 3, 2011
by Serenity Summers

Last time, we highlighted Florida’s offense and position players.  This time, we will take a look at Florida‘s pitching staff.  Last season, Florida ranked third in the Imperial League with a 3.58 team ERA.  The main strength of the pitching staff remains the bullpen.  The ‘pen is filled with talented and versatile pitchers.  Many of Florida‘s relievers have shown the ability to pitch 100+ innings and take the ball calmly in late game situations.  The starting staff is solid with the potential to be great.  It is headlined by a newly acquired ace.  Overall, Florida‘s pitching is expected to be one of the top staffs in the Imperial League again this season.

SP Cedric Mosley, #17
Cedric Mosley finds himself switching teams and pitching roles this offseason.  A closer by trade, Mosley finally gets his wish to start in the PEBA.  Considered one of the elite closers in the game, Mosley has transitioned well as a starter in Spring Training.  He was the most impressive pitcher in camp.  In 15 innings, he allowed zero runs along with a team-leading 0.87 WHIP.  He struck out 16 batters while only walking 3.  Mosley appears to already be in midseason form.  He is the complete pitcher.  With a devastating changeup and 95 MPH fastball, Mosley can rack up strikeouts while keeping batters off-balanced.  Mosley also possesses a good curveball and heavy forkball that makes it hard for hitters to hit the long ball off him.  Plain and simple, he gives Florida an undisputed ace that the team sorely needs.

SP António Rivera, #4
António Rivera sits in the number two spot.  A one-time All-Star, Rivera is considered a borderline ace.  Between Rivera and Mosley, Florida has an excellent 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation.  Rivera really showed off his grit last season with a 2-1 record in the postseason.  Like Mosley, Rivera’s bread and butter is the changeup.  Oddly enough, Rivera has never won more than 15 games in a season for his career.  He’s considered the leader of the pitching staff.  Knowledgeable and hard-working, Rivera is a perfect pitcher to have on anyone’s team.  His veteran leadership will go a long way in helping young members of the pitching staff mature.

SP Dustin Moyer, #36
Dustin Moyer sits in the number three spot.  Moyer had a decent 2010 season, going 13-8 with a 4.32 ERA.  In comparison, Moyer collected a 10-5 record and 2.84 ERA during the 2009 season.  Florida fans will be ecstatic if Moyer can come close to his 2009 numbers.  Possessing average stuff, Moyer’s success is dependent on his ability (or inability) to mitigate walks and the home run ball.  For now, Moyer can be considered a serviceable number three starter.  The jury is still out as to whether Moyer can firmly establish himself as a dependable middle-of-the-rotation pitcher.

SP Chris Saunders, #32
Chris Saunders, the team’s former ace, now slides down to the fourth slot.  A two-time All-Star, the 23-year-old was on the fast track.  In 2008 and 2009 combined, Saunders recorded a total of 22 wins and 8 losses.  However, a torn biceps in his pitching arm towards the end of the 2009 season derailed Saunders’s progress and growth.  After an average and rather disappointing 2010 campaign, the Florida faithful are hopeful that Saunders can recapture his dominating form prior to the injury.  More than a year removed from the injury, 2011 will be the season where Saunders shows whether he can overcome the arm injury or not.  He’ll be slotted in the fourth slot, and the addition of Mosley should take the pressure off Saunders.

SP Franklin Browne, #43
If it was not for Cedric Mosley, Franklin Browne would have been Florida‘s best pitcher in Spring Training.  Browne has had an interesting career with Florida thus far.  In 2008, he went 3-14 with a 6.39 ERA for the Featherheads.  2009 was not much better.  Browne went 1-5 with a 7.97 and was promptly demoted to AAA.  This was the low point of his career.  Rather than give up, Browne showed his intestinal fortitude.  In two seasons with Florida‘s AAA affiliate, Browne went 20-7.  His turnaround was so impressive that several GMs around the league started to inquire about Browne’s availability.  This spring, Browne went 2-0 with a 2.87 ERA and 0.89 WHIP.  Management was so impressed at Browne’s poise that they traded away starters Héctor Gutiérrez and Orlando Maldonado.  If Browne is indeed the real deal, he will give Florida a solid fifth starter.

MR Darwin Craft, #44
Darwin Craft is expected to play a key role in Florida‘s bullpen.  Craft is the type of pitcher you would want on your team.  The former minor league closer has shown great versatility.  Craft just wants to win and puts the team ahead of himself.  He will do anything the manager asks of him.  Manager Jaime Sánchez has used Craft as a setup man, spot closer and early reliever.  His versatility and willingness to pitch in any situation has turned Craft into a workhorse.  He pitched 107 innings and 70.1 innings in 2009 and 2010 respectively.  Craft had a superb spring and it would not be surprising if he breaks out as one of the top relievers in the game this season.

MR Shigochiyo Hayashi, #23
Shigochiyo Hayashi gives Florida their lone lefty option in the bullpen.  David Lanfranco‘s departure via free agency means that Hayashi will have to step up.  The talented southpaw put together his best season in 2010.  He pitched a career-high 102 innings.  His 3.26 ERA and 1.24 WHIP were career bests.  He held left-handed hitters to a .212 battng average last year.  More impressively, righties did not fare much better against Hayashi, batting just .223 off him.  His ability to get both left and right-handed batters out allows Sánchez to leave Hayashi out on the mound regardless at who is up at the plate.  For years, Hayashi has given Florida fans something to moan about.  Possessing great talent and ability, Hayashi has always underachieved prior to his breakout 2010 season.  Hopefully last season was not just a one-hit wonder.  Being the team’s lone lefty, Hayashi holds a very valuable position in Florida‘s bullpen.  It can be argued that the success of Florida‘s bullpen will hinge on his personal success.

CL António Delgado, #34
António Delgado, who closed last season, will serve as this season’s primary setup man.  Collecting 35 and 32 saves in 2009 and 2010 respectively, Delgado is one of the best late game pitchers in all of the PEBA.  A right-handed pitcher, Delgado’s success lies in his ability to get left-handed hitters out.  Last season, Delgado held lefties to a .189 batting average and a slugging percentage of .247.

CL Jesse Powell, #28
Jesse Powell has been awarded with the closer role this season.  Last season, Powell was the setup man for Delgado.  This season, their roles have been flip-flopped.  Powell gives the team a power arm at the end of a game.  A two-time All-Star, Powell is starting to come into his own.  Last season, Powell held righties to a .167 batting average.  Powell is able to keep opposing hitters guessing with a five-pitch repertoire.  Look for Powell to establish himself as a primetime closer this season.

Bullpen
Takanobu Murata will serve as the team’s other primary right-handed reliever.  Murata will be joined by reliever François Bernard and recently signed Osamu Kohara.  At 24 years old, Murata is a promising pitcher.  He has the skills to become a key pitcher in any team’s bullpen.  For most teams, Murata would be pitching in late game situations in pivotal moments.  Due to Florida‘s depth, Murata is expected to pitch in the sixth and seventh innings of games.  Just like everyone else in the bullpen, seemingly, Murata’s value lies in his versatility.  Florida can comfortably place Murata in any situation.  He even started 4 games last season for Florida.  François Bernard gives Florida another good right-handed option in the bullpen.  Due to Florida‘s depth, expect Bernard to be used in long relief and mop up situations.  Osamu Kohara’s signing gives Florida another veteran arm and more depth.

Down the Pipeline
We have already seen several promising position players siphon through the pipeline, including Dan Jamison, Luis Torres and Ricardo Gabriel.  The pitching side of things has gradually caught up with the position players.  Currently stationed at AA, there have been murmurs that reliever Michael Smallbridge is ready to make the big jump.  Selected in the second round of the 2009 draft, Smallbridge comes from the strong Rice University program.  Word has it that Smallbridge will start the season in AAA.  There is an outside chance of Smallbridge making an appearance with the big ball club this season.

Fellow 2009 draftee Danny Williams is on a similar track as Smallbridge.  A relatively unknown prospect back in 2009, Williams has made himself into a top prospect.  Ever since joining Florida‘s organization, Williams has done nothing but win at every stop of the way.  He is expected to join Smallbridge at AAA sometime this season.  Expect management to find a starting spot for Williams in 2012.

A minor league free agent, Manuel Cardenas is an unknown in the PEBA universe – including to that of his own organization.  Scouting director Pablo Durango has raved about Cardenas and has compared him to a healthy Chris Saunders.  It is unknown what we can expect out of Cardenas this year.  Cardenas starts this season at AAA and could potentially be ready by 2012 or early 2013.