-MetA4- wrote:satyr9 wrote:I just assumed starting him in the 'pen was similar to Price and he won't stay in the 'pen, but I haven't followed it at all. Have the Reds said they plan to keep him in a relief role?
Its the plan, but Chapman was very up and down as a starter in the minors, and there are those who felt all along that he was going to be a reliever. His velocity is also obviously nowhere near 100+mph as a starter.
I thought he was hitting 100MPH on the gun in the minors, wasn't he starting then? I would've thought if he's hitting 105 in relief, he'd at least occasionally touch 100 as a starter. Not that I think it matters too much. He's got elite velocity in any capacity and there are probably a dozen aspects to pitching that are way more important to long term success than the difference between 95 and 100 on your fastball (like where you put it, does it have any movement, can you throw your other 2-4 pitches, and the list goes on...).