32 replies to this topic

[Chainsaw318]

Kason Gabbard




Age: 25
Born: April 8, 1982
Royal Palm Beach, FL
Height: 6-2
Weight: 200
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
Drafted: 29th Round, 2000
How Acquired: Draft
High School: Royal Palm Beach


Image and vitals are from Soxprospects.com, as well as their profile:

Scouting Report: Lefty suffered nagging injuries over his first few years in pro ball. When healthy, Gabbard has a high 80s sinking fastball that hits the low 90s with good location, along with a plus changeup and curveball which he mixes in very well. Mature with good mound presence.

Gabbard has visited many a scenic stop on the Red Sox development tour. His minor league #'s up to this season:

Stats

year	team	lg	level	org	age	w	l	%	era	g	gs	cg	sh	sv	ip	h	r	er	hr	bb	so	k/bb
2001	GCL Red Sox	GCL	Rk	Bos	19	0	1	0	5.79	6	6	0	0	0	14	11	11	9		9	17	1.89
2002	Augusta	SAL	A	Bos	20	0	4	0	1.89	7	7	0	0	0	38	31	14	8	0	7	31	4.43
2003	Sarasota	FSL	A	Bos	21	0	1	0	10.29	2	2	0	0	0	7	13	8	8	0	3	4	1.33
2004	Sarasota	FSL	A	Bos	22	3	2	0.6	2.7	10	7	0	0	1	43.1	43	17	13	2	16	30	1.88
2004	Portland	East	AA	Bos	22	3	6	0.333	6.28	14	14	0	0	0	53	61	42	37	5	26	35	1.35
2005	Portland	East	AA	Bos	23	9	11	0.45	4.61	27	25	0	0	0	132.2	128	80	68	10	65	96	1.48
2006	Portland	East	AA	Bos	24	9	2	0.818	2.57	13	13	1	0	0	73.2	51	26	21	4	25	68	2.72
2006	Pawtucket	IL	AAA	Bos	24	1	7	0.125	5.23	9	8	0	0	0	51.2	51	31	30	8	26	48	1.85

In 2006, Gabbard was called up to Boston in July. He had been in Pawtucket since June, when he had been called up from Portland. Gabbard had 4 starts and 3 relief appearances in 2 stints with the big club over the remainder of the year.

Stats

year	team	lg	level	org	age	w	l	%	era	g	gs	cg	sh	sv	ip	h	r	er	hr	bb	so	k/bb
2006	Boston Red Sox	AL	MLB	Bos	24	1	3	0.25	3.51	7	4	0	0	0	25.2	24	11	10	0	16	15	0.94

This year, Gabbard has been assigned to AAA Pawtucket, where he has been really good thus far:

Stats

W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	GO/AO	AVG
2	1	2.70	6	6	0	0	0	30	24	9	9	4	8	25	3.13	0.218

The IP/Start #'s are low, primarily due to Gabbard having been the starting pitcher in Buffalo on 4/23 when the game was suspended in the 1st inning. Gabbard has thrown .2 Innings, striking out 1. Without those 2 outs and 1 start figured in, he's averaging just about 6IP/Start.


Gabbard's last outing was a gem against Indianappolis on 5/4:

7IP, 5H, 1ER, 2BB, 7K's


Nice wok so far for Gabbard, he deserved his own thread.

Edited by Chainsaw318, 14 May 2007 - 09:07 PM.

[Chainsaw318]

Actually, this is how Kason feels about not having his own thread earlier:




From the Wiki. Good job by whoever put the Wiki page together. Mad props.


As well, some excellent material from David Laurila's interview with Gabbard in '05 on his pitching repetoire, most of which is likely still applicable:

RSN: You throw a lot of 2-seamers. Tell us about that pitch, and how you use it.

KG: I just grip the two small seams. I've always had the pitch. Against righties, I'll throw it to the middle of the plate and it will run to the outside. If I'm throwing well, the batters will roll it over to the infield. I rarely throw 2-seamers inside to righties, but I do against lefties. I don't get a lot of strikeouts -- I'm looking for ground balls.

RSN: What else is in your repertoire?

KG: I have a circle-change that my college coach taught me. It's my behind-pitch. I'll throw it a lot down 2-1 or 3-1. I also have a knuckle-curve, where I spike one finger on the ball. I'm also developing a cutter. I used to throw a knuckler in high school, but they're not too interested in letting me throw it here.

RSN: What is the velocity on your fastball?

KG: I haven't even looked at a gun this year, to be honest. Last year, I was anywhere between 85 and 90. My 2-seamer is 85 to 88, and my 4-seamer 89-90. I throw the 2-seamer a lot more, and the biggest thing is not throwing it too hard. It has more action when I'm not over-throwing it.

[Chainsaw318]

5/9 @ Scranton/Wilkes-Barre:
4.1 IP, 6H, 3ER, 3BB, 3 K, 1HRA

70 Pitches, 42 Strikes.

YTD:
34.1 IP, 30H, 28/11 K/BB, 5 HR's allowed, 3.15ERA, .234 BAA

[Chainsaw318]

5/14 vs. Toledo:
5.0 IP, 2H, 0ER, 1BB, 7 K. 1 Single and 1 Double allowed.

63 Pitches, 40 Strikes. 5 Groundouts/2 Flyouts.

edit: the 1 run allowed was unearned.

YTD:
39.1 IP, 32H, 35/12 K/BB, 5 HR's allowed, 2.75ERA, .224BAA

Edited by Chainsaw318, 15 May 2007 - 09:54 AM.

[Chainsaw318]

Gabbard is looking like he might be the spot starter Friday 5/18, taking Josh Beckett's turn against the Atlanta Braves.

Link


EDIT: Apparently not, as Beckett has gone on the DL, allowing the team to recall Hansack.

Edited by Chainsaw318, 17 May 2007 - 09:48 PM.

[Chainsaw318]

Gabbard starts for the Red Sox today vs. Tim Hudson.

[Trotsky]

And did a fine job.

Can we discuss what this kid's future might hold. 12 of the first 13 batters is no joke. He's cut back on his major issue previously- giving up the BB's... I mean REALLY cut back!!! He has a relatively nice K rate and a very nifty GB/FB ratio. He throws the ball hard with a lot of life on it... is he for real? I still have no idea where to put him (which makes me very excited for him....)

[jsinger121]

And did a fine job.

Can we discuss what this kid's future might hold. 12 of the first 13 batters is no joke. He's cut back on his major issue previously- giving up the BB's... I mean REALLY cut back!!! He has a relatively nice K rate and a very nifty GB/FB ratio. He throws the ball hard with a lot of life on it... is he for real? I still have no idea where to put him (which makes me very excited for him....)

He still does not go deep enough in games where he is anything more than topping out at a 5th starter at best. The third time through the lineup he was struggling. He gave the sox more than a great effort today but he is not someone I would want taking a turn every 5th day in Boston.

[Chainsaw318]

5/21 vs. ATL
5.0 IP, 6H, 2ER, 1BB, 7K. 100 Pitches/61 Strikes.

A very nice outing from Gabbard, who started very strong with 3 2/3 of n-hit ball, but tired in the the 5th, and gave up two hits to start the sixth before leaving. Both runners aboard scored.

As jsinger mentioned above, the fine perfromance is tempered a bit by the tendency for Gabbard to be a 5 inning pitcher. Despite the nice breaking ball yesterday, and what I think are 6 swinging strikeouts, Gabbard doesn't seem to have the kind of stuff that misses a ton of bats, so he needs to be efficient to keep his pitch count down and stay in the game.

Something that bears watching, but tough to ask for much more for a 2007 debut.


Edit:

After the game, Gabbard was sent back down to Pawtucket.

Edited by Chainsaw318, 21 May 2007 - 07:56 AM.

[epraz]

As jsinger mentioned above, the fine perfromance is tempered a bit by the tendency for Gabbard to be a 5 inning pitcher. Despite the nice breaking ball yesterday, and what I think are 6 swinging strikeouts, Gabbard doesn't seem to have the kind of stuff that misses a ton of bats, so he needs to be efficient to keep his pitch count down and stay in the game.

Isn't the conventional wisdom that a pitcher who "misses a ton of bats" is likely to rack up higher pitch counts?

[Chainsaw318]

Isn't the conventional wisdom that a pitcher who "misses a ton of bats" is likely to rack up higher pitch counts?

My punctuation is poor and didn't really seperate two distinct thoughts. Gabbard is not a strikeout pticher in the typical high-velocity-stuff sense, and he needs to limit his pitches and work deeper into games to be a more intriguing and useful pitcher to the MLB squad.


Gabbard pitched last night, 5/25, against Syracuse and got the win:

5.1 IP, 6H, 3ER, 2BB's, 5K's


YTD (includes both PAW and MLB):

49.2 IP, 44H's, 17ER, 7HRA, 47/15 K/BB, 3.08ERA

Edited by Chainsaw318, 26 May 2007 - 04:25 PM.

[Chainsaw318]

A nice blog piece on Gabbard by BP's Marc Normandin in their BP Unfiltered section. An excerpt:

I’m of the opinion that Gabbard can be a useful major league pitcher; maybe not as a starter, but he could fill the role of swingman and middle reliever effectively, given his ability to strike batters out and induce groundballs. He’s also left-handed, which automatically gives him chance after chance to succeed until he proves he cannot. Coming into the start, Gabbard seemed to have figured out his control problems from the year before, posting a 2.9 K/BB ratio, 8.1 K/9 and a .262 BABIP. His batted-ball data from the season is encouraging as well, as he continues to get hitters to hit grounders at or around 60% of the time. At three levels in 2006 (Portland, Pawtucket and Boston) Gabbard’s groundball rates were 61.1%, 62.8%, and 57.7%, respectively. His home runs have also risen at each level, but he has managed to stop allowing as many baserunners in 2007, which negates some of that.

and one other nice note:

One thing I’ve noticed about Gabbard is that he goes through stretches where no one can touch him, but will occasionally slip; those are usually the innings where he’ll give up a walk and a homer, and it’s probably what keeps him from securing a job in the majors just yet. Then there’s the other side of that, like the fourth inning against the Skychiefs. The inning couldn’t have lasted more than two minutes, and Gabbard probably threw 1, maybe 2 balls the whole inning. Overall, he pitched a solid game, another dose of encouragement after his spot-start in Boston last week.

Well written, informative, backed by both clear #'s and observation, and complimentary of KG. An exemplary blog entry.

[The Gray Eagle]

I agree with Normandin that Gabbard looks like a future major league reliever. He's got a nice curve and gets both Ks and grounders. He seems to do well the first time through the lineup, then seems to lose it.

I wonder if Okerjeemer could teach him the okey-doke pitch. If he could throw some sort of alternative changeup like that, even one that's just decent and not nearly as good as Okaji's, that'd be a really nice addition to his arsenal.

[Chainsaw318]

A belated post on Gabbard's 5/30 outing against Columbus:

5.1 IP, 4R, 4H, 4BB, 4K's, 1 HRA

95 Pitches, 52 for Strikes.

Commentary on the outing from PawSox manager Ron Johnson, via Sox on Deck. Cuzzittt's gamethread post quoted the first part of the same article:

“We’ve seen it in baseball before,” said manager Ron Johnson. “He just got out of rhythm and had a tough time repeating (his delivery). His curveball and changeup were really outstanding pitches for him tonight. He got a little bit off with the command of the fastball. But, all in all, 5 1/3 innings, four hits, four runs. Then he walked those guys and there was that bloop down the right field line.”

“You can’t really look at that and say he struggled. He punched out four. And through 3 2/3 and two strikes, he was rolling. Then he hit a little snag and regrouped a little bit. The maturity in him took him into the sixth inning.”

Gabbard then served up a solo home run to Restovitch that gave Columbus a 4-1 lead, at which time his pitch count hit 95 and Johnson went to his bullpen.

Gabbard is scheduled to start one of the games of Pawtucket's twinbill today, 6/4, so another update probably this evening.
EDIT: Gabbard did not start the 2nd game, as it was worked by the bullpen. I believed Cuzzittt, and he burned me again.


YTD (includes both PAW and MLB):

55.0 IP, 48H's, 21ER, 8HRA, 51/19 K/BB, 3.44ERA

Edited by Chainsaw318, 05 June 2007 - 10:21 AM.

[Chainsaw318]

I agree with Normandin that Gabbard looks like a future major league reliever. He's got a nice curve and gets both Ks and grounders. He seems to do well the first time through the lineup, then seems to lose it.

I wonder if Okerjeemer could teach him the okey-doke pitch. If he could throw some sort of alternative changeup like that, even one that's just decent and not nearly as good as Okaji's, that'd be a really nice addition to his arsenal.

A fair evaluation much in line with my own, Gray Eagle. Gabbard's a guy who could go multiple innings, get's grounders and K's and thus far this season, at least, has shown an ability to get both lefties and righties out (.225 BAA for lefities vs. .227 for righthanders).

The caveat is if Gabbard is to stay in the Red Sox organization, then he is probably a future reliever on the big club. He's looked decent enough to crack an MLB rotation on other teams, but probably not here. What he's done has shown himself to be a nice organizational asset: good, but not essential to the future success of the big league club, and likely to have value to another team in trade.

[Chainsaw318]

6/4 @ Richmond

Gabbard gets the win to improve to 5-2.

7.0 IP, 8H, 2ER, 2BB, 5K, 1HRA

97 Pitches, 64 Strikes. 66%

Of the 21 outs, 10 Groundouts, including one that was turned over for a DP.
Of the 8 hits, 6 are listed in the game log as ground balls, all for singles, whilst the 2 XBH's were a line-drive 2B and the Solo Home Run.
2 of the hits are listed as singles to the 2nd Baseman, Rogers, so it would appear that Gabbard was inducing grounders all over the place.


YTD (includes both PAW and MLB):

62.0 IP, 56H's, 23ER, 9HRA, 56/21 K/BB, 3.34ERA, 1.24 WHIP

[Chainsaw318]

6/10 vs. Ottawa

6.0IP, 5H, 2ER, 0BB, 5K, 1HRA, WP

99 Pitches, 63 strikes, 63%

Outs: 9 GO's, 4 FO's, 5K's



From the ProJo story:

Of the 25 earned runs Gabbard has allowed this season, 17 of them have come off the long ball. He's allowed seven two-run homers and three solo shots.

Commentary:

It's up for debate how troubling the HR rate is, as Gabbard projects to 30HRA's for 180IP this season, which is 2006 Beckett-esque, and I think I saw in a discussion on SoxProspects that the HR's put Gabbard's Fielding-Independent ERA up over 4.00. It's that he's walking so few and giving up few other hits makes the damage minimal, which I guess is a good thing.

It may just be an off-shoot of how he has to pitch to be successful: he's got decent, but not overpowering stuff, so he's working around the strike zone, and when he leaves one in the middle of the plate, it's gonna get hit hard. That he's giving up about 1 HR per start and still being so successful may just be testament to how well he is commanding his stuff this year, but it also indicates that if his command is a little off, he may get beat up.



YTD (Including PAW and BOS):

68.0 IP, 61H's, 25ER, 10HRA, 61/21 K/BB, 3.31ERA, 1.21 WHIP

[January]

What I recall from his one big-club start was that he seemed to lack endurance. He had 100 pitches and 5+2 innings, and he just looked dead at the end, with a fair number of balls hitting the dirt near the end. He seemed to have good mental discipline though; he's probably a good reliever/mid-range starter, although I think he could possible ace levels as a location pitcher if he was driven enough and could get his strength up.

[Chainsaw318]

6/16 vs. Richmond

6.0 IP, 6H, 2ER, 3BB, 4K's.

94 Pitches, 56 Strikes. 9 Ground Outs/ 5 Fly Outs.


YTD (Including PAW and BOS):

74.0 IP, 67H's, 27ER, 10HRA, 65/24 K/BB, 3.28ERA, 1.23 WHIP

Edited by Chainsaw318, 20 June 2007 - 06:30 PM.

[Chainsaw318]

6/21 @ Indy

6.0 IP, 5H, 2ER, 6K's, 2BB.
1 WP, 2 HBP

74 Pitches, 48 Strikes. 11 Ground Outs/ 1 Fly Outs.


Gabbard only threw 74 pitches, and would be on turn to start a game on Tuesday, so he may have been pulled early to keep him in the running to make the start for the major league club in SEA on Tuesday.

It's impossible to argue that Gabbard hasn't consistently given his team a chance to win. His last 11 starts, including the one against the Braves in Boston, he hasn't given up more than 4 ER's in any start. Over that period, his ERA is a flat 3.00, and he's posted a 58/21 K/BB mark, with is a 2.75/1 ratio.

The downside is that his average IP/start is still below 6, sitting at a little over 5 2/3, and that he has allowed those 10 HR's on the season, although none in the last 2 starts, and his GB/FB rate is really very solid.



YTD (Including PAW and BOS):

80.0 IP, 72H's, 29ER, 10HRA, 71/26 K/BB, 3.26ERA

[Chainsaw318]

The Boston Globes' Extra Bases Blog, is confirming that Gabbard will be called up to be the starter Tuesday, 6/26 in Seattle, and that Gabbard will most likely get 2-3 starts in Schilling's spot in the rotation.

[Chainsaw318]

I attempted to black out Gabbard's horror-show start against SEA, but dutifully here it is:

6/26 @ SEA

3.1 IP, 6H, 4ER, 6BB's, 2K's, 1HRA.

82 Pitches, 39 Strikes. 7 GO's/2FO's.

In type, a few days later, it doesn't look quite as bad. Anecdotally, it was bad, real bad. Gabbard had no command and SEA took walks and then teed off on him. He get's the start vs. TEX in Boston tonight, 7/2.

[Chainsaw318]

A better outing against TEX:

7/2 vs. TEX


5.2IP, 3H, 3ER, 4BB, 5K's, 1 HRA.

100 Pitches, 53 Strikes. 5 Groundout/6 Flyouts.

Gabbard actually went 4.1IP without giving up a hit. Unfortunately, with a runner on via the walk, he gave up a single, then a 3-run HR to Brad Wilkerson. The Walks are still way too high, and he wasn't getting the consistent groundouts that he had shown a tendency toward in the MiL thus far this year. A serviceable outing to be sure.


MLB #'s this season:

3 Starts. 2-0 W-L.
14.0 IP, 15H, 9ER, 2 HRA, 14/11 K/BB
5.79ERA, 1.86 WHIP, .278BAA

[Chainsaw318]

I have been extremely lacking in my prospect-updating duties. I've been busy. Sue me. I'll update K-Son's last 2 starts.


7/7 @ DET
6.1 IP, 3H, 2ER, 2BB, 3K's, 1 HRA.

94 Pitches, 54 Strikes. 7 Groundout/9 Flyouts.

Gabbard pitched well. This was the 13-inning game which the team eventually lost.


7/16 KC
9.0 IP, 3H, 0ER, 1BB, 8K's, 2HBP.

107 Pitches, 71 Strikes. 15 Groundouts/4 Flyouts

This start, of course has everyone talking. Attending the game, you could see why Gabbard could be a successful big-league pitcher. He keeps the ball down, has two good breaking pitches (curveball, change) and can locate the fastball. He had a few instances (both HBP's) where his shoulder seemed to fly open some, and the ball got away. This has looked like his bugaboo going back to the wretched SEA start. It was a hell of a fun game to be at.



MLB Totals 2007:

5 Starts. 3-0 W-L.
29.1 IP, 21H, 11ER, 2 HRA, 25/14 K/BB
3.38ERA, 1.19 WHIP, .206BAA
3HBP, 5 GDP's, 40/24 Groundouts/Flyouts


Gabbard has really pitched very close to his mL performance this season in the bigs. The superb outing of the other night really does a lot to balance out the nightmare SEA outing, where he could just not find the plate. He walked 6 and only K'd 2 in that outing, otherwise his K/BB would be 23/8, which is along the lines of the close to 3:1 ratio he had this year at PAW (64/25). He looks like he can be a servicable starter if he can keep the walks down.

[Chainsaw318]

Well, I had been extremely slow in updating Kason's last two starts, but the point is moot.

Kason Gabbard was part of the deal to bring RP Eric Gagne to the Red Sox from the Texas Rangers today.
Link

Gabbard pitched himself onto the MLB roster and did well enough to merit keeping a starting spot. Although he may not have had much of a future here in Boston as more than a #5 starter, he pitched very well when given an opportunity, made himself into a legitimate trade-chip, and may be the best starter on his new team's roster now.

Best of luck in Texas, lil' KG, you will most likely stymie the Red Sox for 6+ innings sometime this season or next.

As far as the organization goes, Gabbard's development and trading of him is a home run. Here is a 29th round pick that has been turned into a very useful set-up arm for the late part of the season, as well as possibly a sandwich round pick when Gagne leaves.

The Gabbard's of the world are, in large part what makes player development worthwhile. Take a low-risk, long-shot investment, and make something of it.



This. Thread. Is. Closed.

[kneemoe]

2009
After the Rangers' 2009 spring training camp, Gabbard was sent outright to the Triple-A Oklahoma RedHawks. ^[5]

On April 23, 2009, the Red Sox re-acquired Gabbard from the Rangers for cash considerations. They assigned him to the Pawtucket Red Sox.^[6]

As of July 27, Gabbard is on a rehab assignment in the Red Sox farm system, currently pitching for the single-A affiliate Lowell Spinners.^[7]


--Straight from wikipedia's entry on Kason.--


Kason pitched here in Troy the other night (7/28) I didn't make it to the game, but a co-worker did - and from everything I've heard he was less than impressive.

PlayerIP H R ER BB SO HR ERA
Gabbard (L, 0-1)4.1 6 5 5 3 2 0 5.23

Edited by kneemoe, 30 July 2009 - 08:16 AM.

[shepard50]

Gabbard continues to struggle...I know it's a depth signing but I can't wonder if this isn't a waste of a roster spot:

Sea Dogs numbers thus far in 2009:

Wins 0
Losses 3
ERA 19.64
IP: 7.1
Hits:14
BB:14
SO: 6
BAA: 400

[Cuzittt]

Gabbard continues to struggle...I know it's a depth signing but I can't wonder if this isn't a waste of a roster spot:

In all seriousness... the Sea Dogs are running Ryne Lawson (3-10, 6.47 ERA, 18 Starts) every turn. The Pawsox are running Kris Johnson (3-12, 6.10 ERA, 20 Starts) every turn. Both have utilized relievers (Blake Maxwell, Randor Bierd, Billy Traber) as starters to cover for a lack of starters.

Gabbard isn't going to help this year. He might not help next year. But... he isn't holding anyone back... and therefore, he isn't a waste of a roster spot.

[shepard50]

In all seriousness... the Sea Dogs are running Ryne Lawson (3-10, 6.47 ERA, 18 Starts) every turn. The Pawsox are running Kris Johnson (3-12, 6.10 ERA, 20 Starts) every turn. Both have utilized relievers (Blake Maxwell, Randor Bierd, Billy Traber) as starters to cover for a lack of starters.

Gabbard isn't going to help this year. He might not help next year. But... he isn't holding anyone back... and therefore, he isn't a waste of a roster spot.

Sorry Cuzittt, I clearly am missing this (I made the same point about Hansack in the spring), and I don't mean to be a distracting ass with my ignorance. Obviously , I am mis-estimating the amount of younger/higher upside pitchers available. I can see that our organizational depth is hurting at several positions (SP, MI) due to injury and several recent releases. I have always been under the impression that the was more wealth than dearth of AA/AAA pitching fodder this time of year, but I guess that is not the case.

[Lose Remerswaal]

3.0 Innings, 8 hits, 9 runs (all earned) 7 walks, 1 K yesterday vs Reading.

It ain't good!

[SonsOfCharlieZink]

"Waste" in the sense that the organization can't do better? Lots of frustrating minor league pitchers this year. Gabbard and Zink not the least.

[Lose Remerswaal]

It's hard to get rid of some of these guys

In all the excitement about Castro (no Fabio jokes yet?), we seem to have overlooked this

In any event, Kason Gabbard and his mixed-up career path will continue with the Red Sox organization in 2010. He has apparently signed a minor-league contract with the team, giving the former Boston prospect a chance to make it back to Fenway Park

[Terras]

http://www.cylive.co...t_Kason_Gabbard

Kudos to Gabbard for not running from a very large Richie Sexson. I'd like to think that had Sexson not pulled a Youkilis with the helmet, Kason would have leveled him. I hope he gets in a game against the Rays.