Tom Koehler, SP

[THE_REAL_MIBS]

Full Name: Thomas R. Koehler
Born: 06/29/1986
Birthplace: Bronx, NY
College: SUNY Stony Brook
Height: 6' 3"
Weight: 235
Bats: R
Throws: R


Selected by the Florida Marlins in the 18th round of the 2008 First-Year Player Draft.

[emkayseven]

Promoted to Jupiter: http://www.news-record.com/content/2...oc_for_hoppers

[Ralph]

7ip 5h or obb 6K

I really like this guy. I think he'll be a heck of a reliever even though I think he can be a solid starter as well.

[fishy]

7ip 5h or obb 6K

I really like this guy. I think he'll be a heck of a reliever even though I think he can be a solid starter as well.

I have been to many Suns Games
this guy never gives up and I wonder how hard he would throw as reliever

[fishy]

he is getting better each time

[fishy]

Another really good outing
watch this guy!

[Ralph]

5ip 2h 0r 2bb 7k 16-2 on the year with a 2.68 era. He was only at 72 pitches when they took him out so they are taking it easy on him.

[fishy]

when will get to show his stuff elsewhere move him up

[geemoney]

Koehler was the only player from AAA New Orleans selected to play in the AAA All-Star Game tonight.

[emkayseven]

Early last season, Tom Koehler appeared to be making a seamless transition from Double-A to Triple-A. After going 16-2 with a 2.61 ERA for Double-A Jacksonville and being selected the Southern League’s Most Outstanding Pitcher in 2010, Koehler kept the momentum going as he moved into the Zephyrs’ rotation in 2011.

After his first nine Triple-A starts, Koehler was 5-0 with a 2.92 ERA.

Then came a reality check.

Koehler went 0-6 in his next nine starts. In his five June starts, all losses, he compiled a 7.77 ERA.

“It was one of the things I had to experience,’’ Koehler said. “I learned a lot from that month.’’

But in the second half of last season, Koehler regained his winning form. After the All-Star break, Koehler went 7-1 with a 4.06 ERA to finish 12-7 with a 4.97 ERA.

This season Koehler, a 6-foot-3, 225-pound right-hander who turned 26 on June 29, has continued to improve. In 18 starts, he is 9-7 with a 3.54 ERA.

Ranking third in the Pacific Coast League in wins and fifth in ERA, Koehler made the PCL All-Star team, which will play the International League team in the Triple-A All-Star Game tonight in Buffalo, N.Y. MLB Network will televise the game, which starts at 6 p.m.

Koehler offered several explanations for his improvement this season.

“I’m trying not to do too much, staying within myself, trying to trust all my pitches, trying not to give (batters) too much credit,’’ he said.

Charlie Corbell, the Zephyrs’ veteran pitching coach, said that last season Koehler was experiencing natural growing pains for a young pitcher adjusting to Triple-A.

“He came off a real successful Double-A campaign and a championship in a league he commanded,’’ Corbell said. “There’s a huge change in level of hitters. …“We fight for success. It was a frustrating year for him. He had a stretch where he struggled to get out of the first inning. This year his command of the fastball has improved. That’s the key for him to be a major-league pitcher for a number of years.’’

“Any time you can command the fastball, it’ll make everything better.’’ Koehler said. “You can throw all your pitches off the fastball.’’

Koehler, who is from New Rochelle, N.Y., played college ball at Stony Brook, where he majored in history and sociology. “I had to have a plan if I wasn’t fortunate enough to play baseball,’’ said Koehler, who graduated in 2008.

The Marlins gave him an opportunity to make a living in baseball, drafting him in the 18th round that year. Koehler took advantage, progressing steadily through the system.

This season is the first in which Koehler is repeating a level of play. Of course, the next step up, to the majors, is the ultimate jump for any player.

Corbell said that he could tell in spring training that Koehler had worked hard during the offseason on ironing out kinks in his motion.

“There’s a lot of parts to it,’’ Koehler said. He said he has to make sure to “stay in line’’ — step toward the target when he throws.

Corbell said that Koehler has improved at directing the lower half of his body into his pitches.

Improving his changeup was another focus, Koehler said.

“I worked on my changeup a lot this offseason,’’ he said.

The changeup, which Koehler throws about six to eight times a game, “is the key to his game, in my opinion,’’ Corbell said.

“He made the commitment that he had to get better working back and forth (changing speeds). He’s got the makings of a good package as a major-league pitcher. It’s just a matter of refining it.’’

Koehler “has a big-league fastball,’’ which he typically throws at about 92 mph but can reach 95 mph, Corbell said. He called Koehler’s curveball “a plus curve with good depth and downward action.’’ A cutter and changeup complete a four-pitch repertoire.

Generally pitching ahead in the count has helped Koehler improve his strikeouts-to-walks ratio this season.
In 101 2/3 innings, he has struck out 96 batters and walked 41 — a ratio greater than 2-to-1. In 150 innings last season, he had 144 strikeouts and 79 walks — a ratio of about 1 1/2-to-1.

Zephyrs catcher Clint Sammons said that he can see the development in Koehler from last season.

“I think it’s sort of a maturation process,’’ Sammons said. “It’s a learning experience in this league. He seems to have matured from a pitching standpoint. He’s commanding his fastball better.’’

After last season, the Marlins put Koehler on their 40-man roster, a sign of progress for a minor-league player.

Becoming a Triple-A All-Star is another sign of progress.

“Tommy has made himself what he is,’’ Corbell said.

http://www.nola.com/zephyrs/index.ss...cher_to_1.html

[emkayseven]

After packing his things and thinking that his season was over, New Rochelle grad Tom Koehler was promoted from Triple-A New Orleans to the Miami Marlins on Sunday. He was one of only two players called up by the Marlins now that major-league rosters have expanded in September.

“I originally was told it wasn’t going to happen,” Koehler told the Miami Herald. “I got a little frustrated and threw away some of my cleats and stuff. This was probably a couple of days ago and I thought the season was over. And then they called me when I was on the bus back to New Orleans to let me know that it was happening. I was a hoarder, so I had plenty of stuff in my locker, luckily.”

The 26-year-old right-handed pitcher was the Double-A Southern League Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2010, prompting the Marlins organizational pitching coordinator Wayne Rosenthal to tell The Journal News that Koehler was “in the mix” to reach the big leagues in 2011. But the former Stony Brook University standout struggled in his first season pitching at the Triple-A level, putting Miami’s plans to call him up on hold. Now, thanks to a bounce-back season in 2012 in which he went 12-11 with a 4.17 ERA and 138 strikeouts in 151 innings pitched in Triple A, he earned the call-up.

He was in uniform for the Marlins’ 5-1 loss to the Mets on Sunday, but did not pitch.

“I’m going to assume I’m going to be in the pen with there being 13 starters right now,” Koehler told the Miami Herald. “But, whatever way they use me, I don’t care. It’s pitching regardless of whether it’s one inning or six.”

http://www.lohud.com/article/2012090...er-big-leagues

[emkayseven]

--RHP Tom Koehler is trying to get a leg up on the competition. He threw his first bullpen session the first week in January at the team's spring training complex in Jupiter, Fla. Koehler made six appearances for the Marlins after a September call-up, including one start. He finished 0-1 with a 5.40 ERA. Koehler will compete for a rotation spot in spring training.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports...,5061136.story

[Namaste]

I really like this guy. I think he'll be a heck of a reliever.

He would be one helluva reliever with the way he destroys the lineup the first time through.

[Jay]

Looking at him closely right now. I read an old article on pitch framing yesterday and he was mentioned as the most hurt in 2013 and that he had improved while being by Salty last year. When I looked at his 2015 catcher splits today, he was awful while being caught by Realmuto and got decent results while being caught by mathis and salty (once each). I think this is more of an issue with sample size than saying Realmuto can't catch him but it was interesting.

Now I'm looking at pitch data and like nothing is out of the ordinary in velocity, location, and movement. But when I got to pitch usage something stood out. So before 2014, it has him never throwing a sinker but in 2014 he threw one 12.84% of the time. I find it hard to believe that was all another pitch being wrongly classified as it's a pretty large amount. This season he's thrown it 2.92% of the time (once in his first start, 4 times in his last, 10 in his phillies start). That phillies start he gave up 3 runs but it was all on the home run to Utley. But it results in the question why isn't he throwing his sinker?

[nny]

First time through order: 2.85 R/9, 3.62 FIP, .644 OPS (135.2 ip)
Second time through order: 4.35 R/9, 4.34 FIP, .761 OPS (130.1 ip)
Third time through: 5.44 R/9, 4.80 FIP, .842 OPS (86 IP)

If he's not the one going to the bullpen when Henderson is back, I'm super disappointed. Shit, depending on how he does tonight, I'm not against him going there now and seeing what Nicolino or Urena can do. Probably doesn't really improve rotation, but at least improves bullpen.

(Note: IP estimate based off outs made because B-R only has opponent batter data. And, you can do a rough conversion of R/9 to ERA by multiplying R/9 by 0.97 [The difference in Koehler's career]).

- - - - - - - - - -

Now I'm looking at pitch data and like nothing is out of the ordinary in velocity, location, and movement. But when I got to pitch usage something stood out. So before 2014, it has him never throwing a sinker but in 2014 he threw one 12.84% of the time. I find it hard to believe that was all another pitch being wrongly classified as it's a pretty large amount. This season he's thrown it 2.92% of the time (once in his first start, 4 times in his last, 10 in his phillies start). That phillies start he gave up 3 runs but it was all on the home run to Utley. But it results in the question why isn't he throwing his sinker?

A pitching being classified different year-to-year actually isn't all that uncommon. I'm not sure which site you're looking at for the data, but as an example, Pitch F/X on Fangraphs has his curve listed as a knucle curve this year, even though it was a normal curve previously.

If that % just moved into a different fastball like a two seamer, that would explain it.