Cowart should also pitch

[Hubs]

Since the Angels are trying to revolutionize roster construction with Ohtani, I think they should allow Cowart to try working as a pitcher. He had a good fastball and may have already been a major league relief pitcher had he gone that way after he was drafted.

It's a longshot that he'll be a star third baseman, though I suppose he could Justin Turner us, eventually. And he is young, but reinventing himself as a hybrid RP/Util guy would be an interesting thought.

Also, I'm bored waiting for spring, so I just threw this at the wall hoping to get some discussion.

[Chuck]

5 minutes ago, Hubs said:

Since the Angels are trying to revolutionize roster construction with Ohtani, I think they should allow Cowart to try working as a pitcher. He had a good fastball and may have already been a major league relief pitcher had he gone that way after he was drafted.

It's a longshot that he'll be a star third baseman, though I suppose he could Justin Turner us, eventually. And he is young, but reinventing himself as a hybrid RP/Util guy would be an interesting thought.

Also, I'm bored waiting for spring, so I just threw this at the wall hoping to get some discussion.

You do bring up a good point.

What would it hurt, right?

It would be awesome if he could pitch as well as he did when in HS, then be our utility player as well. He can play 1B, 2B, SS, 3B and a corner outfield spot, why not pitch too?

[Angelsfan1984]

5 minutes ago, Chuckster70 said:

You do bring up a good point.

What would it hurt, right?

It would be awesome if he could pitch as well as he did when in HS, then be our utility player as well. He can play 1B, 2B, SS, 3B and a corner outfield spot, why not pitch too?

Tommy John incoming....

[Hubs]

From the OC Register in 2010: https://www.ocregister.com/2010/06/07/kaleb-cowart-is-your-new-favorite-angel/

Pitching Scouting Report

Fastball: Cowart has an outstanding fastball, 91-94 mph and touching 95 mph at times.

Fastball movement: It has plus movement, with a lot of sink and bore.

Slider: It’s raw and inconsistent. He’ll show an average one from time to time.

Changeup: He’ll show it, 80-81 mph, though he really doesn’t need it at this level.

Control: He commands his fastball well. Because of his athleticism, he repeats his delivery and is around the plate. His breaking ball lacks consistency.

Poise: He’s solid on the mound, a good competitor.

Physical Description: Cowart has a similar delivery to Jake Peavy.

[totdprods]

I actually think this is a great idea.

[Hubs]

But they didn't exactly get his hitting scouting report right:

Hitting ability: Cowart is a switch-hitter but can be fooled by breaking balls when batting left-handed. (TRUE)

Power: He has power potential from both sides but currently displays more power from the right side.  (TRUE)

Running speed: He has below-average speed. (UH, what?)

Base running: While he’s an okay athlete, running is not a part of his game. (Again, uh, what?)

Arm strength: He has more than enough arm to play anywhere on the infield. (YEP)

Fielding: His hands are fine, but, in all likelihood, he will have to move to third base. (YEP)

Range: He lacks the range to play short, but should be fine at a corner. (compared to Simmons he lacks range, compared to Valbuena, he's a stud at 3rd)

Physical Description: Cowart has drawn comparisons to Chipper Jones, because he’s a switch-hitting third-base type in Georgia. J.J. Hardy, in terms snapfishcouponsnow.net of body type, is another comparison made.

Medical Update: Healthy.

Strengths: Power potential, plenty of arm from the infield.

Weaknesses: He’s not hit well from the left side of the plate. He won’t be able to stay at shortstop, so you have to believe in the bat to see him at a corner spot.

[jasonarita51]

I love Cowart as our UT guy this year. As mentioned above, he can play all the infield spots and even a corner outfield spot too. He has great defensive skills along with enough speed to fill in as a pinch runner and swipe a bag. I think the hitting will come along in time. He has shown flashes of how good he can be. Having him start training to pitch an inning or two could potentially work wonders. If successful we could literally kill two birds with one stone. That being adding another reliever and not having to sacrifice another player's roster spot to do so. However, I don't know if Cowart would want to pitch. He has always put emphasis on wanting to be a hitter and NOT a pitcher. But who knows, maybe he would be open to doing both. Having one two way player is already great, imagine having two! Ah the possibilities

[Hubs]

Cowart's hitting may eventually come around a la Mike Moustakas. https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/moustmi01.shtml

or as I said before, Justin Turner.... https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/turneju01.shtml

But unless he puts up Turner numbers, it would be valuable to have another pen arm, even one with just one pitch, with movement, in Cowart.

 

[Second Base]

Right now, Cowart is in a decent position. Kinsler is the starting 2B, but if he shows his age, Cowart could step in. Same with 3B. Basically, if Kaleb hits, he's going to play.

But if he starts throwing on the side....something could come of it. Why not?

And at the same time, this is likely his last year he'll have an opportunity to hit and possibly contribute at the major league level. If it doesn't happen this year, we can expect him to be on the mound in the minor leagues with a different organization next year.

[Chris]

It would be cool to have (2)  2 way players.

[Ace-Of-Diamonds]

3 hours ago, Hubs said:

Also, I'm bored waiting for spring, so I just threw this at the wall hoping to get some discussion.

Last September I remember Angelwin members complaining that the season is too long. I said you say that now but come January people will be desperate for spring training. I was flamed for it.

I for one wish it base baseball season right now.

[Rico]

Someone teach Cron the knuckleball. 

[T.G.]

It would be cool if Cowart and Ohtani could both play both ways.  Imagine the in game match-ups... Ohtani pitching to left handed hitters and Cowart pitching to right handers and each playing the field while the other pitches.  Heck, let's have Trout pitch too.  haha

[Hubs]

1 hour ago, True Grich said:

It would be cool if Cowart and Ohtani could both play both ways.  Imagine the in game match-ups... Ohtani pitching to left handed hitters and Cowart pitching to right handers and each playing the field while the other pitches.  Heck, let's have Trout pitch too.  haha

I see Cowart being an effective bullpen arm, not a starter. He has a great arm, and in High School, had a great fastball with movement. Would it be so bad if our utility infielder could also pitch the 7th inning on occasion?

[Chris]

if our rotation member can also DH...why not?

[Billy_Ball]

[Fish Oil]

 

Particularly if Ohtani is successful, I could see this becoming a trend across baseball.

[ten ocho recon scout]

Why did he switch to playing the field?

[Erstad Grit]

Why couldn't a former high school pitcher suddenly perform in the MLB level?  

[Second Base]

10 minutes ago, ten ocho recon scout said:

Why did he switch to playing the field?

He did both in high school and was a strong commit to Georgia Tech (I think it was GT). They said he'd play both ways. Pretty much every major league team wanted to draft him as a pitcher but he told teams that if they've drafted him to pitch, he'd go to college instead.

The Angels liked his frame and athleticism enough to draft him as a 3B. Just before his breakout, he was considering moving back to Arizona to train on the mound and returning to Inland Empire the following season as a pitcher. But something clicked for him at the plate and so he chose to stay in the infield. 

He really is doing pretty solid work in AAA and is only 25, going on 26. So he could turn that corner this year, or he could just be a AAAA player.

[ten ocho recon scout]

Yeah, i thought i remember hearing he wasnt doing as well with the bat, and was thinking of trying pitching again a few years back.

I have no clue if he could make it as a pitcher or not. But if there was a decent chance he could, i think it would be better for him...so far, he hasnt looked like a guy whos gonna last as a hitter. At least as a reliever, there would be a constant market year in year out.

[Second Base]

2 minutes ago, ten ocho recon scout said:

Yeah, i thought i remember hearing he wasnt doing as well with the bat, and was thinking of trying pitching again a few years back.

I have no clue if he could make it as a pitcher or not. But if there was a decent chance he could, i think it would be better for him...so far, he hasnt looked like a guy whos gonna last as a hitter. At least as a reliever, there would be a constant market year in year out.

I think even if he pitches, he'd basically lose a year of development. Most guys that move from the field to the mound don't throw 95 off the bat. Cowart could probably throw 90 right now, but if he spends a year training as a pitcher, he could probably jump up into the mid-90's. 

But let's say it just doesn't work for him next year at age 26. He'd spend 27 relearning how to pitch, 28 in the minors and hopefully return the majors around age 29 or 30. That's quite a commitment for an uncertain payout, so I don't anticipate Cowart doing it unless he has no hope or returning to majors.

[totdprods]

You've got guys like Gose, Eibner, and Bethancourt trying to add pitching into their skill set now and they, like Cowart, haven't really pitched in years. 

If you can find a way to get a bench player to add relief depth onto his tool belt it's a great add. 

[Docwaukee]

I want Cowart to be that guy who comes to spring and everyone is talking about how he changed his swing to hit more fly balls.  

[Hubs]

Scotty is assuming he can't throw 94 right now. I wouldn't be so sure. To be clear I said "also pitch" not switch to be a reliever.

It's not a traditional approach, so I would expect him to do anything but try in Spring, maybe a little in AAA in his last option year.

And if it doesn't work, he can remain a mediocre hitter and hope for an improvement with the bat.