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Brendan Gawlowski Prospects Chat: 4/7/26
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Brendan Gawlowski
2:02
Hello everybody
2:03
Nice that we have some actual minor league games to go off of. I'm sure we'll all responsibly digest the first week without getting too excited and overreacting to oh who am I kidding
2:04
Housekeeping: Meg has been taking a much deserved few days off, which may complicate the publish dates, but my understanding is that Eric is very close to producing an A's list and I'm nearly there on Rangers. Look for those soon.
Let's get to it
Guest
2:04
It’s only 3 innings but apparently Landen Maroudis was back to 94-96 and throwing strikes. How much would that change his outlook to get back to his ‘24 self, top 100 type arm talent?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:04
I don't know about T100 but very encouraging first start, I was really worried for him. Couldn't throw strikes, stuff down, looked bad in 2025.
2:05
Just one outing but it wasn't just the strikes and velo that were back, he looked like he was moving freer, not quite as much effort in the delivery, had a better slider. Happy for him, let's see him do it a few more outings and get him up on The Board.
Ralphy V
2:06
Is there room for me? What do I need to show for a jump to AAA?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:06
Feeling better about guessing he'd debut in 2026, anyway.
JJ
2:07
Just dropping in to say I once got demolished in a tourney game by the Evans gambit and couldn't believe what was happening. Second, any latest looks on Ethan Salas this spring?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:07
It's remarkable how well that works... Nothing in person on Salas, looks like a tough start in AA though.
Guest
2:07
I was pretty surprised to see Johnny King be moved up to high A Vancouver especially with his control issues in low A last year. What’s that say about him?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:08
That his stuff was too good for Low-A and that the Jays think he can work on getting the ball over the plate more often at a higher level
2:09
Bigger surprise for me is that they often give overqualified arms a month in Low-A anyway simply because it isn't freezing there
Farhandrew Zaidman
2:11
Hi Brendan! I know this isn’t your specific area, but did you see Breslow’s word salad answer in his interview yesterday? Why is he incapable of saying “every team has a bad 10 game stretch and we’re better than our record”?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:11
I didn't but there's just not much to say right now, right? "We're playing like shit, we think we'll be fine" isn't all that interesting.
D5on
2:11
How do teams help players with their reactions to poor performance and other types of adversity in the game? Some guys obviously handle the struggles better than others. I was wondering if there are modern approaches (like mindfulness or learning to shift ways of thinking) that have made their way into the game.
Brendan Gawlowski
2:12
can't speak for everybody, but lots of teams have mental skills coaches to help deal with this kind of thing
2:13
There are also "traditional" coaches who dive into psychology and try to offer the best of both worlds.
Scott Elarton with the Pirates was fascinating to talk with
The Fallen
2:14
Hi! Curious about Brice Matthews, a guy who has fallen on most lists and now has at least a platoon chance in Houston. Any hope he can still be an everyday guy?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:14
There's a chance, sure. He's... not close to it right now.
BUC'IN AROUND
2:14
Pirates are shifting into "win now" mode which is very exciting. Which of our prospects is most likely to be moved at the deadline? The offseason? And do you think they'll have the courage to ship Seth Hernandez off for an extreme win now package?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:15
The arms, but probably not that arm
Jonny
2:15
Hearing any buzz on Dylan Jordan after his 1st start with increased velocity?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:16
I saw him at the Breakout and saw the data from the first, encouraging, let's see if he can hold that velo over the long haul.
AT
2:17
Also, E. Willits.  Chances he follows a path similar-ish to Griffin and ends up a top, I dunno, 3 prospect next year?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:17
Think the more likely path -- not in his specific tools, but in the timeline and overall nature of his talent -- is closer to Emerson's.
Jonathan
2:18
Pretend your personal generative AI has discovered a very strong chess gambit that no one knows about except you. It will always fail against precise, master-level play but is exciting to use, ruthless against even slightly imperfect moves, and always generates fascinating positions. Would you commit to using it 100% of the time when playing that color?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:18
I'd feel bad if it was an AI discovered move but I like playing a variety of things anyway
This may be related to why I've plateaued
Yuniesky Betancourt
2:18
A few weeks ago you mentioned "bat manipulation" being widespread in the college game and that it made scouting college stat lines more difficult. Can you give a bit of detail as to what that entails?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:19
Baseball America has written about this a fair bit, I'll link to just one piece on the subject I found interesting.
2:20
There are a couple things going on... The first is that there's a range of performance capabilities among all the legal bats, even within BBCOR standards
But there are also ways to alter bats
2:21
Between that, a juiced ball, and huge differences in competition level among the major conferences, I've just become really skeptical of college performance
mike
2:21
Could Roden play first for the Twins? He can't be as bad as Clemens......(ok, he can, but at least there is upside)
Brendan Gawlowski
2:21
I don't think you want his bat at first
Dale
2:22
What makes the Brewers farm system as good as it is?
Brendan Gawlowski
2:23
A lot of things. Their amateur departments, particularly international, are very strong. They develop well. They get wild pitchers to throw strikes, which is very hard to do.
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