Cuban Starter Odrisamer Despaigne Getting Call for Padres
By Jason Mast
Jun 7, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Baseball sit on the pitchers mound before the game between the Detroit Tigers and the Boston Red Sox at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
In the wake of the firing of GM Josh Byrnes, the San Diego Padres have made a relatively minor transaction, promoting Cuban right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne to the major leagues, according to MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes.
Despaigne, 27, defected from Cuba to Spain last year and signed with the Padres on May 2nd. His bonus was worth a reported 1 million dollars and he immediately began working for San Antonia, San Diego’s Double-A Affiliate. After just two starts and 7.2 innings, the Padres called the right-hander up to Triple-A El Paso.
The promotion, though, comes at an odd time for Despaigne. The Cuban import has been rocked since his move to EL Paso. Over five starts, he is 1-3 with a 7.61 ERA and WHIP of 2.07. In just 23.2 innings, he has surrendered 36 hits and three home runs , for a H/9 that 13.7 and a HR/9 of 1.1. And he wasn’t trending particularly upward in his last couple of outing. Despaigne’s most recent start was mediocre as he allowed three runs over five, and his previous one was dreadful; he left after four innings, 11 hits, and six earned runs.
That being said, as was the case in his those two outings, where he struck out a combined 13 and walked just two, his peripherals have been solid. He owns a K/9 of 11.0 in Triple-A, although he’s been wild at times, with a 4.9 BB/9.
That high strikeout rate, while encouraging, is uncharacteristic for Despaigne, who owned a 6.8 K/9 over his entire Cuban career. He simply has never had a swing and miss stuff. According to an international scouting official who spoke with Dierkes in March, Despaignes’ pitches as “average” across the board. The official went on to say that he works primarily off of deception, mixing in four different pitches from a variety of angles and arm slots. The question is whether that deception will translate in the majors, and if so, for how long.
Now in the major leagues, Despaigne will fill in for the Padres’ oft-injured ace Andrew Cashner, who his scheduled start against the Giants on Monday and Despaigne. Cashner has not experienced any injury,Matt Snyder of CBS Sports writes” href=”http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/eye-on-baseball/24594892/padres-scratch-andrew-cashner-from-mondays-scheduled-start”> Matt Snyder of CBS Sports writes; San Diego is simply being cautious with their oft-injured ace.