[stevenash]

HAMBURGER ALERT:
Roenis Elias

Seattle Mariners start a left handed career minor leaguer (Roenis Elias) that has never pitched in an AAA game in his life, no less a MLB game.

So, I do what I usually do, put on my research cap, and start investigating.

My conclusion:
This is the best Seattle has?
His across the board minor league numbers are I wouldn't say brutal, but you can see brutal from there.
They aren't very good.

3 years in the bush leagues overall 1.27 WH/IP and an ERA of 3.62 just isn't getting it done.
How is this guy getting a start in the show?

Last season in the Southern (AA) league, where pitching usually outshines hitting, Elias posted a 6 win, 11 loss season with a 1.25 WH/IP and a 3.18 ERA, mediocre at very best and that's a stretch.

OK, I had to go to the Brooks site to get the skinny on his arsenal, this is what Brooks has to say.

Roenis Elias has thrown 111 pitches that have been tracked by the PITCHf/x system in 2014, all of them occuring in Spring Training. In 2014, he has relied primarily on his Fourseam Fastball (92mph) and Curve (79mph), also mixing in aChange (85mph) and Sinker (92mph).

Know what they do in the show to 92 mph four seamers? They crush it.

He faces Oakland tonight, and the meat of that order Cespedes, Donaldson had their way with ordinary LHP's last season, the two of them each hit 11 homers off of lefties last season, Cespedes v. LHP last season 45-161 .280/.350/.516, and Donaldson an eye popping 59-176 .320/.409/.580

The line is a very reasonable Oakland, at home, -129, and even though Oakland starts Chavez (who will never see a Cy Young award himself) this has to be the softest spot he'll ever find himself in.

I am not making this a play, I probably won't, I may, but I usually stay away from these types, but Oakland, with the (on paper) better starter, and the way the middle of their order treats lefties, should bludgeon this hamburger, on paper anyway.

I'll watch the line movement, it's sitting at -129 now, you can get 7.5 -105 on the over too at 5D, I may go that way too, or not.

Just putting it out there for all of you.