Ruben Amaro Jr. and the Phillies added another interesting storyline for us to watch for down the stretch this season when they added right-handed reliever Phillippe Aumont to the big league club for the first time in his career. Aumont was the crown jewel of the Cliff Lee trade that Amaro made to restock his bare cupboard back in 2009.
By all accounts he has some serious stuff, with a fastball that tops out in the high 90s and a curveball to counter it with. His problem is with his command, which he struggles with at times. This causes him to blow up every now and then between really impressive stretches where he looks unhittable.
>>Phillies call up flame-throwing RHP Aumont [CSN]
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Here's what our Pharm Watch by James M. said about Aumont in March and May:
March 19: Phillippe Aumont, RHP - Aumont was
considered the prize of the Cliff Lee deal, and that is probably still
the case. The Phillies moved him to the starting rotation in 2010 for a
number of reasons. Starters are generally more valuable than relievers,
and because of health issues, Aumont had not thrown a lot of innings
after being drafted in the first round in 2007. The Phillies wanted to
get him innings and give him a chance to work on his secondary pitches.
The results on the stat sheet were not pretty, but when they moved him
back to the bullpen in 2011, he seemed to make great strides. His bread
and butter, as you may have seen in spring training,
is a mid 90s fastball with very heavy sink. It looks like a 2 seam
fastball due to its horizontal movement. He also features a very hard
curveball with solid life and break. He has been working on a
splitter/changeup hybrid pitch, and when he finishes the pitch, its a
true swing and miss offering that will help him against lefties.
However, he doesn't fully trust the pitch yet and will need to work on
it more this season. He probably has an outside shot to make the bullpen
out of ST, but like Mike Stutes last year, he will probably head to AAA
at the beginning of the season and be one of the first guys to get
called up.
May 7: Phillippe Aumont, RHP, had a
very nice 2011, posting excellent numbers at AA and holding his own
during his brief AAA stint. His command and control have abandoned him
in the early going, as he's posted a 6.00 in just 9 IP, walking 12 and
striking out 15. In the past, Aumont has struggled to repeat his
delivery, and it seems it is only consistency holding him back. He
should be fine.