KYLE BLOOM

2/21/83; '04 5th; Illinois State Univ.
R/L; 6-4, 185

Level	W-L-Sv	G	GS	IP	H	HR	BB	K	BB/9	K/9	WHIP	OAVG	ERA
2004 NCAA	6-6-0	13	13	75.0	68	6	33	85	3.96	10.20	1.35		4.80
2004 A-	4-3-0	12	12	45.0	34	2	13	46	2.60	9.20	1.04	.209	2.60
2005 A+	3-5-0	12	12	63.0	61	12	43	34	6.14	4.86	1.65	.255	5.86
2005 A	4-1-0	12	12	62.2	38	3	33	58	4.74	8.33	1.13	.176	1.87
2006 A+	7-8-0	25	25	127.2	122	15	61	108	4.30	7.61	1.43	.261	4.30
2007 AA	1-1-0	2	2	10.0	5	1	6	10	5.40	9.00	1.10	.147	0.90
2007 A+	9-12-0	25	25	129.0	144	14	57	90	3.98	6.28	1.56	.282	5.51
2008 AA	5-8-0	28	22	109.2	103	9	55	93	4.51	7.63	1.44	.244	4.19

At the time he was drafted, Bloom was regarded as having three good pitches, but as having difficulty getting them to work well.  At his best, he throws a high-80s fastball on a downward plane, a good curve, and a solid change.  His inconsistency resulted in a mediocre college record.  His initial results as a pro were excellent, as Bloom put up very strong numbers at Williamsport, then continued to do so in the first half of 2005 at Hickory.  Opponents batted only .176 against him in the SAL, but the warning sign was shaky control.  In fact, he had enough trouble throwing strikes that he frequently had to come out of games early due to high pitch counts.  This partly accounts for him having no-decisions in most of his starts despite allowing very few runs.  After a mid-season promotion to Lynchburg, Bloom could not throw strikes and his K rate also plummeted.

Back at Lynchburg in 2006, Bloom showed improvement, but not enough, as control problems again troubled him and high pitch counts helped limit him to five innings per start.  He's a flyball pitcher, with a 0.68 ground out to fly out ratio in 2006 and 0.81 in 2007, and he had some trouble with gopher balls, allowing 15 in both years.  The one time I saw him, he tended to leave his curve up a lot.  In 2007 his performance went downhill, as he got hit harder and his K rate dropped.  He had a huge platoon split, with an opponents' OPS of roughly .900 against RH batters and well under .600 against LH batters.  Like Todd Redmond, Bloom pitched much better in a couple of fill-in starts in AA.  He was eligible for the Rule 5 draft for the first time, but didn't get selected.

The Pirates planned to have Bloom pitch in relief at Altoona in 2008, but he moved to the rotation when they traded Redmond.  He started off poorly and was briefly sent to the bullpen.  Some time in May, however, he started to turn things around and he was the Curve's best pitcher over the last three months.  In his last 16 outings, he posted a 3.25 ERA, with 62 hits, 30 walks and 60 Ks in 74.2 IP.  He had only a mild platoon split, allowing RH hitters to bat .252 and LH .219, so he may have the ability to be more than a LOOGY.  He's a flyball pitcher but did not have much trouble with HRs in 2008.  The Pirates sent Bloom to the Hawaii Winter League and he dominated there, although he was facing mostly younger hitters.  They did not add him to the 40-man roster, probably in a gamble based on his mostly shaky track record.  The gamble succeeded as the Tigers selected him but returned him to the Pirates late in spring training.  It'd be nice to see him get a shot at Indianapolis, but the Indians' rotation will be loaded with veterans and younger prospects at least early in the season.  He was set to start the season in extended spring training to get stretched out, because Detroit had him pitching in relief.  Once he's ready, he'll join the Altoona rotation.

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