JEFF SUES

6/8/83; '05 5th; Vanderbilt Univ.
R/R; 6-4,220

Level

W-L-Sv

BB/9

K/9

WHIP

OAVG

ERA

2005 NCAA

3-5-1

48.1

4.5

11.7

1.41

4.10

2005-06 DNP

2007 A

3-2-0

31.1

5.5

7.5

1.79

.294

7.18

2008 AA

3-1-1

43.0

4.2

11.5

1.28

.219

3.77

2008 A+

1-1-2

21.1

2.5

7.2

0.80

.153

2.11

2009 AAA

0-0-0

12.0

6.0

9.0

1.75

.289

6.00

2009 AA

2-6-2

78.2

4.2

8.5

1.31

.225

4.46

Sues was one of several players selected by the Pirates in the early rounds of the 2005 draft who appeared likely to last until much later than the round in which the Pirates took them. He was primarily a reliever in college and missed most of his sophomore season with elbow tendonitis. He threw 92-93, hitting as high as 97, with a hard slider and average curve, but struggled with command and control. As a senior—another trend in that draft for the Bucs—he signed quickly. He never appeared in a game that year or the next, however, as he developed shoulder problems before his first scheduled start and had to have surgery. Setbacks in his recovery kept him out until late May 2007, when he appeared at Hickory. He made it through eight starts, mostly struggling but pitching fairly well in a couple. He especially had trouble with gopher balls, allowing one every three and a half innings. All things considered, his performance wasn't any worse than you'd expect, with him debuting in full season ball after a two-year layoff. Unfortunately, he went back on the DL in mid-July and didn't return.

Things finally went right for Sues in 2008, as he split the season pitching in relief for Lynchburg and Altoona. He was dominant in high A and pitched well at AA. When he had trouble in AA it was generally due to control problems, but those outings were the exception and not the rule. His K rate in AA was especially impressive. The one time I saw him he was hitting 94-97 initially, although his velocity dropped gradually after his first inning. His slider looked very sharp and his control of it was decent. He did not have a meaningful platoon split and is a flyball pitcher. Considering the missed time and the fact that he was pitching at fairly high levels with little experience at lower levels, what problems he had were far less than you'd expect. He did leave a game abruptly in early August with an unspecified shoulder problem that kept him out for the rest of the season, but he was healthy shortly after the season ended and was scheduled to pitch in the Arizona Fall League. He didn't pitch especially well there, but the Pirates placed him on the 40-man roster in November.

Sues pitched well in spring training but, somewhat disappointingly, will open the season back in Altoona. Unfortunately, he had one of the more disappointing seasons of any of their prospects. He struggled through May and June, getting hit hard at times, having control lapses and seeing his K rate drop. When I saw him he was throwing around 89-91 and his slider wasn't effective. He seemed to turn things around in July and August, as his velocity was back up and he was much more effective across the board. Other than his ERA and walk rate, his final numbers at Altoona were fairly good. He didn't do well in a late-season trial with Indianapolis, but it wasn't much of a sample size. He still clearly needs work on his command and there may be a question whether he can maintain his stuff consistently. The Pirates will have to decide whether they want to keep him on the 40-man roster during the offseason.

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