Scouting report on Michigan pitcher Danny Zimmerman?
Duluth's summer league team, the Huskies, has just announced the signing of Michigan redshirt sophomore Danny Zimmerman to the team for the summer. That means a Michigan athlete is coming to my backyard. For those who might not be familiar with this, there are a number of summer league baseball franchises that college players join after the college season concludes. They play intense schedules for a couple of months before heading back off to school.
The bio suggests that he has been used mostly as a reliever. Can anyone who follows the baseball team give me a general scouting report on him? What sort of stuff does he have, strengths, weaknesses, etc? I'm excited to have a Michigan Man to cheer on occasionally for the summer.
His biggest weakness appears to be his coach, who everyone on the MGoBoard wants FIRED!
Seriously, though, amatuer "sandlot" baseball is great! I used to go to a lot of local games at Valley Field on GR's west side back in my youth, great memories. I'm jealous.
GR native here, used to go to Valley Field with my grandpa all the time as a kid. Loved it.
You're the same Rob f from WX right?
Yes, that's me. I was at Worldcrossing on both their Michigan Forum and Detroit Tigers Forum for many many years, before that on the Freep Forums for both, migrating to WX when the freep shut their forums down. Were you on the Michigan Forum or Tigers or both? MGoUser JamieH posted on both and MGoUser Hannibal posted on the Michigan Forum at WX; I'm sure there's others here who posted on WX.
Back to Valley Field, though---I believe it's still in use and has for years been renamed Sullivan Field. I remember seeing such future major leaguers as Jim Kaat, Mickey Stanley, Rick Krueger and Dave Rozema play there, besides many many local kids. My brother-in-law played there against Rozema, for instance.
(Edit:. I just looked at your posting history and see that you were on the Tigers NPGWH Tigers Forum as "NightWing". Yes! I remember you from there.
I answered one of your previous posts a few months ago with some info about the whereabouts of the remnants of that forum group, if you care to read up on them, go back to this post:
https://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/chicago-scam-tomorrow%27s-game#comment-243347672
Yup. I follow the Facebook group a little bit, and occasionally here and there with a few of them on Twitter. It's s shame how much that group splintered. I was pretty much only active on the Tigers side back then, though I would look on the Michigan forum now and again. That team is hard to follow now, worse than even the darkest years. We got spoiled, haha.
My grandpa used to tell me stories about seeing Willie Horton and Mickey Stanley at Valley Field. By the time I went down there with him in the '90s, you didn't see too future pros. And it is Sullivan Field now, my family grew up on the west side. I'm not sure who plays there anymore besides Union HS, I think? Now I'm going to have to look up if they still have city league baseball in the summer...
Sometimes he throws strikes, sometimes it's a ball.
Is he better than Jordan Zimmerman?
Considering he can still pitch more than 20 competent innings a year, the answer is yes.
He only pitched twice as a Freshman in 2018, and he's redshirting this season. For a pitcher, that usually indicates an injury.
Given that he made high school all American teams in 2015, 2016 & 2017, he's obviously somebody to watch.
I think we will need a scouting report from you more than you need one from us.
That's really good to know. I guess this makes sense, his bio talks about his HS career and not really about his college career thus far.
when can we expect that report, SRJK?
as an aside, the local frontier league team got sold and the new owners disbanded that team and are going to this same type of college player league. starts this week, goes into august. i have no idea what quality the players will be, but we're sure to make to at least one game to check it out. as an aside, they picked the single worst team name i think i've ever heard: the pit spitters. (no, that is not a joke).
The Traverse City Pit-Spitters! I remember the release. Our teams are both in the Northwoods League, but since they're in different divisions, they will not play each other unless they both make the league championship. It's a wooden-bat league, which is aesthetically superior, and it's pretty low-frills. I usually catch a game or two a year, but I would catch more if Duluth's stadium weren't terrible.
The Huskies made it to the decisive third game of the championship last season with a fun team that ran all the time. The manager, understandably, got hired away--he was great. I took my daughter to the championship game and it was terrific, even though Duluth lost.
I would prefer to have a proper minor league team in town, but that would require a new stadium in a market where there isn't a heavy demand for this sort of thing in the area given that the big team in town with the shiny new facility is the UMD hockey team.
I actually like the "pit spitters" name but YMMV.
We have a minor league team here in Burlington. They're in the New York-Penn league--the highest short season A-league. I love going to games. A plus is that the Yankees have a team in the same league so I get to scout the future.
Great get-off. Needs to work on his pad level.
Without knowing specifics of the kid's situation, he probably ought to be training rather than playing.
Duluth, ha
It's a great place. Not a baseball hotbed, though.
Danny Zimmerman is a beast. He went to my daughter's high school, and his teams won back to back state titles, in probably the best state for baseball, California. Was a 1B as well as a RHP and could rake. He's an exceptional athlete. His fastball tops out at mid 90s, and he has a good slider. The kids at his high school are getting full rides to Washington, Arizona and other big schools so they play at top level competition. One of the high school's current players is likely a top round pick in the upcoming MLB draft.
Three local kids, including Danny, are now on Michigan's team and committed together in 2017. Here are two articles on Zimmerman.
http://tbrnews.com/sports/three-local-high-schoolers-to-play-baseball-for-university-of/article_c9ae5df8-5124-11e7-8885-073f8e77b8d5.html
https://www.dailybreeze.com/2017/05/16/redondos-zimmerman-will-soon-choose-between-college-and-pro-baseball/