Phillippe Aumont made his name known in the Philadelphia area when he was acquired in the deal that sent Cliff Lee to Seattle. Aumont was the “centerpiece” of that deal; however, his 2010 performance went so poorly that he ended up being demoted all the way down to Single-A Clearwater.
In 11 games with Double-A Reading, Aumont compiled a dismal record of 1-6 with a 7.43 ERA. Because of that slow start, the Phillies decided to demote him to Clearwater, where he went 2-5 in 16 games with a 4.48 ERA.
Overall, Aumont went 3-11 in the Phillies farm system, which suggests that he may not be ready for the big league level.
However, many scouts believe he is most effective as a reliever. With the Phillies in dire need of bullpen help, especially in the late innings, Aumont may prove to be a surprise reliever come 2010.
When he pitched out of relief in the Seattle Mariners farm system, he clocked his highest fastball at 97 mph. In addition to his fastball, Aumont has developed a swing-and-miss slider, along with an off-speed splitter.
Many teams around the league have incorporated relievers that throw anywhere from 95 mph to even 103 mph (Aroldis Chapman in Cincinatti) to come into certain situations. I believe Aumont could be the Phillies version of Chapman, of course he’s not as fast and doesn’t nearly have the breaking ball that Chapman has, but Aumont has the potential to someday be their situational reliever.
The word potential is often thrown around, but not many people fully understand its meaning. Potential refers to the possibility that a player has, and not what the player actually is. I won’t deny the fact that Aumont had a dreadful 2010 statistically, but I’m not going to forget about the potential he has.
Don’t forget, Aumont is just 21 years old compared to Aroldis Chapman, who’s 22 years old.
He’s got the size (6’7”, 255) and stuff (fastball, breaking ball) to one day be a solid reliever for the Phillies. But if the Phils continue to waste his talents as a starter in the minors, than Aumont will never get the chance to prove himself in the ‘pen.
As a starter, Aumont can’t consistently clock 97 mph on the gun, and his breaking ball won’t be as nearly as effective as it would be coming out of the bullpen. He will get a shot in the offseason and into spring training to establish himself as a reliever, and we all know how the Philadelphia bullpen can be at (most) times.
So don’t throw Aumont under the bus just yet, give the kid some time, and good things will come sooner rather than later.
This was my thought process as well. My suspicion is the the guy is having a hard time adjusting to having gotten traded and he probably thinks he’s better than he actually is. to add to that idea of solidifying the bullpen the Philleis need to stop playing around and sign Cliff Lee, my understanding is that the kind of deal he’s looking for is 5 years $23M, which should be very doable and probably considerably less than what Jason Werth is looking for. Getting Lee would allow the Phillies to move into the pin and be a solid early middle reliever platooned with Contreras.