Pelfrey Earning Praise

John Harper at the NY Daily News, writes about Mike Pelfrey and how he is catching the eyes of the Mets brass:

So while his fastball is what draws the oohs and aahs, it may be more significant that he is earning praise here for apparently having improved a slider and changeup since last year to go with what amounts to a killer sinker.

"He's made a big jump," said Mark Brewer, Pelfrey's pitching coach at Double-A Binghamton last year. "Based on what I've seen so far, I'm really, really excited about what he's doing."

At 23, Pelfrey is 2-1/2 years older than Hughes, yet he was drafted out of college at Wichita State. Hughes was drafted out of high school in 2004 and has three years of experience in the minors.

"I've thought about those scenarios," said Randolph. "I'm not saying Pelfrey is ready, but you're seeing more and more talented young pitchers out of college coming up through the ranks very quickly. If they have the makeup to deal with the pressure and they're astute enough to retain what you're teaching them, I think the faster you get their feet wet, the more it can be a springboard to a promising career.