#61 Clay Buchholz Boston Red Sox  |  Pitcher

     
 

Age: 25
Born: August 14, 1984
Nedarland, TX
Height: 6-3
Weight: 190
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
Drafted: 2005, 1st round
How Acquired: Draft
College: Angelina Junior College
High School: Lumberton HS (TX)


Links
Twelve Questions with Clay Buchholz

The Ladder - 5.20.09
Fire Brand Q&A (June 2009)

Photo © Kelly O'Connor

Scouting Report: Buchholz has a low-to-mid 90s four-seam fastball, a two-seam fastball with decent movement, a slider, a hard 12-to-6 curveball, and a change-up. In 2006, Buchholz actually let loose towards the end of the season, when his fastball was sitting around 96 mph.  However, over the course of the season his fastball typically sits around 91-94 and tops out at about 97 mph. His plus change-up is generally a straight change that sits around 78-82 mph; he also throws a circle change.  His curveball, the best in the organization, sits between 76-81 mph with a knee-buckling bite.  On any given night, Buchholz's curve or change can be unhittable, and he tends to rely on whichever one is on as his out pitch throughout the game.  His slider, while average to above average, is a bit behind his other secondary pitches and sits in the low to mid 80s.  Mixes in all of his pitches phenomenally.  Good demeanor on the mound.  Pitches well under pressure, pitching coaches have said he has ice water running through his veins.  Nice pick-off move.  He has struggled with consistency early in his big-league career, but otherwise has ace makeup. Might need to add and maintain some weight to endure a full major league season.  In 2008, Buchholz had some major struggles with command and confidence, leading to lackluster results.

 
   
    Career Stats                                          
  year team lg level org age w l % era g gs cg sh sv ip h r er hr bb so k/bb
  2005 Angelina CC NJCAA Coll --- 20 12 1 0.923 1.05 15 15 7 2 0 85.2 44 19 10 --- 29 129 4.45
  2005 Lowell NYPL A Bos 20 0 1 0.000 2.61 15 15 0 0 0 41.1 34 15 12 2 9 45 5.00
  2006 Greenville SAL A Bos 21 9 4 0.692 2.62 21 21 0 0 0 103.0 78 34 30 10 29 117 4.03
  2006 Wilmington Car A Bos 21 2 0 1.000 1.13 3 3 0 0 0 16.0 10 4 2 0 4 23 5.75
  2007 Portland East AA Bos 22 7 2 0.778 1.77 16 15 1 0 0 86.2 55 18 17 4 22 116 5.27
  2007 Pawtucket IL AAA Bos 22 1 3 0.250 3.96 8 8 0 0 0 38.2 32 21 17 5 13 55 4.23
  2007 Boston AL MLB Bos 22 3 1 0.750 1.59 4 3 1 1 0 22.2 14 6 4 0 10 22 2.20
2008 Portland EL AA Bos 23 1 0 1.000 1.80 2 2 0 0 0 15.0 7 4 3 0 1 18 18.00
2008 Pawtucket IL AAA Bos 23 4 2 0.667 2.47 9 9 0 0 0 43.2 36 13 12 3 17 43 2.53
2008 Boston AL MLB Bos 23 2 9 0.182 6.75 16 15 1 0 0 76.0 93 63 57 11 41 72 1.76
2008 Scottsdale AFL Fall Bos 24 1 2 0.667 3.86 5 5 0 0 0 21.0 18 9 9 1 9 17 1.89
2009 Pawtucket IL AAA Bos 25 7 2 0.778 2.36 17 16 1 1 0 99.0 67 30 26 7 30 89 2.97
2009 Boston AL MLB Bos 25 7 4 0.636 4.21 16 16 0 0 0 92.0 91 44 43 13 36 68 1.89
   
  Additional Player Info  
  Pronunciation: Buck-holtz
First Pro Contract:
June 23, 2005 by Jim Robinson
Signing Bonus: $800,000
MiLB Debut: June 25, 2005 (Lowell)
Rule 5 Draft Eligible: N/A
MLFA Eligible
: N/A
Added to 40-man: August 17, 2007
MLB Debut:
August 17, 2007 (Boston)
MLB Service Time (through 2009):
1 year, 61 days
Options Remaining
: 1 (2009, 2008)
MLB Contract (2009): $413,500
Trade Restrictions
: None
     
  Awards
2005 East Conference (JuCo) Player of the Year
Carolina League Pitcher of the Week (Aug. 21 - 27, 2006)
Red Sox ML Pitcher of the Month (August 2006)
2006 Red Sox Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Red Sox Minor League Pitcher of the Month (May 2007)
2007 Futures Game All Star
2007 Eastern League All Star
Eastern League Pitcher of the Week (June 25 - July 1, 2007)
2007 Sea Dogs Pitcher of the Year
American League Player of the Week (Sep. 26 - Aug. 2, 2007)
2007 Red Sox Minor League Pitcher of the Year
International League Pitcher of the Week (April 27 - May 3, 2009)
International League Pitcher of the Week (
May 25-31, 2009)
Red Sox Minor League Pitcher of the Month (May 2009)
2009 International League All Star

SoxProspects.com Awards
2006 SoxProspects.com All-Star - RHSP
2006 SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Year
2007 SoxProspects.com Pre-Season All-Star - RHSP
SoxProspects Pitcher of the Week (April 29 - May 5, 2007)
SoxProspects Pitcher of the Week (May 20-26, 2007)
SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Month (May 2007)
SoxProspects Pitcher of the Week (May 27 - June 2, 2007)
SoxProspects Pitcher of the Week (June 24-30, 2007)
SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Week (August 5-11, 2007)
2007 SoxProspects.com All Star - RHSP
2007 SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Year
SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Week (August 25-31, 2008)
2009 SoxProspects.com Pre-Season All Star - SP
SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Week (April 27 - May 3, 2009)
SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Week (
May 4-10, 2009)
SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Week (May 11-17, 2009)
SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Week (May 25-31, 2009)
SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Month (May 2009)
2009 SoxProspects.com All Star - SP

 
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