Rising Apple Goes One-On-One With Greg Peavey, Round II

Earlier this year, Rising Apple had the opportunity to chat with Mets pitching prospect, Greg Peavey.  At the time, Peavey was a member of the dominant Savannah Sand Gnats rotation, the Mets A-ball affiliate that eventually captured the South Atlantic League Southern Division first half crown.  The Oregon State product finished the first half with a 6-2 record to go along with a 3.12 ERA while allowing 75 hits in 78 innings.  Peavey demonstrated immaculate control, walking just 11 batters and fanning 69, making for a stellar 6.27 K/BB.  Following the first half of the minor league season, Peavey was promoted to the St. Lucie Mets of the Florida State League.

Since the promotion, Peavey has had a little difficulty adjusting to the higher level of play.  In six starts at St. Lucie (29.IP), Peavey has a 5.28 ERA and has only struck out 14 batters while walking eight.  Two starts ago, he got hit hard, allowing seven earned runs on ten hits over four and two-third innings.  While Peavey rebounded nicely in his nextrecent outing, tossing five innings and allowing just an unearned run on five hits and two walks while punching out three, he struggled in his most recent start, allowing seven earned runs on twelve hits in two and two-thirds.  Peavey was once again kind enough to answer some questions for Rising Apple, and we look forward to watching him further develop during the course of his career (note: this interview was conducted prior to Peavey’s outing on July 23rd).

Rising Apple: First, congrats on your promotion to St. Lucie.  How did you feel when you learned you’d be moving up in the system?

Greg Peavey: I felt very honored to move up to St. Lucie and I was very thankful for the opportunity.

RA: How did it feel to finish first in the SAL Southern Division during the first half of the season?

GP: To finish the first half in first place the way we did in Savannah was incredible. Truly a team effort, we had a great bunch of guys who played really well together.

RA: Did the fact that fellow Savannah teammate Cory Vaughn got promoted at the same time as you make the transition easier?

GP: Cory coming up with me was great. It was nice to have a familiar face that I had played with all year, and not being the only new guy.

RA: So far, what’s been the biggest difference between pitching for Savannah as compared to St. Lucie?  GP: The biggest difference between pitching here compared with Savannah has been the better approaches from the hitters. In Savannah there were a lot of extremely talented players, but whom were young and raw. In this league, the hitters capitalize and expose pitchers mistakes quite often.

RA: To what do you attribute the decrease in your strikeout rate and increase in your walk rate over your first five starts at St. Lucie?

GP: In my last five starts I haven’t been executing pitches the way I would like and hope to improve on that in the starts to come.

RA: A few starts ago [July 11^th] was your roughest professional outing.  However, you bounced back nicely in your most recent start [July 17^th].  How do you move on from a rough start before your next one?  What adjustments did you make (if any) from one start to the next?

GP: Rough starts or games are bound to happen-they are part of the game. I just try to take those rough starts and turn them into a learning experience and build of that for my next start.

RA: What has it been like playing on the same team as David Wright, while he rehabs?  If you’ve had any interactions with him, what have they been like?

GP: Getting the opportunity to play around David Wright has been a great experience. He is a true professional and a born winner; his work ethic is unreal. He is also a genuinely nice guy.

RA: How do you typically spend your off days?

GP: I usually take full advantage of my off days and relax since we don’t get too many. I also enjoy playing a round of golf on off days.

RA: How does St. Lucie as a city compare to Savannah?

GP: Savannah and St. Lucie are very different cities, but in both places the people have been very friendly and enjoyable to be around.

RA: Any thoughts on the United States Women’s World Cup run?

GP: I was very proud of that USA soccer team. They kept us all on the edge of our seats and played great! They represented our country extremely well while being very humble and classy.

RA: What are your goals for the remainder of the season?

GP: My goals are to try to get better each day as a pitcher and a person. Right now fastball command is goal number one though.