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2007 This West Roxbury High product has missed bats at every level, both before and after his 2003 Tommy John surgery. Moving to the bullpen has pushed his fastball into the high-90s. Good stuff aside, his 2006 season was a mixed bag. His peripherals considerably outpaced his ERA, but his BABIP was the third-highest in the majors among pitchers with at least 50 innings. He also allowed 19 out of 31 inherited runners to score; at 10.1 runs below expectation, that was the worst in baseball. Much of the damage to his stat line occurred in September, suggesting fatigue was a factor. He`s still young and gifted enough that the Sox aren`t panicking, so expect him to retain a key role in the bullpen. 2006 Delcarmen, a 2nd-round pick in 2000, was on the fast track to Boston before undergoing Tommy John surgery in mid-2003, which cost him a year. The Boston native has a mid-90s fastball, a big 12-to-6 curveball, and a nice change, but he`s had control problems since being converted to relief in the 2004 Arizona Fall League. Still, it was puzzling that the team gave tryouts to a succession of bad relief pitchers rather than offer a regular role to Delcarmen, who was marginally effective pitching only one inning a week. The organization claims to really like him, so he should get a better gig in 2006. 2005 Delcarmen blew out his elbow early in 2003 and took the standard year off for rehab from Tommy John surgery. The Sox were impressed with his rehab work and they think his stuff is better now than before the surgery. His 92-94-mph fastball is now reportedly reaching as high as 97 in the Arizona Fall League. Last year had its expected rough spots, but Delcarmen appears fully recovered and back on track.
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