Q & A with Mark Holliman - Submit Questions Here!

[Laura]

Mark Holliman, 2007 Tennessee Smokies (AA) starting pitcher, has graciously agreed to answer questions from posters on NSBB. If you would like to ask him a question, please post it here. The deadline for submitting questions is 10 PM Sunday, May 27 -- so get your questions in quickly! Once Mark has had an opportunity to answer them, the responses will be posted in the Chats Forum.



Mark Holliman was a Cubs' 2005 3rd round draft pick out of Ole Miss. He currently leads the Southern League in ERA with 1.17, is tied for the lead in wins with 6, and is in the top 3 in WHIP with 1.04. (MiLB SL Pitching Leaderboard). He has been recently named as SL Pitcher of the Week for his outstanding performance.

This session will be coordinated as in accordance with The NSBB Q & A Guidelines.

Thank you to Mark for taking the time to interact with us on such an up close and personal level. In addition, thank you to Chris, who will be completing this session while the Smokies are in Jackson, TN to take on the Diamond Jaxx. As always, thanks to all of you for making NSBB such a wonderful community!

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

Mark,

Congratulations on the outstanding beginning to your season. How satisfying was your performance last Saturday back in front of everyone in Mississippi?

Also, you pitched in the SEC. What hitters were the toughest challenge for you during college?

And finally, how is preparing to pitch in college different than what you have to do now in professional baseball?

Thanks for taking the time. I enjoyed watching you pitch this past week. Good luck on the remainder of the season.

[Flames24Rulz]

Mark,

First of all, congrats on a great start to the 2007 season. Being in a rotation that includes Gallagher and Veal, do you gain competitiveness by just competing with them on having better starts each time you guys go out there? What has been the biggest difference between the Florida State League and the Southern League? Everyone says the Florida State League is one of the "premiere" pitching leagues in Minor League Baseball. For you, it's been the opposite as you've been much better in Double A. Do you just feel more comfortable with the team you are with right now? Finally, what pitches have you been fine-tuning on the most this year?

Thanks and good luck for the rest of the season. Keep up the great start!

[baseball7897]

Mark,

If you want to put a little extra on the ball such as in situations where you might be ahead in the count or when you want to go up in the zone, how do you approach it and is there anything you do mechanically to get that little extra velocity?

What are you thinking when you are walking to the mound and picking up the ball ready to start your warm-ups?

Do you have a particular way of working hitters or a specific philosophy of pitching to hitters that works for you?

Also, how valuable would you say it is to have a plan or a regular routine in-season and off-season?

Good luck on the rest of your season and stay consistent.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Thanks for taking our questions Mark, and congrats on your fantastic start to the year.

What do you think is the biggest reason for your aforementioned great start? Do you feel like you have more velocity/movement on your fastball? Sharper break on your offspeed stuff? More spot-on command? Better mental approach? Any or all of the above?

[NCCubFan]

Mark,

Last year was your first year in professional baseball, with Daytona. This year, so far you've put up much better numbers despite playing at a higher level. To what do you attribute your improvement from last year to this year?