Poche demonstrated good control during a brief simulated game appearance Saturday, throwing seven of 10 pitches for strikes, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports. "The internal stuff that we had on Poche was really encouraging," manager Kevin Cash said. "He needed to have a good outing, and he did."
While it was a small sample, Cash was pleased with what he saw from Poche, who's projected for a bullpen spot but has caused some concern with location issues in summer camp. The 26-year-old southpaw generated an elevated 4.70 ERA over 51.2 innings last season, but he also provided an excellent 72:19 K:BB that provided a glimpse at his swing-and-miss upside.