Top 3 Pitching Prospects - 2008 Season
Posted on February 13, 2008
Filed Under Prospects |
It’s an awfully nice feeling to see a farm system full of young promising prospects. It’s an even nicer feeling when a large portion of them are pitchers; especially in an age when pitchers are a more valued commodity than any rare metal.
Yes, there have been a billion “top prospects” lists written. Yes, they have more than 3 pitchers listed. What I’m trying to accomplish with my ‘list’ is to inform the everyday fan (not the ones that wear pink B hats mind you) about 3 pitchers that are still considered “prospects” and that we WILL be seeing in the semi-near future.
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1. Clay Buchholz, RHP, 23 years old
Background info:
Clay was snatched early in the 1st round of the 2005 draft. He is a tall and somewhat lanky (6′3″, 190lb) righthander although he has added 10 pounds of pure muscle during the offseason thanks to a shoulder strengthening program he underwent at the Athletes Performance Institute in Florida. His pitch arsenal consists of a low-to-mid 90’s four-seam fastball, a two-seam fastball with small movement, an average mid 80s slider, an above average high 70s low 80s changeup, and an absolutely ridiculous curveball. His curveball, his best pitch and arguably the best curve in the entire organization, is a hard 12-6 pitch that rests somewhere between 76-81 mph. He is also said to be the best pure athlete in the Red Sox farm system. Rumors say that a footrace between himself and fellow speedster Jacoby Ellsbury would have a very close finish although he has been told by the organization that if he even THINKS about participating in a race, they’ll fine his brains out.
Where was he last season?
2007 was spent skipping through the Red Sox system. He started the year in AA ball at Portland (1.77 ERA, 86.2IP, 5.27 K/BB), got promoted to Pawtucket AAA (3.96 ERA, 38.2IP, 4.23 K/BB), and was thrown into Boston’s rotation when half of the starters ended up plagued with injuries. Buchholz posted a 1.59 ERA and a less than stellar 2.20 K/BB ratio in 22.2IP in the big leagues. Oh yeah, and he threw a no-hitter.
Where will he be this season?
Buchholz will more than likely spend the entire 2008 season bouncing between AAA Pawtucket, the Red Sox rotation, and the Red Sox bullpen. With Schilling missing at least half of the season, Tavarez being inconsistent, Wakefield having a hurt back, and Matsuzaka still adjusting to the longer season.. there is no reason to think that Buchholz won’t get at least 20 starts for the big boys this year. He had a 150 innings limit imposed on himself last year by the organization and he was shut down just short of that. Theres no word yet of a limit this year but the Sox will definitely be cautious with how much he is used.
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2. Justin Masterson, RHP, 22 years old
Background info:
Masterson is a large (6′6″, 245lb) kid that was drafted in the 2nd round of the 2006 draft. He pitches with a three-quarter delivery and what has been described as a slinging-type motion (video.) Justin brings to the table a sinker, a slider, and a four-seam circle change-up. His sinker is way above average and can vary from 85mph to 94mph. His low 80s slider is also an above average pitch. The circle change requires a bit of work and generally travels with high 70s velocity.
Where was he last season?
He spent last season in Lancaster A ball (4.33 ERA, 95.2 IP, 2.55 K/BB) and then came up to Portland AA ball (4.34 ERA, 58.0 IP, 3.28 K/BB). In doing so he was named the Red Sox minor league pitcher of the month twice (June and July)
Where will he be this season?
Being converted from a relief pitcher to a starter recently, it is more than likely that Justin will spend the season in Portland AA and possibly be moved up to Pawtucket AAA. A lot of analysts think he might possibly see some time in Boston this season but with a flurry of potential starters (Devern Hansack and Kyle Snyder are still two out-of-the-rotation pitchers that could start) in front of him, I think it is doubtful we’ll see this happen in 08 unless there are some major problems.
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3. Michael Bowden, RHP, 21 years old
Background info:
Bowden is also a large (6′3″, 220lb) righty starter. He was grabbed in the 1st round of the 2005 draft along with Buchholz, although he is 2 years younger. Michael has a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, a 12-6 curve, a slider, as well as a circle change-up. His four-seamer is his goto pitch; it is low-90s and has late sinking movement on it. The two-seamer is a bit slower than his four-seamer but has a lot more late movement on it. The secondary pitches in his arsenal aren’t used as often as they should be but all of them are improvable according to scouts. The only reason he is ranked lower than Masterson despite posting better numbers in the minors is because of the lack of domination by these pitches.
Where was he last season?
Bowden spent last season much the same way Masterson did. He started in Lancaster A (1.37 ERA, 46IP, 5.75 K/BB) and moved up to Portland AA (4.28 ERA, 96.2IP, 2.48 K/BB).
Where will he be this season?
There isn’t a doubt in my mind that he will start this season where he ended last season: in Portland AA ball. He may very well progress to Pawtucket AAA but he is only 21 years old so there is no reason to rush him until he develops his change-up and slider a bit more.
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Conclusion: It’s a damn good time to be a Red Sox fan.
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[...] more on Justin Masterson, check out this post I wrote on the Red Sox top 3 pitching prospects for [...]
[...] Bowden was #3 on my pre-season list of Red Sox pitching prospects (link) and number 94 on Baseball America’s ‘Top 100 MLB Prospects’ list for 2008 [...]
[...] mentioned prior to the season in my ‘Top 3 Pitching Prospects‘ article that I didn’t think we’d see Bowden OR Masterson this year. I also [...]