In hindsight, it was probably too soon to promote Gonzalez, as he had yet to completely figure out AAA hitters, but going forward, he is still a pitcher to pay attention to.
He has excellent strikeout rates and a groundball tendency, which is a good combination to have. The important stat to watch with Gonzalez going forward will be his walk and home-run rates.
He has allowed nine home runs in his brief 34 innings with Oakland, and he has walked over six batters per nine innings. Both of those numbers are way above historical minor-league rates, as you would expect.
If Gonzalez can settle in during Spring Training and earn a spot in the rotation for 2009, and keep his walk/home run rates reasonable, he will be a player to watch and start for some strikeouts.
Pitcher—Michael Bowden, BOS
All of the talk early in the season was about Clay Buchholz and his immense talent, but by the end of the season, Michael Bowden was making waves in the Red Sox's organization. Bowden does not have the strikeout ability of Buchholz, but he has better command of the zone and keeps his pitches down in the zone, which has limited the number of home runs allowed.
In his major-league debut, Bowden earned a victory with a five-inning, two-run performance against the White Sox.
He began the season in AA Portland, where he went 9-4 with a 2.33 ERA and 101 strikeouts to 24 walks before being promoted to Pawtucket. He did not enjoy the same amount of success there, but he still managed a 3.38 ERA in 40 innings of work while maintaining an excellent K/BB ratio.
Bowden will be in the running for the fifth-starter job in Spring Training, but he will most likely begin in AAA and be the first guy called up when someone is needed. If he is lucky enough to find a way into the rotation for an extended period of time, give Bowden a look; he may just stick and surprise.
Pitcher—Kevin Mulvey, MIN
The Minnesota Twins always seem to find good young pitching to plug into their rotation that gives solid innings while not hurting the team’s chance at winning. See the entire rotation this year.
Mulvey is another of the prospects brought in by the Johan Santana deal to New York last offseason. He has four pitches that he can throw for strikes consistently, which enables him to keep the ball on the ground and in the yard. Mulvey pitched the entire 2008 season for AAA Rochester, where he went 7-9 with a 3.77 ERA.
Nothing extravagant, but it was his first season above AA, and Mulvey actually increased his strikeout rate to a career high 7.36 per nine innings.
If Mulvey maintains his current strikeout rate and finds a way to return to his extreme groundball tendencies (career low 40 percent GB as compared to numbers as high as 55 percent previously), he should find an opportunity in the Twins' rotation by midseason. Once there, he could be next year’s Nick Blackburn or better.
Pitcher—David Huff, CLE
As if the Indians need another talented left-handed pitcher in their rotation. Huff, who has yet to make his major-league debut, will compete for a starting job in Spring Training next year. The only reason that he did not make a start in Cleveland this season was because he is not yet on the 40-man roster, and the fact that the Indians wanted to limit his innings total.
In 146.1 innings split between two levels, Huff was 11-5 with a 2.52 ERA and 143 strikeouts to 29 walks. He is being compared to Cliff Lee because of his excellent K/BB ratio, which was as high as 5.40 in AAA.
He could be one of the most intriguing rookie pitchers in next year's draft pool because he will not be thought of as highly as a David Price, so the opportunity is there for a bigger bargain.
If Huff earns a starting job behind Lee, Fausto Carmona, and Anthony Reyes to start the season, make a move to add him and his excellent changeup. He may just become the Indians No. 2 starter by year's end.
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