MLB Prospects: Power Ranking the Top 10 Pitchers in Baseball

While Major League Baseball will take center stage with the start of the regular season, prospects still deserve their time in the spotlight. Given the game's shift toward pitching recently, we want to discuss the top arms that will take the league by storm in the not-too-distant future. 

There has never been so much good, dominant pitching sprinkled throughout baseball. There is a great mix of power arms and command/control experts, with some players already showing both at a young age. 

Here are the top 10 pitching prospects in baseball heading into the 2012 season. 

No. 10 Casey Kelly (San Diego Padres)

One of the key pieces to the Adrian Gonzalez trade last year, Kelly has yet to really dominate the minors like you would want to see from a top-flight pitching prospect. But he is making strides to living up to that No. 2 starter potential we have heard about since he was drafted in 2008. 

He lowered his walk rate from 3.32 in 2010 to 2.91 last season. His strikeouts also fell from 7.67 two years ago to 6.64 in 2011. That could be a sign he is learning how to pitch more to contact instead of trying to strike guys out. 

Kelly has good stuff, with a low-90s fastball and dominant curveball, but the results haven't always matched. He is entering his third season pitching full time—he was drafted as a two-way player and tried shortstop in 2009—so this could be a big year for him. 

No. 9 Taijuan Walker (Seattle Mariners)

The Mariners likely made the decision to trade Michael Pineda partly because of their pitching depth in the minors, with Walker being the best of the bunch. 

His first full season in professional ball was outstanding. He had 113 strikeouts to just 39 walks in 96.2 innings pitched. 

In addition to those outstanding numbers, Walker's stuff and command were far more advanced than a typical 18-year-old. 

His fastball already sits in the mid-90s, which would be good enough to get him by in the low-level minor leagues.

If there is one weakness for Walker, it is consistency with his release point. Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus pointed out that he will leave pitches up in the zone. 

He can get away with that now, but it is a flaw he will have to correct to hit his No. 1 starter ceiling.

No. 8 Tyler Skaggs (Arizona Diamondbacks)

There is no reason for Skaggs not to be in the Diamondbacks' rotation to start the season, but that's the decision the club has made.

On the plus side, he should not be on the farm too much longer, because his development has gone better than anyone could have expected.

His delivery is clean, and he has good command of the strike zone. In their prospect handbook, Baseball America pointed out that his fastball velocity jumped from high-80s-low-90s to being more consistently in the low-90s.

No. 7 Carlos Martinez (St. Louis Cardinals)

Few players in the minors have the kind of electric fastball that Martinez does without having to put any effort at all into it. 

At just 20 years old, there is still plenty of development left for Martinez. You can dream on the stuff all day long—he also shows a good changeup and curveball from time to time—but the command has to improve for him to reach his No. 1 starter ceiling. 

In a worst-case scenario, the Cardinals will end up plugging Martinez into the back of their bullpen. Let's hope it doesn't come to that, because he has the stuff to win multiple Cy Young awards.

No. 6 Julio Teheran (Atlanta Braves)

There seems to be some backlash against Teheran for struggling in his brief stints with the Braves last season, but it is important to remember that he just turned 21 in January. 

His arm is electric, as he really gets on top of his mid-90s fastball, and his changeup is one of the best in the minors already. The delivery is clean with no extraneous movement. 

Teheran's ceiling will be determined by how his curveball develops. It has yet to be a dominant pitch, but in his ranking of the Top 100 prospects, Keith Law noted that it did get "shorter and harder" in 2011 than it had been. 

If he finds consistency with the curveball, Teheran will turn into one of the best pitchers in the game. 

No. 5 Trevor Bauer (Arizona Diamondbacks)

Bauer is a machine on the mound. His highlight videos from UCLA turned him into a cult figure, with an intense throwing regimen that could be the best or worst thing he could do to his arm and shoulder. 

Right now, Bauer looks like a star. He has a fastball that he can pump up there in the mid- to high-90s and a curveball that would miss big league bats right now. 

His delivery looks a lot like Tim Lincecum's. If Bauer can come anywhere close to matching The Freak's performance, the Diamondbacks will be thrilled. 

He should be pitching in the big leagues at some point this year. He just needs to refine his command and get comfortable pitching every fifth day. 

No. 4 Gerrit Cole (Pittsburgh Pirates)

The No. 1 pick in the 2011 draft has the kind of stuff that you can only dream about. His fastball often hits 100 mph, and a changeup that will leave hitters shaking their head as they walk back to the dugout. 

Still, as good as the stuff looks, Cole has never had the results to match. He got hit hard a lot during his time at UCLA because he would pitch up in the zone and try to blow everyone away. 

He needs to learn how to command all of his pitches before we know exactly what he is going to be. Right now, the sky is the limit. With a full year of minor league development, Cole could easily be sitting at the top of this list next year. 

No. 3 Shelby Miller (St. Louis Cardinals)

There is not a lot left for Miller to prove in the minors, but the Cardinals are going to start him in Triple-A until they want him or someone in their rotation gets hurt. 

Plus, he is just 21 years old with 86.2 innings at Double-A. The Cardinals have a knack for developing pitching, either their own or acquisitions from other teams, and Miller could end up being the best of the bunch. 

Depending on what happens with Adam Wainwright's elbow and Chris Carpenter's body, Miller could see a lot of time in St. Louis after the All-Star break. 

No. 2 Dylan Bundy (Baltimore Orioles)

Having seen some of Bundy this spring and reading about how impressive he was in camp, I have no problem putting him at this spot despite not throwing a pitch in a professional game yet. 

Bundy is a freak of nature. His legs look like two tree trunks, and he uses them to generate velocity on his mid- to high-90s fastball. His entire array of pitches, which includes a cutter, curveball and changeup, is far above what you would expect from a high school pitcher. 

Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus wrote that what really separates Bundy from other high school arms is his advanced command and control within the zone. 

It should not take him more than two years before he is ready to pitch in the big leagues. 

No. 1 Matt Moore (Tampa Bay Rays)

I'm not sure, but you may have heard of this guy thanks to his 11 strikeouts in five innings at Yankee Stadium or seven shutout innings in Game 1 of the ALDS against Texas. 

Moore's development has been amazing to watch. He always had good stuff, but he has made adjustments at every level to become the best pitching prospect in the game. 

His fastball ranges from anywhere between 91-97, and it explodes out of his hand with one of the smoothest deliveries in the big leagues. 

Besides that, Moore has a changeup and curveball that are virtually impossible to hit when he is on top of his game. 

The Rays are trying to control the hype around Moore by having him start the season at the back of the rotation, but based on the appetizer fans got last year, it is a pointless exercise. 

For a rotation that already includes David Price, James Shields and Jeremy Hellickson, Moore could end up being the best of the bunch this year. 

Apologies To: Jacob Turner (Det), Jameson Taillon (Pit), Danny Hultzen (Sea), Martin Perez (Tex), Archie Bradley (Az)

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