Atlanta Braves: 5 MLB Hurlers That Brandon Beachy Could Resemble

Atlanta Braves right-hander Brandon Beachy is one of the biggest surprises on the mound in 20 years.

Signed by the team in 2008 as an amateur free agent, Beachy quickly showed he was one to be considered with the rest of the Braves' young guns.

All he did in the minors was go 16-7 with 283 strikeouts in 76 games, with 22 of those being starts.

Then, in 2010, Beachy got called up to the Braves due to injuries and other pitchers not being durable, and it was there that he made it be known he wasn't going anywhere.

Since then, Beachy has been a nice highlight in the Braves' rotation and is going to be there for many years to come, along with Tommy Hanson, Mike Minor, Randall Delgado and Julio Teheran.

Known for his power-pitching ability, Beachy will only improve on his numbers from last year, making many fans happy.

With Beachy still being 25 years old, he has a long way to go in his career.

Here's a look at five pitchers Beachy could resemble the rest of his career.

Dan Haren

Dan Haren is considered one of the better pitchers in the game.

However, one thing most people don't know is that he's never won more than 16 games in a season.

His strikeout totals are near the 200s every year, and that's exactly what Beachy projects as.

I see no reason why Beachy won't get 15 wins and 200 strikeouts year in and year out.

Johan Santana

This one may surprise people, but I'm going more for the pre-injury Johan Santana than the post-injury Johan Santana.

While he was with the Twins, Santana was dominant.

Now, I'm not saying that Beachy will be as good as Santana was then, but I don't see why his record and ERA can't be where Santana's was.

The strikeout numbers are another thing. Not many pitchers can throw 748 strikeouts in three seasons like Santana did between 2004-06.

Still, Beachy could see the same success Santana saw in Minnesota.

Matt Cain

Matt Cain is still young as well, but he's already had his share of success in the big leagues.

I believe Cain and Beachy could really mirror each other throughout their careers, as both will get better each year.

Over the last three years, Cain hasn't had the win total that he'd like, but his ERA and strikeout numbers are good.

If Beachy can put up those same numbers, and hope that he gets more luck than Cain did, Braves fans will be happy.

Tim Hudson

Who better for Beachy to resemble than teammate Tim Hudson?

Hudson has been a legitimate No. 1 starter for most of his career.

Beachy, while he likely won't be a No. 1 starter in Atlanta, still should have the same consistency and control that Hudson does.

The only difference in the two should be their strikeout numbers as Beachy is more of a power pitcher than Hudson is.

Zack Greinke

Good pitchers struggle in Kansas City.

And, that's exactly what Zack Greinke did from 2004-07.

Then, Greinke picked things up, winning an AL Cy Young Award in 2009.

Beachy has the same power Greinke does and should experience the same success Greinke had after 2007.