After the first month or so of the season, here is this humble blog's ranking of the top Padre minor league performers. Yesterday, we ranked the top hitters. Today, we rank the pitchers.Looking over the list, I'll make a few introductory comments:
1. I'm not a huge fan of the Padres pitching prospects. The big problem is that the guys who were supposed to be the marquee guys - Cesar Carrillo, Nick Schmidt, Cesar Ramos - have succumbed to injury and/or are maxing out at AAA. Lower down the ladder there is intrigue with the likes of Mat Latos and Adys Portillo, but that's more a conversation about the 2012 Padres than anything else. I'd love for Simon Castro to join that group. I really would.
2. Are the Padres ever going to recover from losing Joakim Soria in the Rule V Draft? That was an absolute dagger to the organization. Along with the John Moores divorce and the Khalil Greene regression, nothing has hurt the Padres more than their bullpen failures last season and early this season. You need three solid/stud relievers to win in this league. A Padre bullpen with Soria, Bell and Hoffman (they could have paid him sans divorce) would be better than the current Meredith, Sanchez, Bell situation. Though that is no fault of Heath's. What a monster.
3. Greg Burke should be pitching for the Drinos any minute now. After another bullpen meltdown last night (3 walks Edwin? Really?) the Drinos need to try something new. Burke has earned a shot. (Incidentally, so have his Portland teammates Scott Patterson and Joe Thatcher. Look for a Drino bullpen shakeup in the next few weeks.)
Without further ado ...
1. Zach Herr, LHP, Fort Wayne: Coming out of the bullpen for the TinCaps, Herr has been perfect this season. He is 2-0 with a .45 WHIP and a, wait for it, 0.00 ERA. Add to that his 18 Ks in 11 innings (and 4 holds) and you see why I put a relief pitcher at the top of these rankings. These stats don't even include another perfect inning he threw last night, a little 1-2-3 work in the bottom of the 8th to help preserve the TinCaps 8-7 win. Nice work, Zach.
2. Corey Kluber, RHP, Lake Elsinore: Corey is off to a 3-1 start with a 2.51 ERA, a .94 WHIP and 25 Ks in 28.2 innings pitched. Not bad for another guy almost no national scouting service ever mentions as a legitimate prospect, and who BA dropped out of their top 30 Drino prospects this year. He was a fourth round draft pick in the pivotal 2007 Drino draft (where the Padres had 11 picks in the first four rounds) and is looking to turn a few heads and raise a few eyebrows this year.
3. Greg Burke, RHP, Portland: The Drinos AAA closer, Burke, as I noted above, is due for a call up. I'm ready to see what he's got and I figure the Drinos have nothing to lose. Is he really going to be any worse than Sanchez, Perdomo, Gregerson or Mujica? If he throws strikes I don't see how he could be. Burke is currently sitting at 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA and a .92 WHIP. He's K'd 13 in 12 innings and has 5 saves.
4. Anthony Bass, RHP, Fort Wayne: The Padres 5th round pick last June, Anthony is a sleeper out of Wayne State. He pitched well at short-season Eugene last summer and is continuing that success so far this season. He is 2-2 with a 2.19 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP, and has K'd 20 in 24 innings. I'd like to see the WHIP a bit lower and the Ks a bit higher but I could really say that about any pitcher. Just based on looking at his stats, Anthony seems to know how to pitch. That alone should carry him up to at least AA.
5. Jeremy McBryde, RHP, Lake Elsinore: Arguably Jeremy could have been ranked at the top of the list. His stuff is perhaps better than most guys in the Padre system not named Peavy, Young, Bell, Portillo or Latos. That said, he seems to be a bit hittable (yes, I know he threw a 6-inning, 8 K gem last night, yielding only 2 runs, but hear me out). He is sporting a 3.86 ERA so far which, if my math is correct, is getting close to 4.00. His WHIP is a stellar .79 and he has K'd 20 in 14 innings (remember, this doesn't include last night), but I don't like that ERA. If he continues to lower the number of runs he gives up, I'll be happy to move him up the list.
6. Evan Scribner, RHP, San Antonio: Evan was a nice snake last year in the deal that sent Tony Clark back to the D-slacks. On the season he is 0-1 with a 2.53 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP out of the bullben for the Missions. He's also K'd 14 in his 10.2 innings, and racked up 4 saves. Evan should compete for a Drino bullpen slot in 2010, if he doesn't snake an audition with the big club later this season.
7. Nathan Culp, LHP, San Antonio: Until last night, Nathan was having a strong season. He was 1-1 with a 2.91 ERA and 1.06 WHIP pitching for the AA Missions. One concern was his only 11 Ks in 21.2 innings, and that may have exposed him a bit lat night. Nathan is not much of a prospect but his status as a lefty will earn him some looks this year and next. Especially if he can keep that WHIP in the low 1s.
Okay, so that's the list. Let's hope May is a dominant month up and down the system.
I'm pretty sure it will be.
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