There is never enough time for me to point the spotlight at players having great years. Just when it was time for me to bring you up to speed on Kris Medlen, a right-handed pitcher in the Braves system, he gets called up to the Bigs on Friday. Jo-Jo Reyes is being sent to the bully, and replacing him in the rotation will be Medlen.
In his six starts for AAA Gwinnett this year, dude has gone 37.1 innings while only giving up four total runs (all of them earned). That puts his ERA at 0.96. He’s won five of those starts, and built up a nice 44:10 K:BB ratio in the process of giving up 19 hits.
At 5′10″ 190lbs, Medlen is not going to intimidate anyone with his size. Baseball America pegged him as the ninth best prospect in their talent heavy system. While he will not intimidate anyone with his size (5′10″, 190#, although there are reports he is shorter and lighter) he will intimidate with his stuff, according to Bobby Cox. Dude has a low to mid 90’s fastball, an upper 80’s curve, and a terrific changeup. Just to keep things fun, Kris also likes to mix in a slider every once in a while as well.
I think Medlen is worth a look, as he could be a surprise sleeper if he continues to pitch in the Majors like he was in the Minors. That is a big if, and he does not pitch until Tuesday, so do not do anything drastic just yet. If you do have room for him, you may want to stash him until after his first start or two.
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Tim Lincicum doesn’t intimidate with his size either…
Exactly who I was thinking about when I wrote this, Neetz.