Trenton, New Jersey — Brody Colvin had quite an introduction back to a starting role. After pitching out of the bullpen this year, he was put back in the rotation and just in time to face embattled Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez.

The Reading Fightins faced the Trenton Thunder in a three game series, that included two games with Rodriguez in the lineup, in the midst of suspension controversy. Righty Colvin came second. In Game One of the series, top Phillies prospect Jesse Biddle took the mound. He gave up a two-run home run to Rodriguez.

Colvin was paying attention and certainly appeared to have a plan. He walked Rodriguez three times and issued five walks overall over five innings; the walks allowed have been a struggle for him at times. In his fourth year of pro ball, he’s given up 44 free passes in 67 innings this season; he ended 2012 with 74 in 138 innings pitched. But the August 2nd outing was his toughest since mid-July, when his ERA ballooned and he allowed three runs on four hits, and surrendered a season-high six walks.

Colvin wasn’t just avoiding contact to Rodriguez. Other than a few high and tight pitches, he was consistently on the outside corners. And he wasn’t hitting that part of the plate for strikes. In 2012 he struck out 109 in 138 innings pitched; this year he has 30 in 67 innings. His progress has been slowed this year by injury and re-injury to the groin. But overall in his career he’s remained healthy.

Back to the walks. He’s tenth in the Eastern League in BB’s allowed (44) and third of all Reading pitchers (Biddle’s 62 walks actually tops the EL). In his most recent performance, he struggled to find the strike zone, and had difficulty controlling the ball. He was more economical early in the game, in the first and second innings, but couldn’t command his pitches in the later innings.

Colvin’s ERA has been way up all season, but his physical health has to be factored in. He didn’t appear to have a lot of trust in his ability to locate his fastball. But he did mix in a good number of groundball outs and worked quickly in a jam a few times. For his first start back, he went five innings, allowed five earned runs on six hits, and struck out two.

Colvin, 22, is durable and, despite injuries this year, projects well. His workload has been heavy throughout his career, and he can clearly handle eating innings and giving his team a solid chance to win in a starting role. It might do him good to have another half-season in Double-A, but if he can finish strong, he’s not far from earning a big league call.

It’s always interesting to see how prospects adapt to new levels after they are promoted, and one of the most promotion-heavy parts of the year is the days around the trade deadline. Today, I want to discuss five prospects promoted in that recent vicinity or so who merit close attention as they take on the challenge of succeeding against a higher level of competition. These aren’t necessarily the five most notable prospects to recently move up a level–I have a longer list (not counting Luke Jackson, A.J. Cole, and Josmil Pinto, who I’ve already discussed in recent articles on this site), and I’m tackling five of them this week and others next week.

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Pirates righthanded pitcher Tyler Glasnow stayed put at the trade deadline, but not before being tossed around as a centerpiece of many a trade rumor. His name, therefore, has penetrated the consciousness of many a fan. The recent swirlings aren’t the only thing that have boosted Glasnow’s stock: 128 strikeouts in 93 1/3 innings in A-ball as a 19-year-old have a way of doing that on their own. The fact that he’s 6’7″ heightens the intrigue–even without seeing him live, the age, size, and numbers all paint the picture of a dominant flamethrower with bigtime stuff. A wunderkind. A legend in the making. Glasnow wasn’t even a can’t-miss amateur who we could all see coming–he was a mere fifth-round pick back in 2011. I won’t say he came out of nowhere, but this is definitely a breakout campaign–he came in as the Pirates’ #19 prospect before the season according to Baseball America, which indicates he was somewhat noteworthy but hardly a central figure in their system like he is today.

If you don’t actually go and see Glasnow, it’s easy to get swept up in trains of thought that bear an aura of mythology, imagining this 6’7″ teenager who rose out of obscurity and became Justin Verlander overnight. But I have seen this fast-rising arm live (on June 14, against Greensboro), and today, I want to separate the reality from the hype on this intriguing young pitcher.

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Brooklyn, New York — Toss the hype aside. LJ Mazzilli has quietly, steadily put together an excellent professional debut season.

After the Mets drafted him out of UConn in the fourth round, the son of former Met Lee Mazzilli, was rushed into the spotlight of a media blitz.

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It is often difficult to factor a prospect’s age into his projection. We find ourselves struggling to decide if a 24-year-old High-A player hitting .350 with power is good or just a mirage; conversely, we have to tease out how much of a 17-year-old’s struggles in full-season ball are due to mere inexperience and how much results from a simple lack of talent.

Today, I’m going to look at five players who are very young for their levels but who we shouldn’t give up hope on. All five have average or worse statlines but could still evolve into big MLB assets.

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Whether we like to admit it or not, exposure can play a key role in the perception of baseball prospects. Baseball’s player universe is so wide, and there’s so much going on during the season, that it’s impossible to get a good firsthand read on every notable minor leaguer out there–invariably, we have to turn to outside sources (like this very website!) to fill in the gaps and lend some measure of authority. The more sources unite at a given point in their praise or condemnation for a particular prospect, the more likely we are to take that praise or condemnation as gospel.

One surefire way for a prospect to get some helium in this fashion is to be traded, especially if the trade involves a somewhat protracted negotiation period where the prospect’s name comes up again–you know, when we hear “This is the guy System A would hate to lose and System B has to have” and so on. This sort of publicity can’t help but have an effect on the general notability of a prospect–suddenly, an A-ball guy with good numbers goes from somebody discussed on a few MiLB-centric websites and discussion threads to a topic on Baseball Tonight. For those who don’t keep extensive track of the minor leagues, suddenly the player is on their radar.

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Staten Island, New York — There are always players that force you to watch.

When Cale Coshow takes the mound, there’s a lot going on, and it’s a study in “working it out.”

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Two weeks ago in this space, I discussed five sleeper first base prospects.  Read the rest of this entry »

This year, 252 pitchers have started a game in the major leagues. Exactly 21 of them have maintained an average fastball velocity of 94 mph or greater in their starts. The list reads like a who’s who of current and potential aces: Stephen Strasburg, Matt Harvey, Gerrit Cole, Kevin Gausman, Jarred Cosart, Andrew Cashner, Zack Wheeler, Alfredo Figaro…okay, not all 21 come with heaps of accolades. Still, velocity is undoubtedly a prized commodity in starting pitchers, and anybody who threatens to someday join the 94+ starter club merits our attention.

I recently saw two pitchers who may someday join that club: Texas prospect Luke Jackson and Washington prospect A.J. Cole. Both righthanded pitchers are having excellent campaigns in High-A and have big velocity behind those numbers. Let’s take a closer look at what sort of potential these two flamethrowers have.

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While last year’s MLB Draft probably brought a bit more talent to the New York Penn League, the short season league is still ripe with top picks, returning guys showing improvement, and players that are emerging into the spotlight. The crop is more interesting this year.

This is a review of the league through twenty games, and there are similarities in overall team performance compared to 2012. One of them is the Hudson Valley Renegades and Tri-City Valley Cats once again fielding some of the most solid talent in the league, talent that’s rising to the challenge.

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