For those of you in keeper leagues, David Price was probably drafted last year. Tommy Hanson was probably the first minor league pitcher off the board this year. So if these guys are already gone this weekend, don’t worry.
Pick Madison Bumgarner.
Bumgarner was the 10th overall selection by the San Francisco Giants in 2007 and had a 2008 minor league campaign that produced some ridiculous statistics.
How about a K/9 of 10.42, 164 Ks, a 15-3 record and minor-league leading 1.46 ERA?
What’s more impressive is Bumgarner’s control. His K/BB rate was a shade under eight. By way of comparison, elite starters in the majors registered in the 5.2 to 5.6 K/BB range.
And did I mention that he struck out Manny on three pitches this week?
Assuming that injuries don’t slow him down, you’re looking at a left-handed ace in the making that could dominate the National League for years.
At this point, there seems no reason for the Giants to rush his ascension to the majors, so a possible September call up, to get a taste, might be all you see of Bumgarner until 2010.
Surely he is no “sleeper” flying under the radar, and there have been other articles about him on B/R. After all, he is ranked No. 9 by Baseball America and No. 6 by MLB.
But I just liked the title of my article.
Happy drafting.
JZ
- Login to post comments