Mike Pelfrey was a highly touted prospect. Brad Holt is a prospect that started off not getting as much attention as Pelfrey, but now is starting too. Following a similar path, in my opinion will be Dillon Gee. Gee has been with the Mets since 2007, when he was 21 years old. He has always had good stuff, and he is starting to slowly get recognize. If he pulls off another minor league year like his two previous, it is almost certain that at this time next year, he will be demanding a lot of attention (possibly as much as Niese). Who is this guy anyway? Well this year he will be 23 years old and more than likely will be starting at AA. This year, Baseball America, in their yearly top ten Mets prospect preview, didn't rank Gee but did say he had the best changeup in the organization. Here are his numbers over the last few seasons:
2007-Brk: 3-1, 14G, 11GS, 62IP, 9 BB, 56 K, 2.47 ERA, 1.06 WHIP
2008-PSL: 8-6, 21G, 21GS, 127.1 IP, 19 BB, 94 K, 3.25 ERA, 1.07 WHIP
2008-Bng: 2-0, 4G, 4GS, 27 IP, 5 BB, 20 K, 1.33 ERA, 0.85 WHIP
2009-Spring: G, 2.0 IP, H, 2K, 0.50 WHIP
The stats that should be jumping off the page are the WHIPs and the BB compared to the K. First off, at every level, he has had an amazing WHIP, including that stazzling 0.85 in AA last year. On top of that he walks so few batters compared to his strikeout rate. For a pitcher that is being praised with his changeup that means he is getting people to swing at it and he has good enough control with his pitches that he can use a changeup effectively and still have a low WHIP. His ERA has also been very good so far as well. Now at the age of 23, I think this year will be very important for him. If he has another good to great year in the minors, then next year he will be tryring to get a pitching spot. If the Mets rotation becomes too crowded next year, and it doesn't look like he will make the team, he could also make good trade bait (because his price could be potentially be high). Overall though, he is another player to pay attention to over the season.
