Head to head preview redux - AA playoff teaser

Jeff and I posted our takes on the NY - O's series this past weekend. The Evil Empire emerged triumphant, bolstering their dimming prospects for extending their long playoffs streak. It's back to NY to face the Bosox for the finaltime in Yankee Stadium history and hopefully make up some more ground in the playoff chase.

But perhaps a nearly as intriguing matchup starts tonight in beautiful Bowie MD. The first place AA affiliates of NY and Baltimore, the Trenton Thunder and Bowie BaySox offer a possible Eastern League championship series preview the next 3 nights. We rarely talk minor leagues here, but this is a good time to start.

What's most interesting is the depth and quality of starting pitching each team has delivered this season - perhaps boding well for the future of both teams. This weeks' matchups showcase a number of those players, with others perhaps appearing should these teams meet in the championship series, not much more than a week away. They are the top 2 teams in the league after all.

The matchups are as follows (hat tip to Mike Ashmore of Thunder Thoughts):

Tuesday, 8/26, 7:05 PM: TRE Jason Jones (13-5, 2.79) vs. BOW Chris Tillman (9-4, 3.32)
Wednesday, 8/27, 7:05 PM: TRE Eric Hacker (7-3, 2.65) vs. BOW Zach Clark (3-1, 2.70)
Thursday, 8/28, 7:05 PM: TRE Jeff Marquez (0-1, 3.60) vs. BOW Jason Berken (12-3, 3.37)

Just looking at the numbers one can see how successful the pitching of both teams has been. A couple of these guys, Clark for Bowie and Marquez for Trenton, have largely labored in other arenas or roles. Clark is the fill-in from relief duty at multiple levels for Chris Waters - now at AAA after his 4 start ML debut - and the heralded but injured Chorye Spoone. Marquez worked most of this season in AAA with mixed results - an injury has him now finishing the season at AA. But he's on NY's 40 man roster, was their #7 prospect on BA's 2008 top 10 in NY, and was mentioned as part of the prospective trade for Johan Santana this past offseason.

Aside from these 2 latecomers to the AA starting pitcher party, both teams have showcased some of the best pitching performances in the minors this season.

On Bowie's side, Tillman was one of the crown jewels of the trade with Seattle for Bedard, and he hasn't disappointed. Berken is less heralded but has posted the 2nd best WHIP of Bowie's big 4 starters this season. The other 2 which should join in the playoff series fun are Brad Bergesen (15-5, 3.11 ERA) and David Hernandez (9-4, 2.58 ERA, 161 K's in 136 IP). Some lineup. Chorye who?

Facing up to that imposing lineup should include the other 2 above, Jones and Hacker. Jones is the picture of consistency but often an afterthought in the Yanks stable of pitchers - he'd likely be at AAA in most other systems and showed he belongs there when posting a 2.38 ERA with 11 K's, 6H and 1 BB in 11.1 IP in 2 AAA spot starts. Hacker was promoted from A ball earlier this season and hasn't allowed more than 3 ER in any AA start - injuries sidelined him 2 years ago but he's catching up fast. Joining the 3 starting this series is George Kontos (who almost went in the Pitt trade). His record is disappointing due to poor run support but he may well be the best prospect of all with a 3.65 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, and 144 K's in 145 IP.

Fleshing out the Trenton rotation is a rehabbing Victor Zambrano - who did such a bang up job for the O's in a brief stint last season but was last week's EL pitcher of the week - awaiting the call from NY to perhaps augment a shaky rotation which incredibly and painfully includes Sir Sidney Ponson ('member him O's fans?), Darryl Rasner, and the fragile Carl Pavano, fresh off his first start since April '07 and 3rd since 2005.

Trenton has seen a number of other quality starters move on to AAA in this season - Chase Wright, Alfredo Aceves, and Phil Coke are all performing in Scranton now. Dan McCutcheon (who Hacker replaced) preceded them to AAA before moving to Pittsburgh (with AAA SP's Jeff Karstens and Ross Ohlendorf and AA OF and #3 BA prospect Jose Tabata) in NY's trade deadline acquisition of Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte. But they've barely missed a step.

A couple of other top prospects for each team will show their stuff in these games as well. C Matt Wieters - the O's top prospect - and Nolan Reimold, a possible future addition to the O's talented young OF picture, are the featured performers while OF Lou Montanez has taken his AA Triple Crown talents up to Baltimore. For NY, Trenton CF Austin Jackson is their top position player prospect but is resting a stiff back. Others of interest include C Francisco Cervelli (he's missed most of the season after getting leveled in a spring game home plate collision that touched off the Yanks - Rays dust up featuring since demoted Shelly Duncan and Jonny Gomes), unheralded 2B Kevin Russo, and co IF backup prospects (what else can they hope for with A-Rod, Jeter, and Cano in NY?) AA All Star Chris Malec and Futures game participant Ramiro Pena.

The clash of their possible pitching future is on for all to follow this week and hopefully for both clubs again in the Eastern League finals in early September.