He looks really good. I saw him while watching YES network against the Yankees. His stuff is great.

ignore that last line.

Hanson pitched a no hitter at AA this year already. He is not going to spend another day in the minor leagues. His development their is done and now his major league development will begin. Hanson basically was throwing just his fastball/curve/change for the first two year that he was in the Braves system because the Braves do not believe in young pitchers throwing sliders. But, when Hanson was in Juco ball that was his best pitch so the night of his no-hitter was the first time the Braves let him throw it. So, while being in the system for two years without throwing his best pitch Hanson fine tuned the command on his low-mid 90’s fastball with excellent movement as well as drastically improving his curveball to the point where it is now a plus pitch.

In the AFL, Hanson’s sole motivation was to improve his changeup and by his results thus far I think its safe to say that this pitch might now be a plus pitch but I haven’t read any conclusive scouting reports on his performance there yet. Needless to say, if you have a guy with a plus low-mid 90’s 2 seam fastball with great movement, mid 90’s four seamer, plus-plus slider, plus curve, and a plus change then I think we are talking about a guy who has that potential to be an Ace pitcher.

I personally like Masterson and think the Red Sox and doing a dis-service to themselves by keeping him in the bullpen but right now I think in terms of ceiling you would have to go with Hanson.

Like I said above, it’s closer than the fanboys here seem to think, but at the same time, your position is pretty silly, too. Dominate weak hitters? He’s owned the AFL! Dominate AA? What do you think he did for his last 20 starts of the year? I mean, did you even look at his season?

Anyhow, here’s Goldstein’s report on him, which I think answers every question you’ve raised in this thread…

Year in Review: One of the best pitchers in the minors throughout the year, Hanson struck out 13 of 15 batters in his season debut, tossed a 14-strikeout no-hitter for Double-A Mississippi in June, and has been the most dominant arm in the Arizona Fall League, allowing four hits over 13 2/3 shutout innings with 19 strikeouts in his first four appearances for Mesa.
The Good: Some scouts believe that Hanson could get big-league hitters out right now, as he’s one of the rare prospects in the game with four plus pitches. His fastball is parked at 91-93 mph but can touch 95-96 when he rears backs for a little extra. His best pitches are his breaking offerings; he throws an over-the-top hard-dropping curve as well as a sharp slider with plenty of tilt, while adding a deceptive changeup against lefties. He’s a big-bodied starter who the Braves had no problem moving to a higher pitch count when he was pitching well.
The Bad: Some wonder if Hanson is not quite as good as his numbers, as most of his strikeouts come on his secondary offerings as opposed to the fastball, and there is some effort in his delivery. While his control is solid, his command can falter at times, and he has a tendency to elevate his pitches.
Fun Fact: During his first four Arizona Fall League appearances, right-handed batters facing Hanson went 2-for-32 with 16 strikeouts.
Perfect World Projection: A consistent 16-18 game winner in the big leagues as a number one or two starter.
Glass Half Empty: As one scout puts it, “He’s good, but not jaw dropping,” and his dependency on the secondary pitches could mean he’s more of a third starter.
Path To The Big Leagues: With an old rotation in need of rebuilding, nothing is blocking Hanson’s way to Atlanta.
Timetable: Some are surprised that Hanson hasn’t already seen the majors, and scouts that have seen him in Arizona think he’s ready. He’ll be given a shot to earn a big-league job in spring training, but the Braves might be more comfortable giving a handful of Triple-A starts first.

To sum up: 4 plus pitches, ceiling is a #1, some scouts think he should have seen the majors last year.

that is the place, as they say, where fly balls go to die, hanson is good, but i have yet to see a single scouting report from anyone say he can be great…of course there was the absolute perfect example above from the professional scout saying “he won’t spend another day in the minor leagues”, i was only chuckling until i got to the end and saw, “by Braves” LOL, I literally did laugh out loud, thank you for that