Minor League and Prospect Notes, May 15, 2012

Minor League and Prospect Notes, May 15, 2012

**Los Angeles Dodgers prospect Nate Eovaldi threw seven solid innings for Double-A Chattanooga yesterday, allowing one run on three hits and three walks against Mobile, fanning four. On the season he has a 3.72 ERA with a 25/9 K/BB in 29 innings with 27 hits allowed. He spent a couple of days on the major league roster (without appearing in a game) in late April and will certainly be a candidate for more promotions later this year. It is very interesting that Eovaldi is pitching in Double-A; he was excellent at that level last year and held his own in a major league trial. Normally a guy like that would be in Triple-A, but Albuquerque is what pitchers find in Room 101 of the Ministry of Love.

The starting rotation for the Isotopes currently consists of 26-year-old John Ely, 27-year-old Will Savage, 25-year-old Stephen Fife, 29-year-old Mike Parisi, 26-year-old Mike Antonini, and 29-year-old Fernando Nieve. A couple of those guys are capable of contributing some on the major league level, but none of them are in Eovaldi's class as a prospect.

**Baltimore Orioles uber-prospect Dylan Bundy has given up a grand total of a pair of runs (gasp) in his last two outings, but more importantly went five innings in his most recent start last night as the Orioles are gradually increasing his workload. Overall he now has 25 innings of work for Low-A Delmarva, with a 36/2 K/BB ratio, and four hits allowed. And his ERA is still 0.00 since both runs were unearned.

Meanwhile, Dylan's older brother Bobby Bundy is a significant prospect in his own right, although he's just been mediocre for Double-A Bowie: 4.26 ERA in 36 innings, 26/16 K/BB ratio, 40 hits allowed. He's got a decent fastball in the 88-93 range, but his secondary pitches (curve, slider, changeup) are inconsistent. He was an effective pitcher in A-ball but has struggled since reaching Double-A last year. Ultimately Bobby may end up as a reliever if he doesn't make more progress diversifying his arsenal. He was an eighth-round pick in 2008 from high school in Sperry, Oklahoma.

**Texas A&M right-hander Ross Stripling threw a no-hitter against San Diego State on Saturday.

Stripling is now 9-2 with a 2.36 ERA on the season for the Aggies, with a 97/15 K/BB in 103 innings with 76 hits allowed. Although teammates and top 2012 draft prospects Michael Wacha and Tyler Naquin gets more attention, Striping is an interesting prospect in his own right due to his outstanding track record (he went 14-2, 2.29 last year), excellent curveball, and average (88-91 MPH) fastball. He was a ninth round pick last year by the Colorado Rockies but didn't sign, and he could go a few rounds higher this season. He has more leverage than the typical college senior, being quite open about his desire to attend graduate school.