Ian Kennedy, the No. 1 pick in the 2006 draft pitching for the Tampa Yankees

When I came over to SportsGrumblings.com, one of the features I brought with me was Treasure Hunting. However, I was really getting in to the whole, “any goes,” format of Bullet Points, so I decided to go daily with BP, at the expense of this old standby. However, I was talking with SportsGrumblings’ Tony Finn, and he was all like, “Mark, whatever happened to Treasure Hunting?” I mentioned about the daily BP and all that, but Tony’s response was, “Mark, Treasure Hunting is the flagship. That’s our WWE Raw. The daily Bullet Points? That’s like ECW on SciFi.”

(Yes, I know there are like five people on the planet that get that – just work with me.)

Throwing down that gauntlet, there was no way I could turn down that challenge, so Treasure Hunting, the original baseball edition, is back.

What do we do here? Every week, we will look at two lesser-known players, either up-and-comers or players switching in to new roles, and take a look at where they have been with an eye towards where they are going? Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?

This week, we have a pair of starting pitchers. The National League one already made his debut just a few short days ago for a team largely out of the playoff picture. For the American League one, he will be making his debut Saturday for a team that still very much considers themselves alive in the hunt.

Ian Kennedy, Starting Pitcher, New York Yankees

No matter how good Ian Kennedy has been in the minors this year, he was not going to force his way into the Yankees’ rotation, and he still has not. His making his major league debut on Saturday is due far more to what has befallen Mike Mussina than what Kennedy was doing in the minors. Mussina, to put it mildly, has been horrific, and is fooling absolutely no one. As a result, manager Joe Torre has announced that Mussina has been removed from the rotation and will be replaced by Kennedy.

So, who is Ian Kennedy?

A first round selection by the Yankees last year with the 21st pick overall, Kennedy appeared in just one game with Staten Island in the New York/Penn League, pitching just 2 2/3 innings. Before that, Kennedy was 5-7 with a 3.90 ERA and a 102:38 K/BB ratio in 16 appearances, 15 as a starter, with the USC Trojans in his junior year.

While that one outing counts as Kennedy’s professional debut, his pro career really kicked off this year, starting out in the Florida State League with the Tampa Yankees. The opposition was simply no contest for Kennedy at this level, as he would finish with Tampa 6-1 in 11 appearances, ten as a starter, with a 1.29 ERA, recording 72 strikeouts in 63 innings while walking only 22 and holding opposing batters to a lowly .183 batting average. Promoted to Double-A Trenton for nine more starts, it would be much of the same, as Kennedy was 5-1 with a 2.59 ERA, with 57 strikeouts and 17 walks and a .163 batting average against. Again, no contest.

The Yankees would move Kennedy a third time, this time to Triple-A. In six starts, all Kennedy has done is go 1-1 with a 2.08 ERA, 34 strikeouts, 11 walks, and a .205 batting average against.

Now, he is done with the minors, in all likelihood for good.

What can we expect out of Kennedy when he comes up? He might struggle this year like rookies do, but he already looks incredibly polished, and he could be a strikeout machine very soon in the bigs if he pitches anywhere near like what he has done in the minors. In any league where he is still open and you need to wait until he arrives to grab him, do so as soon as possible this weekend.

Troy Patton, Starting Pitcher, Houston Astros

Unlike Kennedy, Patton has actually had to spend some time in the minors, but not a whole heck of a lot, having been a third round selection in the 2004 draft. Of course, Patton was also a selection out of high school, so his minor league apprenticeship was like Kennedy’s time at USC only without the hiding the keg from the dorm RA.

Patton signed quick enough to get in to six games in the Appy League, where he was 2-2 with a 1.93 ERA, striking out 32 and walking just five – a nice start. Patton would then move up to the Sally League to open 2005, and he dominated, going 5-2 with a 1.94 ERA in 15 starts, striking out 94 while walking just 20 in 78 2/3 starts. Clearly not needing to prove anything there, Patton was moved again, this time up to the Carolina League. Not bad at all for a 19-year-old pitcher to be in High-A.

His numbers would continue to impress, as he was 1-4 with a 2.63 ERA in ten appearances, nine as a starter, with 38 strikeouts and 8 walks in 41 innings. Still, he was left in the Carolina League to open the 2006 season, and he would post similar numbers – 7-7 with a 2.84 ERA in 19 starts, with 102 strikeouts and 37 walks in 101 1/3 innings. Clearly, still needing a test, Patton was moved up again, this time to Double-A.

Now things would start getting harder. Finishing the season with the Corpus Christi Hooks, Patton was just 2-5 with a 4.37 ERA in eight starts with a 37:13 strikeout-to-walk ratio. These numbers would be an indication to the Astros that Patton could use a little more time in Double-A, so he would return there to open the 2007 season.

His numbers the second time around were much better, as he was 6-6 this year with a 2.99 ERA in 16 starts, but the strikeout numbers were not as dominating as they had been at previous levels, with 68 strikeouts and 33 walks in 102 1/3 innings. Promoted to Triple-A Round Rock for eight more starts, Patton’s ERA would again rise, to 4.59, and his K/BB was 25:11 – a solid ratio, but when looked at over 49 innings works out to a sharp drop in his strikeout numbers from previous seasons.

That brings us to the bigs, as he made his major league debut last week, allowing six hits, two walks, and three earned runs in 5 2/3 innings, and he struck out four.

Patton will stick in the rotation for the rest of the season, and he should put up solid ratios, but he is simply not the power strikeout pitcher that his early numbers might have indicated. It is really easy to strike out pitchers with less than overpowering stuff in A-ball, but far less so in the bigs. A control pitcher more than a power pitcher, Patton will have successes, but he will also have days where his control fails him and he is lit up. It might seem cliché that scouts prefer a sick fastball, but there is a reason – it is always something to fall back on if your other pitches fail you. Patton does not have one so keep that in mind.

That wraps up this week – next week, we look back at how these two are doing and bring you two more names you need to know.

Questions, comments, hate mail, and PayPal donations can be sent to markhaverty@sportsgrumblings.com.