Opening Day 2015 Roster Part II: Starting Pitching

The first opening day 2015 roster post generated a lot of interesting thoughts and ideas so I decided to go into another part of the team in pitching. Before the Rangers trot out Vladimir Guerrero for the first time in million years out in right field in San Franciso, it'll give us a little fun discussion to have. As we all know by now (thanks to expert informations from IHSB, Zephon, and others,) there a lot of interesting arms down in our minor league system. I know not all of them will pan out but I'm truly hoping that some of them will at least. Notice again that this list is only speculative and it only includes the players currently in our system. So without further a due, the 2015 pitching.

*All reports are my own scouting report from the times I saw these guys with few insights from expert articles. 

Starting Rotation

SP 1 Jarrod Parker - What else can you say about this guy? Throws good fastball in upper 90s and has a wicked off speed pitches. He can control all four of his primary pitches to near perfection and guy just knows how to pitch. He is the type of pitcher that when hitters come up to bat, they literally cringe.

SP 2 Tyler Skaggs - Fortunately, had a chance to see him pitch once. Good velociy coming from the left side (I believe he hit 94) and has a very good command of his pitches. Solid pick off moves and pounds the strike zone. He is still very young but he pitches like he is a seasoned veteran. Definte top of the rotation type of guy.

SP 3 Daniel Hudson - Absolute steal (although Edwin Jackson pitched pretty well for the White Sox) and he looks like a fixture in the rotation for the coming years. As you all saw, he can flat out pitch and knows how to get guys out.

SP 4 Pat Corbin - I know I might be a lot more high on this guy than many other people might be but when I saw him pitch he left me an impression stating that he's a, well, a pitcher. He is never going to be anyone's ace but he will be a must in a rotation who can give you solid innings day in and day out.

SP 5 Charles Brewer - Nothing flashy by him, but good control of his pitches as well as his baseball smarts gives him a huge advantage when it comes to battle with a hitter. He knows how to play with batter's head and puts up good sequences to get guys out. Has quite a bit of movement on his pitches as well.

Those five guys will be my best bet for now. Here are the guys that did not make my list but will probably be players for the rotation as well as bullpen.

Ian Kennedy - It's not that I don't think Kennedy will be succesful but I think he will price himself out of our team as well as we'll have many young pitchers coming up. Until then, I think he is as valuable as anyone on this pitching staff.

Patrick Schuster - Probably will be left pitching out of the bullpen, but I do see his future in the majors. He may not get those no hitters, but he certainly has the stuff (like his curveball) to help out a ball club.

Kevin Eichhorn - Injuries slowed down his progression but I think he is a good pitcher. He could be a long man on this team and perhaps even a 5th starter. Not a hard thrower but more of a crafty pitcher.

Wade Miley - Got himself back on the map with solid season. I think he will be in the rotation in a year but will be pushed out by the time 2015 rolls around. Reminds me a lot of Doug David and Joe Saunders.

Chase Anderson - Very interesting pitcher. Not like some other prospects on this list that he stands out in any one area. Not the hardest thrower, nor super poised, nor does he have those wicked off speed pitches, but he gets guys out. That tells you that he knows what he is doing.

Josh Collmentor - Two things: Mustache and change up. They are both something very special. Keep an eye on this guy because you will most likely going to see him up in Phoenix sometime soon.

Barry Enright - I enjoyed watching him pitch this season and could name few reasons why he will be succesful starter for years to come. But two things that overshadows them are his low strike out rate and his high flyball ratio. Two things that will not bode well at Chase.

Cody Wheeler - Not much information on him as I have yet to see him pitch. It seems like he has nothing flashy but will sure keep my eye on the 5th rounder.

Mike Belfiore - Somewhat of a disappointment this past year, I ultimately see his future in the bullpen. Good fastball command and solid secondary pitches. Could see him as anything from lefty specialist to a Jeremy Affeldt type setup man.

Eric Smith - Sinkerballer who has the means to be a solid starter but will probably be beat out by the other guys. One name that I can think of when coming up with comparisons, good version of Chad Qualls.

Here are the list of guys who might be on the verge of coming up to the bigs.

Blake Perry - Have yet to see him pitch as well so going to go with strictly a scouting report found online. Hear that he is a four pitch pitcher with high baseball IQ. Throws pretty hard but still raw. Could be a mid rotation starter.

Tyler Green - Another one of those high school arms that I have yet to see for myself, but the organization is high on this guy.

J.R. Bradely - Saw his very first start and although the results weren't that great, he erased my bizarred out mind when he was selected in the second round which I thought was a reach. Very good secondary pitches and with some development, could be a big name player.

Enrique Burgos - He's a guy who throws his heart out with every pitch that leaves his hand. A guy that you have to cheer on for and know that his teammates want to make plays for him. Good type of ballplayer to surround your club with.

Scottie Allen - Played his first full season in the Midwest League at age 18 which is ridiculous. What is more ridiculous is not only did he survive the league but his strikeout rate of more than 1 per inning was a shocking stat. Can only get more excited about his future.

Robby Rowland - Ballplayer I thought was a giant when he walked up to the mound. Could not believe he was only 18 years old. He utilzes his size to pound the ball down and mixes his pitches well.

Blake Cooper - Heard a lot of this guy. Everybody that has seen him pitch has come out impressed with his composure and cool on the mound. Not only that, he knows what he's doing even at such young age.

David Holmberg - Young southpaw who does not throw hard but utilizes all of his pitches to get guys out. I do somewhat agree with Nick Piecoro's comparison to Brett Anderson,  but I see a little of David Wells in him.

That's it for now. I can't believe we have all these arms in our system as all of them could be a solid major leaguers. This list doesn't even include (hopefully) one of the two big name pitchers in upcoming draft. Even if only half of these guys pan out and fulfill their potential, I think we'll have ourselves a solid, dangerous staff for years to come. I will take a look at our revamped coaching staff for 2011 in few days. It surely is an interesting group of guys.