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Mgr Kirk Gibson announces @PatrickCorbin11 will start on Monday at @Marlins
— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) April 28, 2012
It's official. Josh Collmenter has been moved to the bullpen, and Monday will see the debut of one of Arizona's pitching prospects - but it's not Trevor Bauer. Instead, the first man to get the call up from the minors as a starter will by Patrick Corbin, who has been dominating Double-A pitching, posting 1.67 ERA in four starts for Mobile. In the same number of starts for the Diamondbacks, Collmenter's ERA is 9.82. This may only be a temporary promotion for Corbin, given Daniel Hudson's eventual return from the disabled list. What exactly happens then, and whether Hudson replaces Corbin or Wade Miley, will likely depend on the two hurlers' performances over the next couple of outings.
Certainly, Arizona fans will be looking forward to breakfast on Monday morning, and the game against Miami.
Patrick Corbin came over, along with Joe Saunders, the now-forgotten Rafael Rodriguez and fellow prospect Tyler Skaggs , in the deal with the Angels for Dan Haren. Corbin was ranked outside the Anaheim top 10 at the start of 2010, but had a solid enough season his first go-around at Mobile last year, with a 4.21 ERA in 26 starts - worth remembering that this was only his age 21 season, so was definitely young for the level. However, it was his spectacular spring training performance that really got him on the radar. Over his first 15.2 innings of pre-season work, he allowed one run, striking out 15.
He has continued that torrid pace back at Mobile, with six shutout innings in his first start, and seven more in his most recent outing. That came on Tuesday, so his debut slots nicely in against Florida. The scouting report calls him, "A textbook lefty", and goes on to say, "Corbin is a smart and wiry craftsman with three solid pitches and good command. He won't break any radar guns, but he should frustrate more than his fair share of MLB hitters." I'm certainly looking forward to seeing what he brings to the table - especially bearing in mind that he was only our fifth-best pitching prospect at the start of the year...
I do have to wonder what will become of Collmenter, however. With the Diamondbacks' current pitching depth, once a youngster loses his spot on the ladder, it can be very difficult for them to regain it. Barry Enight suffered this fate, and one wonders if Collmenter will be able ever to make it back into the Arizona rotation, or if his role going forward will be a permanent long-reliever.
For those who want a sneak peek (or review) of what the D-backs' new left-hander has to offer, here's some video from his impressive work in Spring Training: