Bauer to the bigs? ESPN insider thinks so

The Arizona Diamondbacks selected UCLA star Trevor Bauer
with the third pick in the 2011 MLB draft, and many
figured the Golden Spikes Award winner would be on the
fast track to the majors.

Though the righty with the funky windup finished his first
pro season with Double-A Mobile, there are some who think
he’ll be pitching at Chase Field this season.

ESPN’s Keith Law, in an Insider story naming the top 20 impact
prospects for 2012, placed the 21-year-old 11th.

Bauer could be in the top few spots on this list if he had
a spot in Arizona’s rotation, but he’ll start the season
in the minors barring an injury. That said, Joe Saunders
isn’t as good as Bauer, and Josh Collmenter is a novelty
act whose deception won’t cover his lack of stuff for much
longer, and I think Bauer’s ability to miss bats with
multiple pitches will get him to the majors sooner rather
than later. Teammate Tyler Skaggs also could be in line
for a call-up, as the D-backs will be better off with
Bauer and Skaggs in the No. 4-5 spots for the second half
of the season than they would be with Collmenter and
Saunders.

Bauer compiled a 5.96 ERA in seven games pitched last
season, but that has done nothing to dampen how experts
like Law view him. Of course, that probably has something
to do with the 43 strikeouts over 25.2 innings pitched,
showing that professional hitters have a tough time
catching up with whatever Bauer is throwing their way.

After all, he was utterly dominant at the collegiate level
and, with his stuff and makeup, should have little trouble
being an effective member of the D-backs pitching staff —
either in the rotation our out of the bullpen — at some
point in 2012.

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