Your Future Rotation: Part One

It seems unlikely that David Purcey won't join the rotation in one of the back three starter spots, which will mark the potential of a first full season in the majors. Purcey was drafted in 2004, and was called up for good last year on Jul 26th to face Seattle. Prior to that, he threw four walk laden innings against Detroit, and was shelled by the Phillies in three painful innings of work. One his return to the bigs, Purcey had good control, striking out four and allowing only three runs in six innings.

Purcey would prove maddingly inconsistent for the next two months, alternating quality outings with blow outs. His control improved dramatically, recording 55Ks verses just 18BBs in that period, and he managed to get the ball down against power bats, reducing his vulnerability to the home run. Despite a 3-6 record and an ERA of 5.54, Purcey proved to be fairly unlucky on the mound, giving up hits in batches and surrendering a lot of runs in the process.

Assuming things even out, Purcey's ERA should improve in 2009. Purcey showed some moments of brilliance against some very tough teams. In fact, his two best outings were against Tampa Bay, a team of very powerful bats. In two starts against Tampa Bay, he gave up just a single run, limiting them to 11 hits, and recording 18Ks verses 3BBs. When at his best, Purcey lives and dies by his control, keeping the ball down and working both sides of the plate to keep hitters off balance. While his low 90s fastball and his sinker are his main pitches, Purcey changes speeds relatively well, mixing in a slurve-like curve, a solid changeup and a cutter.

While Purcey has none of the buzz that New York or Boston's young starters has, there's every reason to believe that Purcey could turn out to be a solid part of the rotation. His mechanics are sound, he's got a good range of pitches he can mix effectively, and his history suggests that he's got the potential to eat a lot of innings. As long as he can develop a little more consistency with his control between outings, 2009 could be a break out year for him.