Here are the rules. There are three...
Any level of minor leaguer is fine from Dayton to Louisville. No Rookie level players, unless they are projected to be at Dayton or higher to start this season.
- The player cannot be on the BA top ten list.
- The player cannot be on the RedsZone top 10 list
- You must give a reason for this breakout other than... "I got a hunch..."
And now, here is my breakout player... Tyler Pelland.
LH pitchers take longer to develop. Pelland has been over-promoted the last two seasons, a trend that could continue this year as he has been mentioned pitching in Bats games this ST. Pelland is a power pitcher with a fastball that can hit 95 and from all reports a big curveball. His K/9 number dropped sharply in 2006, but some of that could be attributed to an increased workload. In 2005 under DanO's tandem stater program, Pelland only got 15 starts and pitched right around 100 innings. in 2006, that was upped to 140. He's good at keeping the ball in the park, only 11 HR's in 142 IP in 2006, 5 HR's in 102 IP in 2005.
Bailey, Cueto and Wood get a lot of press, and deservedly so. If Pelland gets his K/9 back to where it was in 2005, he could be in a reds uniform in some capacity as soon as next year. If he's assigned to Louisville and does well, he's a possible September callup.