Diamondbacks top prospect Trevor Bauer doesn't have much more to prove at the minor-league level. Friday night, he offered up yet another dominant outing, striking out 11 in seven shutout innings. His line so far, combining eight Double-A and five Triple-A starts: 10-1, 1.79 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 102 strikeouts, 80 1/3 innings. The Triple-A starts are in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, too.
So what are the D-Backs waiting on? This past week, general manager Kevin Towers said the following to the Arizona Republic:
“Those things kind of work themselves out. He’s pretty much done everything he probably could do at Double-A and Triple-A and he’s been very successful at it. Sometimes you’ve just got to wait your turn, wait for that opportunity. How that opportunity presents itself -- be it an injury, a trade, or somebody not performing who ends up going down -- then you take advantage of it. Right now, I don’t know who I’d take out of the rotation to make room for him. I don’t want to bring him up into the bullpen.”
Towers is right that the D-Backs don't exactly have an opening. Ian Kennedy is the ace. Daniel Hudson has far too much ability and previous track record to be removed. Trevor Cahill and Joe Saunders aren't pitching their respective ways out of the rotation at this point, and Wade Miley has been brilliant.
Still, I'd find a way -- trying to trade Saunders, to name one example -- to get Bauer up. He's obviously ready and could be the staff ace for years.
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