Charlie Haeger

A strong spring training led to Haeger unexpectedly breaking camp as the team's No. 5 starter, but after a 12-strikeout Dodger debut, Haeger regressed quickly, ultimately finding himself designated for assignment and accepting an assignment to Triple-A Albuquerque. Haeger now finds himself in Seattle where he's likely to be Triple-A insurance at best unless his knuckler starts evoking memories of Phil Niekro.

Haeger posted a 3.32 ERA in 19.2 innings for the Dodgers, but after making just three starts, the knuckleballer lost his rotation spot after the August trade for Jon Garland. He could enter camp in competition for the No. 5 starter job, but it's hard to foresee any fantasy value here.

A knuckleballer working half of his games in the cavernous confines of Petco Park has a nice ring to it, at least that’s what San Diego hoped as they claimed Haeger off waivers from the White Sox last September. He spent the rest of the month in the Padres' bullpen, but didn't do enough to be tendered a contract for 2009. Before he has any major league success, let alone becomes fantasy relevant, he needs to learn how to throw the floater for more strikes. Think about how reluctant many are to roster Tim Wakefield, despite very good surface peripherals.

The knuckleballing Haeger spent his second straight year at Triple-A after missing out on a chance to win a rotation spot in the spring. The results weren't great, but they weren't bad either. He still allowed less than a hit per inning and his strikeout rate was excellent for a knuckler but his command deserted him, as evidenced by 67 walks and serving up 16 homers in 147.2 innings (he allowed just 13 homers in the previous two seasons combined). If either John Danks or Gavin Floyd disappoint in the spring the Sox would be wise to stick Haeger at the backend of their rotation and soak up the innings while the kids get their feet wet at Triple-A but he's likely headed to Triple-A to start the season.

Haeger is a young knuckleballer with all the pluses and minuses associated with both youth and the fact that he throws an unpredictable pitch. His upper-level minor league performances earned the 23-year-old a shot in the majors, but it's not coming from the mastery of his craft. He had a 14-6 record in Triple-A Charlotte in 2006, but walked over four batters per nine innings and threw a career-high 15 wild pitches. Some of that is attributable to his catcher. Major league hitters had trouble figuring him out, too, striking out 19 times in 18.1 innings. He could be fun to have around, but is tough to predict.