Collin Balester

Balester re-invented himself as a reliever, adding life to his fastball and relying more on his cutter, which resulted in a 28:11 K:BB ratio in 21 big league innings and, perhaps most important, a dramatic improvement in his G/F ratio. If he can keep the ball down and maintain a strikeout rate north of 9.0 K/9IP he can survive the shaky control, but it's a fine line to walk to stay effective.

Balester once again struggled in 2009, getting rocked for 10 home runs in 30.1 innings in the majors and not pitching all that much better at Triple-A. He's still got youth on his side and won't turn 24 until midseason, but the last time he put up numbers befitting a real prospect was in 2007 at Double-A, and with the Nationals adding higher-ceiling prospects behind him Balester needs to produce, and fast, to hang on to a job.

Out of a sense of false optimism or maybe just desperation, the Nationals decided Balester was ready for the majors, but his performance in 15 big league starts showed just how far from reality was that perception. On the bright side his strikeout and walk rates stayed stable from the season before, but his inability to keep the ball in the park cost him after his promotion. His build, low-90's fastball and developing curve might remind some of Gavin Floyd, but remember that it took Floyd three years from his big league debut until he turned things around, and a similar timetable for Balester wouldn't be a shock.

Balester hardly dominated the high minors as a 21-year-old in 2007, but even being able to hold his own was an accomplishment. He improved his control at Double-A, but couldn't maintain it after a promotion and his mechanics and breaking pitches are still something of a work in progress. The lack of depth in the Nationals organization has pushed him up the ladder quickly, but they need to be very careful not to promote him to the majors until he's ready. He'll likely make his Nationals debut in '08, but don't expect him to start producing usable numbers until at least 2009.