2008 Projection: Kevin Slowey
Today we round out what I think will be the starting rotation to begin the season for the Minnesota Twins as I continue the 2008 projections series of posts. We've gone through Scott Baker, Francisco Liriano, Livan Hernandez and Boof Bonser. That leaves Kevin Slowey to round out the starters.
| Year | Age | ERA | W | L | INN | HR | BB | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 ZiPS | 24 | 3.93 | 11 | 8 | 181.0 | 22 | 23 | 113 |
| 2007 | 23 | 4.73 | 4 | 1 | 66.7 | 16 | 11 | 47 |
| 2006 (Minors) | 22 | 1.89 | - | - | 148.0 | 8 | 22 | 151 |
Slowey may start out the season as the team's #4 or 5 starter, but talent-wise he should probably slide ahead of Bonser and Hernandez. Long-term, Slowey should be a legitimate #2 or 3 starter and it's probably fair to compare him to Brad Radke.
His 2008 ZiPS projection shows him succeeding on his ability to minimize walks. He averaged just 1.5 BB/9 innings last year. He was, however, touched for 16 homeruns in just 66 2/3 innings at the big league level—definitely not a pace he'll want to keep up. However, his projection shows a fairly reasonable number of 23 long balls allowed in 08, due in part to the fact that he didn't allow so many long balls in the minors.
Slowey got some good run support from the offense in '07, a rare luxury for Twins pitchers, which helped him to a 4-1 record in 11 starts. Seeing Slowey get a full season under his belt is one of the many reasons I'm excited for the 2008 season—despite the fact the '08 Twins are likely a sub .500 team.
My only concern with Kevin, is his ability to keep his blog updated.
Other 2008 projections
Topics: Kevin Slowey, Boof Bonser, Livan Hernandez, Minnesota Twins, Francisco Liriano, Scott Baker, Brad Radke
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