David Patton, the Cubs’ Rule V pick this year is going to give it his best shot. And according to Lou Piniella, he’s “in the picture”.
While the Cubs’ bullpen is crowded, that’s not to say it couldn’t use a little improvement. But is Mr Patton the answer? The Bleacher Report seems to think so calling Patton “a gem”. Others may be a little more skeptical.
Here are his minor league numbers.
The Cubs acquired him from the Reds but he originally hails from the Colorado system. His farm numbers looks ok. He has high strikeout rate but his control isn’t anything to write home about. But hopefully that would come in time.
Much is being made in the media of his spring numbers this year. One run allowed in 7 2/3 innings with 9 strikeouts. Impressive but I don’t need to remind any baseball fan of falling for stats within small sample sizes.
We’ll know in a couple what the future holds for David Patton. He has a long row to hoe if he has a shot in the Cubs’ bullpen. But the way he’s pitching now, this is his chance.