Red Sox' near-MLB ready starting pitching

[ivanvamp]

Here are the pitchers that appear to be ready, or close to being ready, for the majors (i.e., by the end of 2015 perhaps), and what they've done this year (this list includes some guys who have pitched for the Sox this year):
 
Workman (age 25)
Bos (AL) - 52.1 ip, 4.13 era, 1.19 whip, 7.1 k/9
Paw (AAA) - 54.2 ip, 4.45 era, 1.34 whip, 8.1 k/9
 
DeLaRosa (age 25)
Bos (AL) - 48.1 ip, 3.54 era, 1.22 whip, 6.7 k/9
Paw (AAA) - 60.0 ip, 3.45 era, 1.25 whip, 8.6 k/9
 
Ranaudo (age 24)
Paw (AAA) - 119.1 ip, 2.41 era, 1.15 whip, 7.5 k/9
 
Barnes (age 24)
Paw (AAA) - 81.0 ip, 4.89 era, 1.54 whip, 6.6 k/9
 
Webster (age 24)
Paw (AAA) - 122.0 ip, 3.10 era, 1.24 whip, 7.4 k/9
 
Owens (age 21)
Por (AA) - 116.0 ip, 2.56 era, 1.10 whip, 9.5 k/9
 
Johnson (age 23)
Sal (A) - 25.2 ip, 3.86 era, 1.17 whip, 11.6 k/9
Por (AA) - 84.2 ip, 2.13 era, 1.09 whip, 7.9 k/9
 
Escobar (age 21)
Fresno (AAA) - 111.0 ip, 5.11 era, 1.49 whip, 7.8 k/9
 
To me, the most MLB-ready guys are clearly Workman and RDLR, since both have actually been effective in the majors this season (and Workman, last season as well).  Ranaudo and Webster absolutely deserve a legit shot at some point soon.  Owens needs to dominate AAA but he's very much on the fast track.  And Johnson looks like a gem as well, but needs more time.  Maybe by 2016 he's in the Red Sox rotation.  Who knows.  Escobar looks like a possibility to be a back-end guy within a couple of years.
 
Barnes has been the big disappointment, but he still has a lot of ability.  I'd be inclined to move him in a trade for a bat.  
 
But still, that's a LOT of quality young pitching very close to MLB-ready.  They can't keep them all, I don't think.  This doesn't even take into consideration the fact that they still have Buchholz and Doubront under contract for a while longer.  

 

[Rasputin]

They probably aren't going to keep them all, but they could. 
 
There's been talk of making RDLR a closer forever it seems and while it seems premature to do that right now, it's certainly possible that events could conspire to make it a reasonable option come next spring.
 
And if we have a largely veteran back of the 'pen, say if we kept Uehara and Miller, we could fill in the less important bits with guys like Ranaudo, Workman, and Barnes.

 

[smastroyin]

They can't keep all of them and chances are pretty good that they all won't merit keeping.
 
We will probably find out things about Webster, Workman, and Ranaudo this year.
 
Barnes isn't ready for the majors unless you mean ready to have a year worse than Jake Peavy's.  I hope that he will improve.

 

[j44thor]

I wonder if they will consider moving Barnes to the pen where his high 90s fastball may play up and cover up his lack of a 3rd pitch.  Might be a bit early to make that move but if they don't end up trading some of the arms he may be more valuable to the Sox as a late inning reliever than back of the rotation starter.

 

[Snodgrass'Muff]

I wonder if they will consider moving Barnes to the pen where his high 90s fastball may play up and cover up his lack of a 3rd pitch.  Might be a bit early to make that move but if they don't end up trading some of the arms he may be more valuable to the Sox as a late inning reliever than back of the rotation starter.

 
Has anyone gotten a good look at Barnes' fastball? I always got a bit of a Papelbon vibe from him, though that was just a gut feeling. Sox Prospects describes it as having good downward action in the zone, but that it flattens out when he leaves it up, so it doesn't appear to that that 'wild in the zone' late life Papelbon thrived on. Even still, I'm starting to lean toward the pen with him.

 

[LostinNJ]

Patience is key. It's possible we have the makings of a very good, inexpensive 2016 rotation already in the system. They need to use the rest of this year to find out as much as they can about these guys. That means giving some major league starts to Ranaudo and Webster, and some AAA starts to Owens and Johnson. It's true that Workman and de la Rosa are more MLB-ready, but because they are known quantities, more or less, it's not as important to get them up to the big club. Maybe they can rotate Peavy's slot among three or four guys, giving them two or three starts each. But for now they should be working under the assumption that they have a strong bunch of future major league starters.

 

[Monbo Jumbo]

I think 30 year old knuckleballer Steven Wright's 0.89 WHIP in 69 innings at Pawtucket gets him in the discussion.

 

[Stan Papi Was Framed]

I think 30 year old knuckleballer Steven Wright's 0.89 WHIP in 69 innings at Pawtucket gets him in the discussion.

yes.  would be nice to see him get a shot--though not easy to see how this happens

 

[Merkle's Boner]

I think the FO needs to be considering whether they have a bunch of #3 starters here, or if any of these guys can raise their game to lead a staff. I agree that Workman and RDLR may be the most MLB-ready, but I don't believe either of them have high ceilings as a starter. Doesn't make them not valuable, but it may make them expendable.

Based on his performance this year and his pedigree as one of the stud pitchers of his draft year and the guy who won the College World Series IIRC, I think we need to start getting an idea whether Ranuado can be a Guy, one who can be an anchor. Going into this season, I didn't think he would figure it out, but it sure looks like he's putting it together.

I think this is one of the most critical decisions Cherington and crew have to make over the next twelve months. If they can deduce who among this group will be a part of a future rotation, and sell off the rest while they still have value, that can really set them up well for the future.

 

[Plympton91]

It would be instructive to compare the Red Sox stable of AAA and AA starters to their competitors stable. How do the Red Sox starters compare to Gausman and Bundy for the O's? How do they compare to Yordano and Duffy for KC? How do they compare to Hernandez, Iwakuma, Paxton, and Taijuan Walker? How do they compare to Sonny Gray and the rest of what the A's have under control for the next 6 years?