I’ve long made it clear that my biggest future concern as a Red Sox fan is the excellence of the farm system down Tampa. Even when the Rays burst onto the scene as a contender in 2008, it was obvious that this was no one-and-done deal, that they had the pieces available in the minors to put together a sustained run as one of the American League’s top teams.
Over time, we’ve seen some of those pieces emerge. David Price…Jeff Niemann…Wade Davis…Evan Longoria…Reid Brignac…
It was announced this weekend that another youngster will be called upon: Jeremy Hellickson, the fourth round pick in the 2005 draft. To put the growth of the Tampa farm system in perspective, he is the eighth player to pass through the organization’s short-season affiliate in Hudson Valley on his way to the majors.
Hellickson, a 23-year-old righthander who will make his major league debut on Monday, is 12-3 with a 2.45 ERA and 123 strikeouts in 117.2 innings for Triple-A Durham this season. For his six-year career, he is 49-16 (45-13 in the last four seasons) with a 2.66 ERA and 630 strikeouts in 578.2 innings.
This is likely to be a one start visit for Hellickson, a chance to get his feet wet in the major leagues while giving the rest of the Rays rotation (David Price, Jeff Niemann, Matt Garza, Wade Davis, and James Shields have combined to start all 103 Rays games this season) a slight breather.
Just about everything I read, however, mentioned the possibility that Hellickson could make his one start, then slide into the bullpen. That seems the most likely option to me, especially with the news that Grant Balfour will miss 4-6 weeks with an injury.
