He may not be the biggest name at the 2015 All-Star Futures Game in Cincinnati, but San Diego Padres' prospect Colin Rea may have the best stats of any pitcher present on July 12.
After being undrafted after high school, Rea had a wild three years in collegiate baseball as the school that he attended his Freshman year, the University of Northern Iowa, dissolved their baseball program after his first season, ultimately leaving him without a place to continue his career. From Cedar Falls, Iowa, the six foot, five inch pitcher headed south to St. Petersburg (Florida) Community College, where he played only one season before attending another Missouri Valley Conference school, Indiana State. As an Indiana State Sycamore, Rea went 8-4 with a 3.68 earned run average and seventy-six strikeouts in ninety-five and one thirds innings, which was enough to allure to the Padres when their twelfth round pick came around in the 2011 Draft.
After being drafted, the righty started his professional career at Eugene (Short Season Single-A) and pitched very well as he posted a 3-4 record and an earned run average of 2.21 in fifteen starts for the Emeralds. The following season Rea's numbers took a hit due to surendering four or more earned runs in five games for Fort Wayne (Single-A). Although his troubles with earned runs continued the next season and resulted in a demotion back to Fort Wayne from Lake Elsinore (Single-A Advanced), Rea redeemed himself in 2014 by going 11-9 with a 3.88 earned run average and one hundred and eighteen strikeouts in one hundred and thirty-nine innings for the Lake Elsinore Storm.
The Cascade, Iowa, native built onto his successful last season at Single-A Advanced by neutralizing Texas League hitters (.185 average against Rea) and giving up only nine earned runs in seventy-five innings (1.08 earned run average) for the San Antonio Missions (Double-A). Those stats in addition to his 3-2 record has propelled the righty to a Texas League All-Star Game selection and a call-up to Triple-A El Paso after tonight's TL All-Star Game in Corpus Christi, Texas.
A Texas League All-Star Game invite, an All-Star Futures Game invite, AND a promotion to Triple-A! What could make this year any better for Colin Rea? A promotion to pitch at Petco Park! And that could be very soon if he can tame bats in the Pacific Coast League as he did in the Texas League.
No comments:
Post a Comment