Reds’ Mike Leake Skips Minors Altogether

The Cincinnati Reds have announced that right-handed pitcher Mike Leake, the eighth overall pick in last year’s draft, will be the team’s fifth starter to open the season. Leake did not pitch last year in professional ball, so his first start with the Reds will be the first outing of his professional career.

It’s the first time a draftee has gone straight from the draft to the majors since Xavier Nady in 2000, and Leake is the first pitcher to do it since Ariel Prieto in 1995, but Prieto was 25, so he’s an anomaly. Darren Dreifort, in 1994, is the last pitcher to rise to the big leagues similarly to Leake.

Nady, Prieto, and Dreifort never attained stardom, and all actually wound up spending plenty of time in the minors later in their careers; this sort of career path doesn’t guarantee anything for Leake’s future. Still, his talent and polish are unquestionable, and I considered him the second-best prospect in the draft (after Stephen Strasburg, of course) in 2009.

Leake has exquisite command of three versions of fastball that range from 88-95 mph. He also throws two solid breaking pitches (a curveball and slider) and a plus changeup. There aren’t a lot of ace-caliber pitchers with that sort of broad arsenal, so there aren’t a whole lot of comparable pitchers that jump to mind.

Still, I’d expect Leake to rise to ace status within a few years.