Will a Drew Pomeranz and an Alex White equal an Ubaldo Jimenez? It will be difficult to see until probably the middle of next season, but the Rockies’ nation was given a minor taste (pun intended) of what will hopefully become a feared one-two punch in the MLB.
Drew Pomeranz pitched phenomenally in his Rockies minor league debut. Photo courtesy of denverpost.com
Drew Pomeranz couldn’t have had a more impressive Rockies organization debut. Pomeranz was the “player to be named later” in the Jimenez trade and couldn’t officially join the Rockies for a few weeks. Instead, he pitched bullpen sessions in the Indians training facility in Arizona, waiting for this Wednesday night. In front of an eager Rockies front office and media, Pomeranz pitched like a future ace. He took a perfect game into the seventh inning, striking out four and giving up just two hits. The lefty provided some relief for the Rockies fans who are still confused as to why they would trade Jimenez away in the first place (myself included). But Pomeranz has shown in his brief professional career that he can dominate with a 1.84 ERA in 19 games started.
Alex White followed Pomeranz’s incredible debut and pitched a gem of his own. The righty pitched 7 2/3 innings and gave up no runs on Thursday night. White has pitched in the majors earlier this year for Cleveland and with his past few dominant starts, it appears he is ready to come up and join the Rockies rotation. White throws a heavy sinker that can touch the mid 90′s, as well as a nasty split-changeup. When pitching a mile above sea-level, even with the humidor, it is key to keep the ball down.
Look for White to join the Rockies in just a few days, probably replacing Kevin Milwood in the rotation if the team doesn’t decide to go with a six man staff. Pomeranz is a maybe for the 2011 season, but I think that the Rockies will give him the chance to debut in September. With pitching and front office jobs on the line, how these two perform in the majors is a huge factor in the Rockies’ future success.
