I wrote a piece today for FakeTeams, our SBNation Fantasy blog that I also write for, on Seattle Mariners pitching prospect Taijuan Walker today.
Walker isn’t only special for the numbers that he’s putting up but also based on his age relative to the league. Taijuan is not only the youngest player in the Southern League but he’s the only teenager and there are only two other guys in the league that are under 21.
Yet, Walker is basically having his way with much more experienced hitters and holding his own with much more experienced pitchers. Here is an excerpt of what I wrote:
Perhaps it’s the fact that Walker is not alone as a “top prospect” for Seattle, with much of the attention being shined on his AA Jackson Generals teammates Danny Hultzen and James Paxton. For a guy that is only 19-years-old, we can’t really quantify how valuable it may be for him to not be “the guy” but simply be “one of the guys.”
There is no pressure on Walker to perform right now or even this year, but eventually people are going to take notice. Eventually I believe you’ll hear a lot of people say these words: “Taijuan Walker is the best pitching prospect in baseball.”
You can read the full piece here and get a glimpse not only on Walker, but about Felix Hernandez, as well as some of the other top pitching prospects in the game and why Walker might have become the best of the bunch.