Jonathan Pettibone, RHP
Born: 7/19/1990 in Yorba Linda, California
Height: 6’5”
Weight: 200
Pettibone, a compensation pick (110th overall) in the 2008 draft, is the third teenager to make the prospect list so far, following Jon Singleton and Domingo Santana. The Phillies picked him last year well aware that it would be a challenge to sign the high-schooler, who planned to attend USC this year. Though it took until August 11, the Phils locked up the talented hurler by giving him a $500,000 signing bonus, nearly four times the assumed slot value for that pick. The bonus alone shows that the organization has high expectations for Pettibone’s future after luring him away from the Trojans.
There is little information on Pettibone in the form of scouting reports, though one report said his low-90s fastball projects well as his development progresses. Pettibone fits the mold of pitcher the Phillies seem to target – tall and lanky with room to fill out and become a powerful pitcher. This season at Williamsport he has made 7 starts, four of which were very good and three of which went the other direction. In those four positive starts he has thrown 21 innings and allowed just one run on 16 hits with 21 strikeouts. So the potential for big things is clearly there. The other three starts, in which he allowed 16 runs in 11 innings, show why projecting teenagers is so difficult.
Nonetheless, the room for progress is there, as his 34 strikeouts in 32 innings show. Pettibone also has an impressive 1.9 groundout-to-airout ratio, a very positive sign for a young pitcher. He has not pitched since July 22 with a minor arm injury, but his manager has said that his time on the sideline is strictly precautionary. If he gets back on the mound soon he is definitely a prospect to look out for.
Statistics
Year Level W L ERA IP H ER BB K K/9
2009 Low-A 2 3 4.78 32 33 17 13 34 9.6
Rankings
22. Jonathan Pettibone, RHP
25. Drew Naylor, RHP
Around the Minors
Lehigh Valley – The adjustment to triple-A is still going slowly for outfielder Michael Taylor, who is hitting just .244 in 86 at-bats so far with the Iron Pigs. He has walked just once in his last 10 games and is suffering through a bit of a slump, but still collected three hits over the past two games against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Drew Carpenter is on a roll, allowing just 4 earned runs over his last four starts. In those 25 innings he has struck out 27 batters and walked just 6. He is now 9-2 with a 2.72 ERA on the season.
Reading – The move to double-A clearly hasn’t phased outfielder Domonic Brown in the least, as the 21-year-old continues to rake. He went 3-for-5 with a pair of solo homers yesterday and now has multi-hit efforts in five of his last 9 games, including 3 homers and 6 RBI.
For the first time all season, Kyle Drabek tossed two bad outings in a row last week. Over his last two starts he has given up 9 earned runs in 11 innings, with an ugly 9:7 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His ERA with Reading is now up to 3.66.
Lakewood – Trevor May’s 6’5”, 215-pound frame is giving him all the necessary power to blow by batters right now. In his last 22.2 innings he has 32 strikeouts against 9 walks. He has allowed 8 runs during that stretch, but his dominant strikeout numbers are encouraging.
Williamsport – Two pitchers are posting eye-popping numbers with the Crosscutters and deserve some attention. Matthew Way, a 22-year-old out of Washington State, has a 1.67 ERA and .96 WHIP through 37.2 innings this season. He also has 43 strikeouts against just 8 walks in his 8 appearances (all starts).
Austin Hyatt, a 23-year-old from Atlanta, has allowed just one run in 31.2 innings this season. In 13 appearances out of the bullpen, Hyatt has given up just 14 hits while striking out 49 against 5 walks. Batters are hitting just .131 against the righty.
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