With the 26th overall selection in the 2009 MLB amateur draft, the Milwaukee Brewers picked up one of the most promising young hurlers in the nation, Eric Arnett.
Arnett, who had a horrendous start to his 2010 campaign in the Arizona League, looks to become one of Milwaukee’s premier starting pitchers in the near future.
But the question is, will it happen?
While the Milwaukee Brewers are gearing up for what hopefully becomes a successful regular-season run, Arnett finds himself on Milwaukee’s spring training roster for the time being.
Standing at a Randy Johnson-like 6’5″, 230 pounds, Arnett is certainly a physical specimen worthy of a call-up for the Brewers in the near future. If things go as planned, Arnett could potentially be apart of a revamped Milwaukee rotation starting as early as next season.
At Indiana—where he absolutely dominated in college ball—Arnett was a co-Pitcher of the Year and a First Team All-Big Ten selection in just his junior year for the Hoosiers while accumulating 109 strikeouts, a 12-2 record and a 2.50 ERA.
But that’s not where his résumé ends, as Arnett boasts a 91-96 MPH fastball with notable breaking pitches and an above-average slider.
How can Arnett’s talents help a Brewers ball club looking to break through to a World Series this season? The question may actually be how he can’t help this Milwaukee squad.
Although the Brewers went out this offseason and added former AL Cy Young winner Zack Greinke, along with Shaun Marcum and reliever Takashi Saito, it would be to Arnett’s benefit to learn under Greinke and other starters.
You can’t put a price on experience, and though the Brewers would probably like Arnett to continue his progression in the minor leagues, there truly is nothing compared to the major-league experience.
Should newly named manager Ron Roenicke become impressed with what Arnett has to offer, expect him to be called up somewhere in the middle to late part of the regular season as the Brewers attempt to make their World Series run.
An important role in the starting rotation this season may not be imminent, but a position in Milwaukee’s bullpen will more than likely happen this season.
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