KoK Prospect #4: Aaron Crow

The saying goes that a rolling stone gathers no moss.  As slowly as the Kings of Kauffman prospect list has rolled out, I’m pretty sure there is some moss on there somewhere.  It’s probably past time to accept that with my responsibilities elsewhere, I’m not going to complete this list anytime soon.

So … I am going to finish the last four up with a more condensed style.

Prospect #4

Who: Aaron J. Crow
DOB: November 11th, 1986
Position: RHP
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 190 lbs
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Acquired: 1st round (12th overall) 2009 draft

Rankings:
~ Baseball America #2
~ Diamond Futures #2
~ Royals Review #2
~ The Royal Tower #2
~ John Sickels B
~ Baseball Prospectus #2
~ Scouting Book #3

Stats:

When the season started, I was afraid I had ranked Aaron Crow too low and he was going to make me look foolish. Before and during the 2009 draft I made no secret that I would have preferred the Royals select high school right hander Shelby Miller, but when Crow was selected I was happy with the pick.  He wasn’t Shelby but outside of that I was happy.

For those of you not aware, Miller wound up going #19 to the Saint Louis Cardinals and made his professional debut with Quad Cities (A) in the Midwest League.  Because he signed late, he only logged 3.0 innings and wound up back in A ball for 2010.  He hasn’t lit the world on fire but he’s showing signs of being a legitimate 1st round talent and top prospect.  In 44.1 IP he has a 4.67 ERA, 1.421 WHIP, 9.3 H/9, 3.5 BB/9, 12.2 SO/9 and 3.53 SO/BB.

Since Miller was a HS righty and Crow was an “advanced” college righty, they really aren’t comparable but there is no question that my “shadow” pick of Miller is looking better than the team’s actual pick of Aaron Crow.  Believe me when I say this but I’d much rather be wrong than right.  Thankfully both pitchers, especially Miller, have plenty of baseball ahead of them.

Unfortunately, there is nothing to sugar coat when it comes to Aaron Crow’s 2010 season thus far.  He’s been decent at his best and downright bad at his worst.  Perhaps most concerning is the fact that the rumblings from scouts inside and outside the organization are Crow is not showing the progress he should be.

I stuck by Moose and Hos last season when they struggled so this isn’t a case of piling on.  Like so many others I believe there is reason for legitimate concern.  Aaron Crow is getting hit hard, he’s not showing the control we all expected, and he is having trouble putting away Double-A hitters.  Only 3 of his last 10 starts have been quality starts.  While one of those three was his latest outing on June 26th (7.o IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB and 7 SO) it came on the heels of two dreadful outings (9.0 IP, 12 H, 11 ER, 7 BB and 9 SO combined).

I was afraid I had him ranked too low when I set my list, but the way things have gone this season it seems that I have ranked him too high.  Here’s hoping he turns it around soon and makes me look like a fool!

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