Who is Jason Berken?

I have to confess that Berken has always been "the other guy" to me. In Bowie last year he was the other guy in a rotation that included Chris Tillman, David Hernandez, Brad Bergesen, and Jake Arrieta. This year he is the other guy in a similarly stout Norfolk rotation. With Adam Eaton gone, there is a spot open in the rotation and the 25 year old Berken has as good a case as anyone for promotion. So who is Jason Berken?

Berken was a Clemson Tiger star whose coach described him as "one the best competitors on the team." Despite missing all of his '05 season to Tommy John surgery, Baseball America rated Berken as the 9th best prospect in the ACC. The O's drafted him in the sixth round of the '06 draft.

He didn't look like anything special in his first two years in the minors, posting a 9-9 record at single A Fredrick with a 4.53 ERA. Scouting reports described him as a fastball/slider pitcher with a changeup and curve that needed work. He was reputed be a fly ball pitcher who lost velocity after the fourth of fifth inning, leading to speculation that he would only make the majors as a middle reliever.

Berken broke out at AA Bowie last year with a 12-4 record and 3.58 ERA. In an interview with the Bowie Baysox Blog, Berken credited pitching coach Mike Griffin with helping him "slow the game down" and develop a sinker.

Despite his success, Berken started his '09 season still in Bowie. Here is an offseason interview he did with his hometown newspaper. He didn't stay in Bowie long. Injuries and the pitcher shuffle at Baltimore created room for him at Norfolk and he took advantage of the opportunity with five stellar starts. His AAA record sits at 2-0, 1.05 ERA. His strikeout numbers are not spectacular (16 in five starts) but he doesn't walk anybody and he isn't allowing home runs.

Bringing him up allows the Orioles to give their top prospects a little more development time and it gives Berken a chance to show his stuff. The fans get to see a good young pitcher as opposed to watching the Adam Eaton experiment continue. Bring him on!