Talk of the Washington Nationals minor league system often centers around pitching stud Stephen Strasburg and hitting phenom Bryce Harper, but another name has begun to emerge in that conversation as the year has passed. That name? Brad Peacock. Peacock raised some eyebrows with a dominant inning pitched in the MLB Futures Game in July, and according to Byron Kerr of MASN, The Sporting News is now recognizing the ability of the young right hander:
Now, national sports publication The Sporting News recognizes Peacock in its August 29, 2011, issue in their "Next Gen: Minor League baseball" spotlight.
The 23-year old hurler was singled out by the magazine as "Next in Line..." alongside top prospects Julio Teheran, Shelby Miller, Matt Moore, Jacob Turner and Trevor Bauer.
The publication said "very few prospects have made a bigger jump than Peacock" has in 2011.
Peacock, who surely will be a September call-up for the Nationals, was just named the 2011 Eastern League Pitcher of the Year. The youngster made 16 appearances for the Class AA Harrisburg Senators, going 10-2 with 129 strikeouts and a 2.01 ERA. He carried that success to the Nats Triple AA ballclub the Syracuse Chiefs, so far making eight starts for the Chiefs, going 4-1 with 41 strikeouts and a 3.56 ERA.