Baseball America No. 7 Nats prospect: A.J. Cole

The Nationals coveted right-hander A.J. Cole so much, they traded back for the right-hander in 2013 in the three-team deal that sent Michael Morse to the Mariners. Cole was drafted by the Nationals in 2010, but then traded in 2011 to the Athletics as part of the trade that sent Gio Gonzalez to Washington. Cole struggled at times with Oakland, but after being back with his original team he flourished in 2014. Cole was named the Eastern League pitcher of the week in May and posted a 6-3 record with a 2.92 ERA in 14 starts with Double-A Harrisburg. He had 61 strikeouts in 71 innings. He continued to excel after moving up to Triple-A Syracuse. He went 7-0 with a 3.43 ERA for the Chiefs, striking out 50 over 63 innings and 11 starts. For good reason, Baseball America has ranked Cole as the No. 7 prospect in the Nationals orgaization. No. 7 A.J. Cole The Nationals hope Cole will be a front line starter. At 6-foot-5, 200 lbs., Cole has a tremendous fastball that he can locate. "It all starts for pitchers with that fastball," Baseball America editor-in-chief John Manuel. "I mean, even pitchers who pitch backwards, starting pitchers still use their fastball 40 to 50 percent of the time at minimum. So, it's still going to be your main pitch. He's had a plus fastball for a long time, going back to high school." "He keeps on doing it. He's getting a little bit better every year. And to me what I like about him is he throws a lot of quality strikes with the fastball. Changeup sounds like its his second pitch, slider is making progress." Manuel believes the recently turned 23-year-old Cole is making progress as he continues to work on his slider and other pitches. Cole does have a lot of what you look for right now. "(If) he had a better slider, you'd say front line starter," Manuel said. "He's probably more in the thumbnail of a Rick Porcello (mold). Rick Porcello got a big contract out of high school because he had a wipeout breaking ball in high school. That did not translate to pro ball. For whatever reason, he became more ground ball oriented guy. But a guy who got to the big leagues quickly, Porcello has been like a third or fourth starter on a playoff rotation year after year. "That to me could be A.J. Cole. That kind of a guy where he's not an ace, but he could be that 180 to 200 inning third or fourth starter, a really quality guy and the Nationals see the value of that kind of starting pitching depth. We've already seen in Cole's career that teams covet guys like him, he's already been traded a couple of times." Manuel believes the patience the Nationals have shown in Cole will continue to pay dividends. "I like him," Manuel said. "I think in a different organization he'd probably already be in the big leagues. I think its to his benefit the Nationals have been able to keep him in the minors all year this year to let him have some success in the minors. Because I think confidence is huge part of it for all these players." There is also a good shot this season, especially if he gets off to a good start, for Cole to get a spot start or two with the big league club. I asked Manuel if he thought Cole could get the call this season. "This will be Cole's protection year so I agree with you," Manuel said. "He has to be on the 40-man roster so you may as well call him up. It gives you a chance to evaluate a player," Manuel said.