Pitchers at Syracuse, Harrisburg showing farm system depth

A lot of the starters at Triple-A Syracuse - such as Ross Detwiler, Craig Stammen, Garrett Mock, J.D. Martin and Yunesky Maya - have pitched in front of Nationals' fans. We could see them again soon on 1500 South Capitol St. One question is: Who might be the next starting pitcher that we haven't seen yet get the call to D.C.? How about starting with two Brads? Right-hander Brad Peacock continues his dominance at Double-A Harrisburg. This weekend, he had another double-digit strikeout performance with 10 punchouts. He has an astounding 6-1 record with a 2.05 ERA in seven starts over 48-plus innings. Peacock has struck out 66 batters and walked only nine during that span, including 24 strikeouts in his last 13 innings. Peacock has won six straight decisions since April 17. Right-hander Brad Meyers has gone 2-0 with a 3.63 ERA in his three starts since being called up to Syracuse on May 9. His most impressive start came May 14 versus Durham, where he went seven innings, allowing no runs on four hits with eight strikeouts and no walks. Overall, he is 5-2 with a 2.85 ERA on nine starts. Meyers' impressive command is shown with 54 strikeouts and just one walk. That is one free pass in 53 2/3 innings. Right-hander Ryan Tatusko, who briefly went to Syracuse before returning to Harrisburg, could make his way to Triple-A soon thanks to his consistent performance. On May 2 at Bowie, Tatusko spun 6 2/3 innings, allowing just two hits and no runs with nine strikeouts and three walks. Also, worth noting is former Mets left-hander Oliver Perez, who made his Senators debut last week, working five frames, allowing a single hit and no earned runs. Chiefs left-handed starter Tom Milone has won two starts in a row and allowed just four earned runs in the past 21 2/3 innings. He is 3-3 with a 3.53 ERA in seven starts of his first season at Triple-A. Cole Kimball was that good and he got the callup to Washington last Saturday. The relief pitching continues to shut the door at the Triple-A level, as well. Syracuse right-hander Jeff Mandel has not allowed an earned run in seven consecutive appearances since April 28, a span of 10 1/3 innings in relief. Right-hander Josh Wilkie has also put up solid numbers again, going 0-1 with a 1.83 ERA. The George Washington University product has surrendered only two runs the past eight appearances. This is really just the tip of the iceberg. I have not even talked about the guys tearing it up at Single-A Potomac and Hagerstown. There are some gems there, too. Let's look at them later this week.