With Gio Gonzalez making his Major League debut on August 6th, the timing on this prospect spotlight is pretty relevant. Gonzalez’s debut was nothing to write home about (6 IP, 4 ER, 4 K, 2 BB, 1 HR Vs Tor). That’s not terrible for a MLB Debut, but you had to expect better from this top prospect considering Toronto has been the 3rd worst hitting team, according to OPS, since the All-Star Break. Being a lefty on the Oakland A’s and throwing a devasting curveball makes the comparison to Barry Zito a very easy choice.
Similarities:
- Nasty Curveballs
- Both Southpaws
- Debuts for the A’s at the age of 22
- Strikeouts per 9 innings of over 9
- Strikeouts to Walk ratios of 2.00+
- Home Runs per 9 innings of under 1.00
Differences:
- College Experience from Zito
- Physical Frame (Zito- 6’4″, 205 lbs vs Gio – 5’11″, 185 lbs)
- HR Rate (Gio twice as many)… Gio’s 0.85 HR/9 vs Zito’s 0.42 HR
Outlook:
Zito’s MLB Debut was nothing special either, although he got the win, he allowed 6 walks in 5 innings along the way. Comparing any prospect to a 3-time All-Star and Cy Young Award winner is certainly not aiming low, but Gio Gonzalez certainly has the pitch arsensal to annually force hundreds of Major League hitters to whiff at third strikes. Dare I say… “Gio Gonzalez will have a better overall fantasy career than Barry Zito.” Yup, I just said it, how do you think his career will end up?
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