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The Montreal Blazers' have long been seen around the league as having pretty good pitching depth. This became more evident as the team traded away three-fifths of the 2043 rotation in the offseason and the arrival of rookies Don Jaramillo and Carlton Casson to the majors out of spring training. While prospects Collin Browning(0-3, 11.15 ERA in the majors) and Vespasiano Tomi(injured for 14 months total) have not made the impact in Montreal that some thought they would in 1944 there are some very bright stars heading towards Montreal to hopefully make an impact next season. At just 24 years old Browning and Tomi cannot yet be written off. Both have had decent seasons at AAA New Jersey but some relatively unknown prospects have made themselves known to both the Blazers' front office and the rest of the league.
Tops on the list is 27 year old Sergei Hopkins. The Blazers will have to make a decision on the minor league free agent to be. Hopkins started the AAA season with 18 consecutive wins before finally losing his first game on July 30 by one run. What does Hopkins have that the other on this list do not? Experience! At 27 years old Hopkins already has 78 BBA wins, all with San Fernando. The Bears let him walk after a 13 win season in 2043 and all he could get was a minor league deal. So he's not really considered a prospect but at 27 he still has time to make an impact. Montreal will have to pony up a major league deal or watch this guy play for another team next season.
21 year old Bill O'Conner is one of the true gems of the Montreal farm system. He came to Montreal from Sacramento in a trade made before the 2043 season. O'Conner made the jump from A ball to AAA this season and he looks ready for the majors right now. He's 30/32 in save opportunities and boast a WHiP under one. O'Conner has earned a trip to spring training next year and I'd be very surprised if he didn't make the club.
Raul Moreno came to the Blazers in a midseason trade with Edmonton in June of 2042. After a slow start in A ball he's really caught fire posting a 30-9 record in AA including a 16-1 start to the 2044 season. Now pitching at AAA it will be interesting to see if he can handle the upgrade in talent that he'll be facing. After giving up a homer run every nine innings in 2043 Moreno has finally learned to keep the ball in the park lowering that number to 0.3 HR/9IP. He'll get a look in spring training but he isn't a top rated prospect like Jaramillo or Browning so it will be an uphill battle for him to make the majors in 2044.
Antonio Rivera has started and relieved for the Blazers' short season team since he was signed after being selected in the second round of the draft this season. He is projected to pitch out of the pen in the majors and, at 22 years old, he will likely make a big jump in levels to either AAA or AA next year. His 2.48 ERA shows he can pitch but he'll need to see better competition before the Blazers can really evaluate his readiness.