Chasing The Storm 2048-6 Minor League Review

[njherdfan]

When a team performs as poorly as the Storm, the natural inclination is to look at the minor league system and see if there are any prospects on the horizon. As frustrating as it can be to see a team losing, most fans can at least convince themselves that better times will happen soon, as the young players in the farm system will be essential to the franchise's turnaround. With that in mind, we're going to look at 2 minor league players in the Seattle system, and see what, if anything, they can do for Seattle in the future.

Shane Wilkinson has been discussed before and it's remarkable how little has changed from the previous discussion. This year, the 24 year old Wilkinson more than held his own in AAA, as he started the entire season and produced 4.1 WAR, as he combined above-average offense with slightly subpar defense. At this point, it's unclear how much more there is to say about Wilkinson. He's shown that he doesn't have anything else to prove at his current level, and he's biding his time until he gets a chance to play in the majors. It's not clear when that will happen, but it should be soon.

On the mound, Len Conboy is an interesting case for Seattle fans. A former first round pick, in 2045, he'd been progressing through the system as a starting pitcher. This season, however, his stamina seemed to disappear, and he no longer had the ability to go deep into games. To accommodate this development, Seattle moved him to the bullpen, where he was dominant, posting a 2.20 ERA as a reliever, and striking out 78 hitters in 57 innings. It's almost a guarantee that Conboy will be Seattle's best reliever next season, whenever he comes to the majors. Seattle's front office must find this bittersweet, as he was drafted with the hopes that he'd be a top-end starter, and not a reliever'; however, they'll have to adjust, as it seems clear that Conboy's future is in the bullpen, where he can be expected to thrive for the foreseeable future.