With baseball season now underway, I’ve decided to whip up another MLB special. This won’t be your usual baseball special either. I won’t be talking about any superstars, won’t be talking about individual teams, and also won’t be giving my two cents on why certain players are starting off slow in 2014. Instead, I will be giving baseball fans insight on “low key studs.” These studs are certain players that have been catching my attention for the past 2-3 years. They also aren’t on the radar of your typical baseball fans. I will be talking about one low key stud for each division. So, I advise that everyone keep their eyes and ears open on these players because they will be household names some time in the future. This is the second part of the special. If you missed part one please CLICK HERE and check it out.

Stud Watch: NL West

Andrew Cashner, Pitcher, San Diego Padres

Andrew Cashner is a starting pitcher for the San Diego Padres. In 2014 Padres manager, Bud Black, decided to give Cashner the starting nod on Opening Day against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Cashner was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the first round, 19th overall, in 2008 out of Texas Christian University.

Cashner was called up to the majors for the first time on May 31, 2010. In the 2010 season, Cashner appeared in 53 games as a relief pitcher. On March 26, 2011, Cashner would then be named the Cubs’ 5th starter. However, Cashner only made one start for the team before being forced out with a rotator cuff injury. After a rehab stint in the minors, he was called back up to the majors but to pitch out of the bullpen once again.

On January 6, 2012, the Padres acquired Cashner and outfielder Kyung-Min Na from the Cubs for first baseman Anthony Rizzo and right-handed starting pitcher Zach Cates. Cashner began the season as a relief pitcher. After changing in his Cubs uniform for a Padres one, Cashner started getting bit by the injury bug and has been hurt in the last few seasons. In 2014, Andrew Cashner is 100% healthy and now everyone will be able to see his great potential and how he is a legitimate ace in the majors.

Strengths

Great fastball

Above average breaking pitches

Ground ball pitcher

Cashner is very intimidating while standing on the mound. He stands at a towering 6’6 but is a lean 220 in weight. With his size, he is able to rear back and top 100+ mph on the radar gun with his blazing 4-seam fastball. His secondary pitches are a change-up and slider, with an occasional sinker. Cashner’s secondary pitches are above average and are great complementary pieces to his fastball. His main strikeout pitch is his filthy slider.

Here is a gif on Cashner’s slider.

When Cashner is pitching his best is when he is getting batters to pound the ball into the ground, racking up ground ball outs. He has power stuff but relies on his sinker to collect his outs.

Weakness

Injury prone

Durability issues

Low strikeout rates

Cashner doesn’t have many weaknesses but the ones he does have are mainly due to injury. When he was called up to the majors, he was mainly used out of the bullpen. So while being a relief pitcher early in his career, he didn’t pitch many innings and wouldn’t have a high pitch count. But once he was inserted as a starter, his injuries started racking up. In 2012, he missed most the season due to a strained tendon. Also with the injuries, it would slow down his progress in strengthening his arm and his stamina. One last weakness in Cashner’s game is his strikeout rate. He has power pitches and should be able to average high strikeouts every five days he takes the mound. Instead he averages about six punch outs per nine innings. This is because batters have a high contact rate against him.

Overall

Andrew Cashner looks like a true ace in 2014 and we have the Padres training staff to thank for that. Whenever Cashner landed on the DL, they took their time on bringing him back and we are finally seeing how much potential Andrew has. He has power pitches that allows him to rack up strikeouts but instead he pitches to his strength. His strength is collecting ground ball outs and allowing his defense to collect his outs. Many young pitchers that had the arsenal Cashner has would try to strikeout as many batters they could, but instead Andrew looks to save his pitch count and depend on his sinker to get him through innings. This makes Cashner very dangerous because he “pitches” instead of just “throwing.” If Cashner is able to stay healthy for a full season, we may be looking at a Cy Young contender for many years to come.