Fear the Milkman

 

I'm just now finding out that Zac Gallen's a local prospect.

It's honestly insulting that it took until now for me to find out. Apparently he's from Gibbsboro, NJ, which is not far from me at all, and was born in Somerdale, which is also not far from me at all. He went to Bishop Eustace, which is a prep school that kids I played little league against went to. I know I've talked about people like Andrew Bailey and Devin Smeltzer being from my neck of the woods, but somehow Gallen flew past my radar as a local hero. 

Which is ironic because Zac Gallen might be one of the best pitchers in baseball right now, and you'd think this area would want you to hear about it.

Gallen has been slowly building his case over the last few years as one of the most consistent and dominant pitchers out there, and this season is no different. Gallen is already 6-2, a lot like the guy I talked about yesterday, with 75 strikeouts and a 2.97 ERA after some recent losses. He began the season with one of his usual scoreless streaks, and has only given up 2 home runs in 67 innings. His 1.020 WHIP is not quite as low as his 2022 total of 0.913, which led the league, but it may be coming down further as he comes back from a recent stretch. 

As usual, having Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly both surging at once gives the D-Backs an advantage even in a pitching-stuffed division like the NL West. Granted, having three rookies behind the strong two, being Tommy Henry, Ryne Nelson and Brandon Pfaadt, does cut back the intimidation a bit, even if the Dodgers are also starting some rookies right now as well. The difference is, the Dodgers rookies are taking to the game a little quicker than these three, who have been alright but are having a more gradual acclimation period than someone like, say, Zac Gallen, who was great from the moment the Marlins brought him up.

The D-Backs took a win or two away from the Phillies this week, thanks to excellent hitting from Lourdes Gurriel, Evan Longoria and Gabriel Moreno, and even the reinforcements, like rookie Dominic Fletcher and utiltyman Emmanuel Rivera, are doing well so far. The D-Backs are still 5 games ahead of the next best NL West team, and at the very least have a Rockies series in between tough matches with the Red Sox and Braves. This team could continue to be a major player if they stay this fresh and impressive despite their faults. It's not a complex team, but it's an interesting one, and I enjoy seeing their rise.

Coming Tonight: This guy is striking out everybody right now.