Milwaukee Brewers: Minor League spotlight on Drake Owenby

It is no secret that the Milwaukee Brewers have a talented farm system, but that means some talented players get left out of the conversation.

In 2015, the Milwaukee Brewers drafted a 6’2″ left handed pitcher in the 12th round. This guys name is Drake Owenby. He quietly put together one of the more impressive seasons around the organization.

He is not in the Top 30 rankings, so it is easy for him to slide under the radar. However, the organization is well aware of his season. At first glance, an ERA above three from a reliever at the A level is not great, but it is what he shows beyond the number that projects him well.

Owenby split time between Rookie Ball and the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. In the latter, he showed excellent command of his pitches. He walked ten batters in 37.2 innings. But what is impressive about that is his 48 strikeouts. This is an excellent.

What that shows is the ability to throw strikes, which is immensely important. The three ERA is less telling when other numbers show out like that. Especially for a reliever, if a ball bounces the wrong way a couple times, that number will rise.

Based solely on the fact that hitters batted less than .200 against him in those nearly 40 innings, the ERA number is less concerting than it might have been. It is not all perfection though, obviously. There is one area he can work on immediately which is the fact he gave up five homeruns with the Timber Rattlers alone.

The Baseball Draft Report featured this left hander from Tennessee in a report. They said that he has excellent raw stuff, and a major league fastball. However, they cited control problems he needed to improve on, which he clearly has.

Being a 12th rounder hardly guarantees anything. However, one of the more notable selections in this round in history is Nolan Ryan. Not everyone has that type of fastball and potential, but it shows a glimmer of hope for Owenby.

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It is one good season, but at only 23 years old, it shows good things to come for this reliever. If Owenby can continue to keep his walks down, and strikeouts up, he will be in the MLB soon. Bullpens need arms who can reliably throw strikes when called upon, and so far this left handed pitcher answered that call very well.