The Minnesota Twins' top prospect, pitcher Jose Berrios, is set to make his major-league debut Wednesday vs. Cleveland.
Berrios, a 21-year-old right-hander, is 2-0 with a 1.06 ERA in three starts this season for Triple-A Rochester. The Puerto Rico native is the 16th-best major-league prospect according to MLB.com. He threw 4 1/3 scoreless innings in two spring training appearances but did not make the big-league club.
Berrios has struck out 20 batters and walked eight in 17 innings this season. Last Thursday, he allowed just two hits and one walk in seven scoreless innings, striking out nine. Batters are hitting just .143 against him this season, and he's been especially effective against lefties, limiting them to just two hits in 24 at-bats.
MLB.com says Berrios has a consistent mid-90s fastball, a much-improved curveball and a changeup that has a chance to be an above-average pitch. The site says the Twins think he could be a No. 2-type starter with 20-win potential.
Berrios has a 38-20 record and 2.91 ERA in the minor leagues since the Twins drafted him with the 32nd overall pick in 2012. He's averaged 9.5 strikeouts, 7.5 hits and 2.5 walks per nine innings over his career and has posted a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.78. This season, he is averaging 10.6 strikeouts, 4.2 walks and 4.2 hits per nine innings.
Berrios went 14-5 with a 2.87 ERA in 166 1/3 innings last year for Double-A Chattanooga and Rochester, earning Minnesota's minor league pitcher of the year honors. He made 15 stars for Chattanooga, going 8-3 with a 3.08 ERA in 90 2/3 innings before his promotion in July. Berrios made 12 starts in Rochester and went 6-2 with a 2.62 ERA.
He finished the year with a .223 batting average against, striking out 175 batters while walking 38 for a 4.61 strikeout to walk ratio.
Berrios began the 2014 season with the Twins' High-A affiliate, Fort Myers, before his promotion in July to Double-A New Britain. He was 9-3 with a 1.97 ERA in 16 starts for Fort Myers, striking out 109 batters in 96 innings. He was 3-4 with a 3.54 ERA in eight starts for New Britain and was promoted to Rochester for one start to end the season.
In total, he struck out 140 batters while walking 38 in 139 2/3 innings in 2014, allowing opponents to hit .228 against him.
His 2014 season marked a major improvement from 2013, when Berrios went 7-7 with a 3.98 ERA in 19 starts for Low-A Cedar Rapids. He allowed opposing batters to hit .265 that season while walking 40 and striking out 100 in 103 2/3 innings.
Berrios made 11 appearances for the Twins' Rookie-league affiliates in Florida and Tennessee after signing with the organization in 2012. He posted a 1.17 ERA in 30 2/3 innings, striking out 49 batters while walking just four. That included a 1.00 ERA in 18 innings as a starter.
