LHP, Age-29 season
Minor League Contract
Pre-arbitration, possible arbitration after 2025
Other Previews: Ian Anderson
So, you're lefthanded?
And you have a career 12.8 K/9 in the minors?
Well, just wait because someone is going to see if they can fix any problems you might have. And for Ben Bowden, there are a few. Namely, he's a real three-true outcomes guy. He's been known to strike out a lot of people, give up his fair share of homers, and walks too many batters. But did I mention that he's lefthanded?
Bowden is a Vandy kid, playing for the Commodores from 2014 to 2016. He mostly stuck to the pen outside of five starts in 2016. His success in 2016, which included ten saves, pushed Bowden up the draft boards. The Rockies, who always are looking for pitching (any pitching, really), grabbed him with their second-round selection and 45th overall. It was just a pick after the Braves selected Kyle Muller.
When you select a college-age reliever that high, the expectation is a quick rise through the charts. Well, Bowden didn't get to the majors until 2021 so that's not very fast. Some of that is the lost minor league year of 2020, some of that was missing his first full season in 2017 due to injury, and a lot of it was his own pitching. Bowden posted prolific strikeout totals and even had a 20+ save campaign, but his other problems held him back.
But, he's lefthanded, and the Rockies were desperate, so Bowden was promoted to the bigs to open 2021. While he would make cameos in Triple-A here and there, he logged his most innings in the majors. It was, to be nice, not pretty. Over 35.2 innings, Bowden gave up six dingers, walked 21 people, and had an ERA of 6.56. He did pick up 42 strikeouts if we're searching for a silver lining.
Since that season, Bowden has been stuck in the minors. After the Rockies cut bait early in the 2022 campaign, Bowden added Durham Bulls (Rays), Sacramento River Cats (Giants), and Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Phillies) jerseys to his closet. Each stop tried to help Bowden harness his control so that his game could improve. Obviously, none had success so he's with the Braves this spring.
He throws a sinking fastball at around 91-93 mph with a low 80's changeup and slider as secondary options. He'll pitch off the sinker, though. If he can't spot it, bad things tend to happen and we have the stats to prove it. When he did pitch extensively in 2021, we saw a guy who lived far too much in the middle of the zone, serving up delicious meatball after delicious meatball like he was an Italian grandmother. That's not a place you can live for any pitcher, but especially when you're humming it in there at 92 mph. To be fair, the sinker does have a good deal of spin as he ranked in the 88th percentile. And that's called ending on a compliment.
Bowden doesn't have a great chance of making this roster. Even his left-arm ability won't help him on a team that already has five southpaw bullpen options on the 40-man roster. But he'll be a nice project for the new Gwinnett pitching coach, Mike McCarthy. And no, the Cowboys coach isn't doing double duty as that particular Mike McCarthy can't even handle that job.
And who knows? Maybe the fifth time's a charm for Bowden.
Walk-Off Walk's 2024 fWAR prediction
0.0 fWAR
Other Previews: Ian Anderson