Today: TB Prospect Chris Mason
Chris Mason is a rising right-handed pitcher in the Tampa Bay system. Drafted out of the University of North Carolina in 2005's second round, Mason quickly became one of Tampa's biggest assets, dominating A-ball and graduating quickly to AA Montgomery in 2007.
His first season as a Biscuit was so impressive, in fact, that after leading his team to the championship he was named the Southern League pitcher of the year. His 2.57 ERA and shining 136:44 strikeout to walk ratio and 15-4 record were among the league's finest.
| Yr | Tm | Age | Level | W | L | ERA | G | GS | CG | SH | GF | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | K9 | WHIP |
| 2005 | Hudson Valley | 20 | A- | 1 | 1 | 2.40 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 15.0 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 14 | 8.40 | 1.27 |
| 2006 | SW Michigan | 20 | A | 1 | 0 | 1.45 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18.2 | 17 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 16 | 7.71 | 1.18 |
| 2006 | Visalia | 21 | A+ | 12 | 10 | 5.02 | 28 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 152.1 | 177 | 96 | 85 | 17 | 44 | 111 | 6.56 | 1.45 |
| 2007 | Montgomery | 22 | AA | 15 | 4 | 2.57 | 28 | 28 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 161.1 | 147 | 52 | 46 | 7 | 44 | 136 | 7.59 | 1.18 |
| 2008 | Durham | 23 | AAA | 2 | 7 | 5.32 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 66.0 | 81 | 46 | 39 | 13 | 25 | 63 | 8.59 | 1.61 |
Mason's fastball is only a hair above average, but he works with confidence and superior control, probably the best control of any pitcher in the Tampa system. His changeup is major league quality already, and his slider has looked very impressive in occasional use. While lefthanders can sometimes solve him, he dominates righthanders so thoroughly that many coaches would like to see him converted to a relief role, where he could add a bit of heat to his fastball and further refine his developing slider.
Mason will work 2008 in AAA Durham, and Tampa should decide by midseason whether to continue him down the road to starting, or convert him to a bullpen ace.
Update: Mason has scuffled a bit in AAA, fighting to deal with tougher hitters. His control is still solid, but he's had trouble fooling batters with his change as effectively as he did last season. There's some thought that a mechanical adjustment might be needed. So far, the Rays are still looking at Mason as a quality middle-rotation starter, though if he can get back on track, he may first see MLB action in the September bullpen.
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