Yesterday we continued our week-long feature on Top Prospects on the Farm, with a 2009 update on the Pirates’ Prospect Pedro Alvarez.

Throughout NFL Draft weekend we will continue to highlight Keeper League GM’s top prospects still on the farm, not named Wieters or Price, how they’ve fared in their early season debuts and what that means to fantasy baseball owners as we get deeper into the season.

Madison Bumgarner, Starting Pitcher (LHP), San Francisco Giants (KLGM Pitching Prospect #3)

The 20-year old 6′4″ southpaw has drawn comparisons to Randy Johnson with his power slider and “slingy” delivery.  Drafted in the 1st round of the 2007 draft out of high school  (14th overall) by the Giants, Bumgarner dominated in 24 starts at Low-A Augusta with the GreenJackets last season:

141.1 Inn, 15 Wins, 3 Losses, 1.46 ERA, 164 K, 24 BB (6.8 K/BB) (0.93 WHIP)

With a major league full of young starters, the Giants have been cautious with Bumgarner this season, elevating him to Hi-A with the San Jose Giants.

In three starts this season his line looks like:

16 Inn, 3 Wins, 0 Losses, 0.56 ERA, 14 K, 2 BB (7 K/BB) (0.81 WHIP)

Clearly, Bumgarner appears to be preparing for a jump to the Giants’ AA Affiliate Connecticut Defenders, when the weather settles in the Northeast. The question will be whether he can maintain his lofty K/BB and control with the jump—a tough one for many pitching prospects.

Bumgarner’s major league timetable appears to be closer to 2010 than 2009 based on his current path, however, based on the Giants’ contention, I would not rule out a September call-up, assuming the “big jump” from Hi-A to AA doesn’t slow him down.

If you are a current Bumgarner owner, his “hype” has settled since the draft. His performance in San Jose has been a bit “off the radar”.  So…iIf you don’t own him, it may be a nice opportunity to take advantage of a less informed owner.

Bumgarner is a must-own in all Keeper Leagues.  He remains a “wait and see” in Traditional Roto or PPA leagues for this season.

Tomorrow we’ll feature Texas Rangers’ switch-hitting power prospect Justin Smoak.

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