Midnight Train To Obscurity - Part 1

"He kept dreaming that someday he'd be a star

(a superstar but he didn't get far)

But he sure found out the hard way

That dreams don't always come true"

I've decided to take a look back at some of the big prospects to come down the line over the past years and why they didn't pan out. We'll start around 1989, since that's the earliest publication I have with rookie reports. Anyone who was selected to an all star team won't be considered, even if many think they didn't meet the expectations (that's you, Gregg Jeffries). We're looking for true washouts.

1989:

Mike Harkey - "Some see Harkey, a 6-5, 220-pound right-hander out of Cal State Fullerton, as another Ferguson Jenkins." Don't you love those early comparisons? Only Cubs fans could conjure that up. Harkey was listed as a top rookie for 1989, but a shoulder injury destroyed his velocity and his shot at a starting job. By 1990, he was healthy, but manager Don Zimmer thought it'd be a fantastic idea to help Harkey's shoulder problem by inserting him into a 4 man rotation. Harkey pitched well, going 12-6, 3.26, & 94-59 K-BB ratio. Unfortunately, it fatigued his arm, which would become a routine process. He only reached 100 innings two other times in his career, never topping his 1990 total of 173.7, and never reaching the total in consecutive seasons. By the mid nineties, the shoulder had robbed him of any hope of fulfilling the expectations.

1990:

Scott Coolbaugh - Coolbaugh was a big college star at Texas, and the Rangers were certain he'd be the next great third baseman. Unfortunately, Coolbaugh never learned to make consistent contact in the minors, and he struggled mightily at the major league level, where in 4 seasons he posted a career line of .215/.281/.310. Street & Smith's 1990 said Coolbaugh was more ready to jump to the majors than Carlos Baerga, Mike Blowers, or Robin Ventura. I think the problem is that a lot of players like Ventura, Jim Abbott, and Gregg Olson, among others, were able to successfully make a quick transition to the majors after playing college ball. I suppose a lot of guys like Coolbaugh were foolishly rushed in the mere hopes they'd have the same fortune.

Eric Anthony - Anthony wasn't quite the bust some of these others was, but in 1990 he was viewed as the next premier home run hitter. He sure loved to swing, and he didn't really give a damn if making contact was in his future or not. While Rob Deer perfected the three true outcomes approach, Anthony used the far less valuable but more alliterative two true outcomes technique: he either struck out or homered. Anthony, in his major league career, would strike out once every 5 plate appearances or so. By 1993, he started to learn to draw walks to some extent, but by the time he truly realized getting on base was a good thing, his power had dried up.

Pat Combs - Boy, scouts were raving over Combs, a tall lefty who "dominated" the minors in '89. One publication compared him to Steve Carlton. Steve Carlton. Maybe they didn't get the memo, but Carlton wasn't simply a tall lefty. He struck guys out. He was unhittable. Combs' strikeouts were quite unimpressive, and unCarltonian: 21 in 41 A innings, 77 in 125 AA innings, 20 in 24 AAA innings, and 30 in 38 MLB innings. 148 K's in 228 innings is NOT Steve Carlton. Well, maybe old Carlton. Still, at age 39, he topped that total by 15 in the same number of innings. Combs also failed to share another trait with Carlton: He had poor control - his K:BB rate was nearly even for his career.

1991:

Hensley Muelens - Nicknamed "Bam-Bam" for his power prowess in the minors. He had 96 rbi in '90 and the Yankees were confident he'd be their next great outfielder. The scouting report said he had all the tools but struck out a little too much. Needless to say, the strikeouts caught up to him at the major league level, and he never played much. In 182 games, he didn't even get enough career at bats to quailfy for a single season batting title. A career .220/.288/.353 line shows his lack of plate discipline, but his career K:BB rate of 165-42 is even more telling. 5 tools are nice, but they can't tell you when to swing.

Phil Plantier - Same song, second verse, except this time the high strikeout guy actually makes enough contact to hit 34 home runs for the Padres in 1993, after the Red Sox had given up on their golden boy. If I remember correctly, he had a very Bagwell-esque batting style, so I have to wonder what kind of acid Boston's rookie level hitting coach was on when he decided to have his hitters sit on imaginary stools. I didn't plan on having someone on this list who had topped 30 HR or 100 rbi in the majors, but Plantier fizzled quickly and even his best season wasn't really that good.

Tomorrow, we should venture further into the 90's with prospects you are more likely to remember.