Miami Marlins Prospect Update: Domingo German

In an organization filled with pitching talent, it may be easy to forget about right-handed starter Domingo German. The 6 feet 2 inch 175 pound pitcher was signed out of the Dominican Republic in August of 2009 by the Miami Marlins. Since then he has made stops in several of the Marlins minor league organizations. His climb up the organizational ladder has been slow, but he has been successful at every stop. His first year in professional baseball was 2010 with the DSL Marlins. At only 18 years old he put up a 3.69 ERA in 18 relief appearances. He stayed at the same level in 2011 and lowered his ERA to 1.82 in 34.2 innings.

German made the jump to the GCL Marlins in 2012, where he would also begin the 2013 season. He ended 2013 in Batavia and finished with a 1.61 ERA between Rookie League, and short-season A ball. 2014 has seen his biggest increase in innings and it hasn't adversely affected his performance.  So far he has spent the entire season with the Greensboro Grasshoppers, starting 19 games, and sporting a 2.84 ERA in 101.1 innings.

Others have started to take notice of German's talent, and impressive stat lines. German was selected as the Marlins participant in the MLB Futures Game earlier this July, and proved he belonged there. In a one inning relief stint he allowed no hits, no runs, and struck out top prospects Kris Bryant and Joey Gallo.

He struck out Bryant with a 95 mph fastball, and got Gallo on an 82 mph slider. That inning was the only time I have seen German pitch not on YouTube, and that was quite an impressive first impression. Mark Sheldon wrote an article for MLB.com providing a little more information on German and when we can expect to see him in Miami.

German, the Marlins' 20th-ranked prospect according to MLB.com, was signed in 2009. He is projected to be ready by 2017, as the organization appears to be in no rush to further expedite his progress.

With a three-pitch mix, according to scouting reports, German can bring his sinker to the plate usually between 91-94 mph.

"There's room for growth for him that could lead to more velocity -- as well as an outstanding changeup," MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo wrote last week. "You don't see a 1.7 BB/9 rate or a 5 K/BB ratio from young pitchers just getting started very often."

If you want more information, here is the link to the entire article by Mark Sheldon. It is clear that people are starting believe German has significant potential and is a huge asset for the Miami Marlins. He was not on many Marlins top ten prospect lists before the season, but you can bet that will not be the case after 2014.