Two Major One Minor 070213

Here is the 14th Two Major One Minor segment of 2013. This is my third year of doing this series where I feature two Major League players and one minor league player each week. This week I am featuring Jeff Locke, Ervin Santana and Archie Bradley.

LHP Locke is living the third time is the charm adage with the Pittsburgh Pirates. It is his first full season with the Pirates after stints the previous two seasons. This season he is 7-1, 2.06 ERA, 67 K, 1.11 WHIP in 96.1 IP over 16 games. He is currently second in the National League in ERA and his batting average against is .199 which is seventh. Control is one concern with his 3.8 BB/9 rate. He was originally drafted by the Braves in the second round in 2006 but went to the Pirates in a 2009 trade. Locke will be 26 on November 20.

RHP Santana is reviving his career with the Kansas City Royals  after having one of his worst last year with the Los Angeles Angels. This season he is 5-5, 2.84 ERA, 89 K, 1.04 WHIP in 111.0 IP over 16 games. Those would be career bests in ERA and WHIP. His ERA and batting average against of .224 are both eighth in the American League. His 1.8 BB/9 rate is also a career best. He originally signed with the Angels as an amateur free agent in 2000 out of the Dominican Republic. Santana will be 31 on December 12.

RHP Bradley has already dominated at two levels so far in 2013 while rising through the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. He started at Class A Advanced Visalia where he was 2-0, 1.26 ERA, 43 K, 1.12 WHIP in 28.2 IP over 5 games. Currently with Double A Mobile he is 6-3, 2.02 ERA, 67 K, 1.14 WHIP in 66.2 IP over 11 games. His K/9 rate was 13.5 at Visalia and 9.0 at Mobile. His batting average against was .218 at Visalia and has improved to .198 at Mobile. He was originally drafted by the Diamondbacks with the seventh pick of the first round in 2011. Bradley will be 21 on August 10.