Kris Medlen is listed at 5'10'' and even that may be a stretch.
His small stature and the fact that he played mostly shortstop at Santa Ana Junior College prior to being drafted had many questioning whether or not he could ever be a productive professional pitcher, which resulted in a 10th round draft selection in 2006.
Despite the slights against him, Medlen dominated the minors, posting an FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) higher than 4.00 just once, and he saw even more success once he transitioned to starting pitcher in the summer of 2008.
Through Medlen's 227 minor league innings, 120 of which came in 2008 when he moved to starter midway through the season, he sports a 2.42 ERA, 5.16 K/BB ratio, and a 1.07 WHIP.
When Medlen transitioned to starter, it was mostly to work on his change-up since he was behind most of the others at his level due to playing the field in college. The transition greatly helped his changeup, and he is able to now compliment it nicely with his better-than-average fastball and plus curveball.
In Medlen's rookie season with the Braves, he started a few games before his best friend and roommate Tommy Hanson got the call up to the Big Leagues. Medlen struggled in his time as a starter but was not sent down to the minors, he was moved to the bullpen.
While in the 'pen, Medlen saw his numbers improve greatly as he turned his 6.38 ERA and 1.53 WHIP as a starter into a 3.47 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP.
For a player's first dip in the majors, these are pretty solid but unspectacular numbers as a reliever.
However, Medlen has shown that he had the ability to adapt to major league hitters. He had 32.1 innings thrown in the first half of the season and 35.1 innings thrown in the second half. The numbers are quite different and show improvement.
First Half - 5.85 ERA, 1.61 WHIP, 33 K, 32 H, 20 BB, 4 HR allowed, 21 ER allowed
Second Half - 2.80 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 39 K, 33 H, 10 BB, 1 HR allowed, 11 ER allowed
What Kris was able to do in those 35 innings after the All-Star break was pitch with control and confidence. He was not afraid to go after hitters, as evidenced by his lower walk total. The hits were similar, but the walk total decreased greatly as did the power numbers as he allowed just one home run in three more innings pitched.
Medlen has continued to show that he is ready to be a productive major league reliever this spring. He has thrown 13 innings and allowed just two earned runs. Of course, spring statistics are not very telling, but it is never a bad thing to see a young player perform well.
The Braves have two injury risks in the back-end of the bullpen, and if one were to get hurt then Medlen's role would expand. As the possible sixth starter, the same can be said if any of the Braves' starters get injured as well.
Medlen's amazing strikeout-to-walk ratio is what sets him apart from the other starters or relievers who would need to step up in case of injury. His production this season could be very important in the Braves success.
Some have the Braves finishing third in the division, and some have them in the wild-card. But the fact is, the only thing holding the Braves back from being as good as any other National League team is health. The depth of the roster may be tested this year, and Medlen is one of the focal points in that sense.
Kris Medlen is the most underrated player on the league's most underrated team, the Atlanta Braves
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