Breaking news: It seems former Dodger prospect Allen Webster is good

Despite the headline, it really isn't breaking news. Allen Webster is a damn good prospect. Sadly, not everyone knew that heading into spring training 2013.

From Pete Abraham of Boston.com:

"Webster in two appearances this spring: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K. He has been 95-99 with his four-seam fastball and shown an an excellent changeup along with a two-seam fastball with heavy sink."

From Rob Bradford of WEEI.com:

"Webster hit 99 mph on the stadium’s radar gun, as was the case in his outing in Dunedin. But it might be his secondary pitches that have separated the pitcher in the eyes of the Red Sox’ coaching staff.

'Velocity is one thing, but still, I just think the action to the stuff, and keep in mind, this is someone who has always been a starter so the first inning coming in the middle of the game is a little different for him,' (John) Farrell said. 'But with each successive inning, you can see the rhythm and just the glow of the game really start to take over. He has three very good weapons you can go to."

From Ron Chimelis of Masslive.com:

"He does have an effective sinker. In five minor league seasons, he has averaged nearly a strikeout per inning, a little under four walks per nine innings, and only one home run every 27 innings."

From Jason Martinez of MLB Depth Charts:

"#RedSox not only freed up a lot of $ in blockbuster trade w/ #Dodgers, young pitchers acquired (R. De La Rosa/ A. Webster) are impressive."

The fact that this seems to be a surprise to folks out there is somewhat curious. Webster was one of the best Dodger pitching prospects for the last couple of seasons. His success (I know, it's still March) is no surprise to me and others, I'm sure.



I'm not saying I'd undo the trade, as I'd have gladly traded Rubby De La Rosa and Webster to land Adrian Gonzalez, but it'd be nice if he was still a Dodger.

I said on the last two episodes of "Dugouts Blues," that if Webster was still in the system, he'd have been my No. 1 prospect. Jim Shonerd of Baseball America said he'd rank Webster in the top five and ahead of Zach Lee in his rankings. So, people in the know (referring to Shonerd), knew Webster could be this good.

Best of luck to Webster (and De La Rosa). He should have a spot in the Boston rotation no later than 2014.