Trio of Dayton Pitchers Come Out of Nowhere

Daniel Renken, Josh Smith, and Daniel Corcino entered 2011 in relative anonymity. Renken and Smith were late-round picks in 2010, and Corcino was a 2008 international signee who had met with mixed results.

But the trio have become the anchors of arguably the best starting rotation in the minors.

Sort the Midwest League pitching leaderboard by strikeouts, and Renken, Smith, and Corcino come up 1-2-3, with 120, 106, and 96 K’s, respectively.

All three also have relatively low walk totals: 33, 18, and 17. Renken has allowed ten homers, while Smith and Corcino have allowed just four and three.

Given that some of the more highly-touted pitching prospects in the organization are struggling, the surge of these three righthanders has been important to maintaining pitching depth for Cincinnati.

That said, none of the three possess overpowering stuff, and none were considered top-25 prospects in the Reds’ system before the season, so caution is certainly warranted. Furthermore, Smith is nearing his 24th birthday, and Renken is almost 22, so they are both somewhat old for the level.

The best of the three looks to be Corcino, who doesn’t have Renken’s walk/homer problems and has yet to turn 21. He was also the highest-rated of the trio entering 2011, but that’s not saying much since Smith and Renken were new to pro ball and hadn’t had much of a chance to make an impression.

Renken and especially Smith could really use midseason promotions to show what they’re capable of against age-appropriate hitters. But file these three righthanders away under “sleepers.” With the Reds’ system relatively thin on arms, especially at the upper levels, these three pitchers will get a chance if they keep throwing well.