The Mets selected Mark Cohoon in the 12th round (374th overall) in the 2008 MLB June draft.  Cohoon was an unheralded, small college two-way player.  Cohoon served as an outfielder and left-handed pitcher and the Mets decided to draft him as a pitcher, which looks like a smart choice so far.

Cohoon was mediocre at best during his debut in 2008, but really turned it on in 2009 in Brooklyn, completely dominating the New York-Penn League.  It wasn’t until 2010 as a 23-year-old pitching for Savannah that Cohoon caught everyone’s eye.  He dominated LoA hitters by going 7-1, 1.30 ERA (2.49 FIP) in 13 starts.  Cohoon had a .213 batting average against (.270 BABIP) and had excellent peripherals with a 1.69 BB/9 and 7.47 K/9.  After throwing three consecutive shutouts in June the Mets promoted Cohoon all the way to Double-A Binghamton having him skip HiA all together.

Cohoon has excelled in Double-A and has finally received recognition from people outside of the Mets world as a potential big league starter.

Fast forward to 2010 and there is a new 23-year-old pitcher in Savannah making some waves.

Another small college pitcher, Taylor Whitenton, is doing his best to make a name for himself as a legitimate prospect.  Whitenton was taken much later than Cohoon in the 39th round (1,184th overall) out of Darton Junior College and although he was used almost solely as a pitcher in college, much like Cohoon, Whitenton was a good two-way player as he was drafted out of high school in 2007 in the 40th round as a shortstop by the Atlanta Braves.

Because he signed late Whitenton didn’t get in much time during his debut in 2009 and like Cohoon was very mediocre.  Whitenton’s numbers in 2010 weren’t spectacular, but he pitched better than the numbers show on the surface.  He was 8-9 with a 4.57 ERA in 26 games (18 starts).  His FIP was 3.88, way under his ERA.  The Gnats had a terrible defense last year, which would explain his .348 BABIP.  The only thing Whitenton did wrong last year was walk too many hitters, but that has changed this year.

In 2010 Whitenton has lowered his BB/9 from 5.65 to 3.54.  Still a little high, but not awful and he has also managed to raise his K/9 from 9.39 to 10.61.  The improved command is the reason he is absolutely dominating the SAL this year.  Whitenton has gone 2-0 with a 0.64 ERA in 7 games (3 starts).  His FIP is much higher, but at 2.59 it still shows he is pitching excellent.

While Whitenton has come out of the pen the majority of the time this year they were all in extended appearances with just one of them being under three innings and after his last two great starts one would think the Mets will keep him there.

He has very clean mechanics, as seen by the video below, and according to Mike Newman‘s report on him Whitenton sits at a respectable 89-91 mph, which is a little better than Cohoon. Newman also projects him to add a little but more velocity on his fastball and by ooking at his smooth mechanics, quick arm action and hips, and lanky frame with room for more muscle I tend to agree with Mike about that. Mike’s biggest beef with Whitenton in 2009 was his breaking ball and early reports have that as an improved offering.

With the title “The Next Mark Cohoon” it should be clear I used that term very loosely because their are major differences between the pitchers in terms of repertoire, handedness, and command. What I was going for is in Whitenton the Mets have an older, yet young in terms of being a pitcher, pitcher dominating the lower levels of the minors who could move quickly. With Jeurys Familia already moving up to Double-A and Matt Harvey likely to follow soon a spot in the St. Lucie rotation should open up for Whitenton by late-June and if he pitches well a possible promotion to Double-A before the end of the year.