30 A's in 30 Days – Trevor Cahill

Acquired: Drafted in 2nd round, 2006.
Contract: One year thru 2009. No Major League experience.
Position: Future (2009?) member of A's rotation.

Projected ERA: 4.82

Over/Under: Stuff-wise, the experts have him neck-and-neck with fellow A's phenom Brett Anderson. Cahill was named the A's organizational pitcher of the year for the second straight season (11-5, 2.61 ERA between A-Stockton and AA-Midland) and, for me, he's a local boy who somehow escaped the Samoan gangs of Oceanside, CA to become one of the best prospects in the game. I am, of course, assuming that the Deep Valley Bloods have been looking to racially diversify with white guys named Trevor. Huh? Oh, right...UNDER.

By the Numbers: -2.58, 1.43, -1.58 – Respectively, Cahill's decrease in strikeouts per nine innings; increase in walks per nine innings and decrease in K/BB ratio after he was promoted and pitched 37 innings at double-A. Baseball America has him listed as the game's #11 prospect, but he's really not ready yet. All bets are off, however, if he blows through the middle-aged men and fading veterans who comprise triple-A line-ups these days.

Surefire '09 Prediction: If Cahill is promoted to Oakland early in the season, keep your eye on the June 18-20 weekend series between the A's and San Diego Padres at PETCO Park. If Cahill is scheduled to pitch, it'll be the first time in nearly 20 years that a road ballpark will be filled with more A's fans (OK, OK...Cahill fans) than those rooting for the home team. I miss 1989-1992.