This year we’ll be releasing our top 25 list in conjunction with the people over at Bernie’s Crew,
which means the list is going to posted somewhat out of order to match
up with what Jim has for his Top 25. An up-to-date list of the Between the Green Pillars Top 25 can be found at the bottom of the page.
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Tim
Dillard / RHP / 6’4” 215 LBS / Born 7/19/83
The expense and uncertainty of the Brewers annual bullpen rebuild has made it abundantly clear that the team must start to develop their own relief pitching on a more consistent basis. Tim Dillard is one of the first in-house relievers brought up through the system in the last few years, and he has a chance to be
a solid contributor as soon as this season.
A junior college pick in the 2002 draft, Dillard is primarily a sinkerball/splitter pitcher that will alter speeds with a changeup. He had a
breakthrough 2005, where he posted a 2.48 ERA and an outstanding 0.98 WHIP in
185 innings for High-A Brevard County. That effort earned Dillard the 2005 Brewers’ minor league pitcher of the year award. Dillard’s struggles in AAA Nashville during the 2007 season, when he posted a 4.74 ERA and 1.53 WHIP, led to his being converted to the bullpen full time in 2008. He responded by posting a 2.01 ERA in his first 15 appearances in AAA, which earned him a promotion to the major leagues in late May when the Brewers were desperately searching for someone to get outs from the pen. His results in the majors were mixed. Pitching primarily in low leverage situations, he accumulated a 4.40 ERA over 14 innings while struggling with his control. After
being sent back down, he finished strong with a 1.99 ERA for Nashville.
If he pitches well this spring, you could see Dillard could potentially earn a roster spot to open the year and eventually
find himself pitching in high leverage situations. It will be important for the Brewers to be patient, not only with Dillard but with other young relievers, as they tend to take some time to get their feet under them in the major leagues.
Between the Green Pillars Top 25 Prospects:
# 25: Evan Frederickson
# 24: Cody Adams
#23: Alex Periard
#22: Brent Brewer
#21: Brad Nelson
#20: RJ Seidel