In his minor league career Eric Surkamp has but up some very impressive numbers, at any of the stops where he made more than just handful of starts he has never posted a FIP above 3. He has shown the ability to command his pitches and even without even average fastball velocity he has shown the ability to strikeout batters at a very high rate.
Last year Surkamp dominated the Eastern league and put to rest any concerns that there would be lingering issues with the hip injury that cut short his 2010 campaign. His 2011 season ended with a taste of the majors where he made 6 starts where he pitched a little timidly and was unable to put up the same type of numbers that he had shown in the minors. His struggles could have been partially due to fatigue after pitching nearly 40 more innings past his career high so it will be interesting how he does going forward.
Surkamp features a high 80's fastball that he has been able effectively place his in the minors but struggled with in his stint in the majors. His out pitches are an average change-up that has fared pretty well against righties and a plus curve ball that is his best strike out pitch.
Without premium (or even average) velocity on his fastball his ceiling is probably limited to a back of the rotation starter but the good news is that he seems to be close to already being a league average starter and right now is number one on the Giants depth chart of replacements should one of the starters go down with an injury.
Season
|
Team
|
W
|
L
|
SV
|
G
|
GS
|
IP
|
K/9
|
BB/9
|
HR/9
|
BABIP
|
LOB%
|
ERA
|
FIP
|
2008
|
Giants (R)
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
3.1
|
18.90
|
0.00
|
0.00
|
.500
|
66.7 %
|
2.70
|
-1.00
|
2008
|
Giants (A-)
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
5
|
4
|
14.0
|
10.29
|
3.21
|
0.64
|
.442
|
65.0 %
|
6.43
|
3.13
|
2009
|
Giants (A)
|
11
|
5
|
0
|
23
|
23
|
131.0
|
11.61
|
2.68
|
0.41
|
.369
|
70.3 %
|
3.30
|
2.20
|
2010
|
Giants (A+)
|
4
|
2
|
0
|
17
|
17
|
101.1
|
9.59
|
1.95
|
0.44
|
.288
|
68.0 %
|
3.20
|
2.54
|
2011
|
Giants (A+)
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
6.0
|
7.50
|
1.50
|
0.00
|
.250
|
100.0 %
|
0.00
|
2.03
|
2011
|
Giants (AA)
|
10
|
4
|
0
|
23
|
22
|
142.1
|
10.43
|
2.78
|
0.32
|
.298
|
80.3 %
|
2.02
|
2.37
|
2011
|
Giants
|
2
|
2
|
0
|
6
|
6
|
26.2
|
4.39
|
5.74
|
0.34
|
.333
|
66.5
%
|
5.74
|
4.68
|
Total
|
- - -
|
2
|
2
|
0
|
6
|
6
|
26.2
|
4.39
|
5.74
|
0.34
|
.333
|
66.5
%
|
5.74
|
4.68
|
Best Tool: Surkamp is a pretty polished pitcher with several good things going for him. His best pitch right now is his curve ball which he has used to great effect in the minors to rack up impressive strike out totals. He also is able to get by without a good fastball by placing the pitch where he wants it to go so that batters have trouble barreling him up for loud contact.
Needs to work on: In his brief stint in the majors he didn't show the same aggressive attacking of the zone that he had shown in the minor leagues. With that his walk rate and strikeout rate took a pretty big hit. He was probably a bit over his head and should be given the chance to work on getting ready for the majors by starting in triple-A Fresno.
Ceiling: Surkamp is a relatively low ceiling guy but he is close to the majors and has a high floor. He has some nice things going for him which could potentially make him a slightly above average pitcher but it is unlikely that he will be an All-Star. That being said even with out any more development he is probably a serviceable major league starter who could make most teams roster as a 4th or 5th starter. Luckily he has the chance to spend some time in Fresno to work on some of his weaknesses before being thrown into the fire.
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