It was during my first trip to Class AA Altoona this year that I first heard the buzz about Luis Ortiz. The right-hander had skipped Class High-A Greensboro entirely, going from Bradenton to AA, pushing the 22-year-old right-hander ahead of his Rule 5 eligible season.
The buzz was that he could touch triple digits as a starter and spin a slider.
And when those two pitches are working, they can both miss bats:
If that immaculate inning in August wasn't impressive enough, how about six no-hit innings in his second start for Class AAA Indianapolis last week, which earned him International League pitcher of the week honors:
Ortiz is going to be eligible for our minor-league rundown for just a few hours after publication, as he will have his contract selected Tuesday and make his major-league debut against the Reds.