When it comes to figuring out who the National League Cy Young will be, there are plenty of names that come to mind rather quickly. You can bring up Chris Carpenter, Roger Clemens, and Roy Oswalt, and no one would even blink. Today I am going to be adding a name to that list, and hopefully after reading this article, you will be paying more attention to John Patterson of the Washington Nationals.

First we must acknowledge how much of a prospect John Patterson was coming into the Major Leagues. By knowing that John Patterson's expectations were very high, we can assume that what he has done during his career is legitimate. The first fact that is proof of his overall ability is the idea that John Patterson was the number five overall selection in the 1996 amateur draft. Being a first round selection is always an indication of ability and potential, and being the 5th overall selection enforces those ideas even more so.

In the year 2000, BaseballAmerica.com had John as the 10th best prospect in the minor leagues. To put that in perspective, other number 10 overall prospects include: Mark Teixeira, Miguel Tejada, Nomar Garciaparra, and Francisco Rodriguez. All of those guys have enjoyed tremendous success for at least a short period of time, and I expect John Patterson to do the same this coming season.

Now that we have realized the great potential and ability John Patterson always had, we can analyze last year's performance and see how that will transition to this year. Last year, John Patterson was one of the most electrifying pitchers in the National League. The Nationals relied on Patterson's arm each time out to keep them in the game. He nearly reached 200 innings pitched, while having a 3-1 strike out to walk ratio. Most dominant pitchers achieve roughly one strikeout per inning pitched, and John is no different. So his general pitching credentials are there, but what about his performance last year, he didn't win much, and his ERA wasn't that great right?

Winning ball games in this day and age can be chalked up to luck and offense. I truly believe that the number of wins is irrelevant in terms of overall performance. Looking at Roger Clemens last year, he didn't win many games considering he was the ERA champion. John Patterson went through the same issues Clemens did in Houston, and hopefully the addition of Alfonso Soriano will help Patterson's cause.

In regards to his end of season stats, I would prefer to look at his stats before any injuries came into play. John Patterson had a 2.43 ERA in 24 starts for the Washington Nationals before he began to obtain the injury bug. He was nearly un-hittable in those 24 starts, and only when he was exhausted, and oft hurt, would teams score runs on him. Looking at him this so far this year, while he is healthy, John Patterson has yet to allow a run in spring training. Not only has he enjoyed his success from last years pitching, John has been pleased with his changeup according to Rotoworld. Again, via Rotoworld, "The pitch I'm most impressed with right now is my changeup," John Patterson said. "It's come a long way, and it feels really good."

Please do not hesitate to leave a comment below. I am awaiting your thoughts!