By Josh Boyd
January 11, 2003

He's no Bartolo Colon, but the Marlins added a veteran starter on Saturday. They sent three pitching prospects—lefthanders Rob Henkel and Nate Robertson, plus righthander Gary Knotts—to the Tigers for Mark Redman and Class A righthander Jerrod Fuell.

The Twins drafted Redman with the 13th overall pick in 1995, after an All-America career at Oklahoma that included a 1994 College World Series championship. The 29-year-old lefthander made his major league debut for Minnesota in 1999 and showed promise by going 12-9, 4.76 as a rookie in 2000. He missed most of 2001 with quadriceps and knee injuries, and was traded to the Tigers that July for Todd Jones. Redman struggled through a tired-arm period last year at the end of an 8-15, 4.21 season. Eligible for arbitration after making $300,000 in 2002, he works with a below-average 85-87 mph fastball, a slider, a good changeup and good command. He'll be the elder statesman in a projected Florida rotation of A.J. Burnett (26), Josh Beckett (22), Brad Penny (24) and either Justin Wayne (23) or Michael Tejera (26). Redman has a career record of 23-30, 4.57.

Henkel, 24, was considered the key to the deal for the Tigers, who came away with an intriguing trio of young arms. A 2000 third-round pick out of UCLA, Henkel overcame shoulder problems in 2001 to lead the organization in wins (13) and strikeouts (150 in 145 innings) last season between high Class A Jupiter and Double-A Portland. His best pitch is a knee-buckling knuckle-curve, and he also throws an 88-92 mph fastball and a developing changeup. He creates deceptiveness with his delivery, which helped him limit opponents to a .209 average last year. Henkel also battled back from Tommy John surgery in college and though his fastball hasn't returned to its previous 93-95 range, he proved his arm was sound last year by making 25 starts without a hitch. Detroit general manager Dave Dombrowski and assistant GM Al Avila both worked for Florida and were instrumental in drafting Henkel. He was attending MLB's rookie career development program in Lansdowne, Va., when both teams called to inform him of the trade. The Marlins had invited him to big league camp on Friday, and the Tigers extended the same offer Saturday. He was expected to compete for a job in the Florida bullpen, but now will get a look as a starter by Detroit.

After going 10-9, 3.42 for Portland last year, the 25-year-old Robertson received a surprise September spot start, which he parlayed into five more relief appearances. He was shut down, though, due to shoulder inflammation that precluded him from attending the Arizona Fall League. Like Henkel, Robertson had Tommy John surgery in college. He was drafted in the fifth round out of Wichita State in 1999, and had to overcome more elbow surgery in 2000. A sinker-slider pitcher with an average fastball that tops out at 92 mph, Robertson relies on changing speeds and hitting spots with his fastball and changeup.

Knotts, 26, was an 11th-round draft-and-follow who signed out of Northwest Alabama CC in 1996. He made a steady ascent through the minors, making his big league debut in 2001. He never settled into a major league role last year, but made 28 appearances going 3-1, 4.40 with 21 strikeouts in 31 innings for the Marlins. Knotts also went 5-3, 4.25 at Triple-A Calgary. He has an overpowering 95-mph fastball with good sink and run life, and he can spin a hard curveball and a show-me changeup. Control and command will dictate his role, but scouts love his arm strength.

Though Fuell, 22, is considered a marginal prospect, he's coming off a solid season out of the low Class A West Michigan bullpen. A 10th-rounder in 1999 out of a Tucson high school, he went 5-4, 2.34 in his second season in the Midwest League. He had a 63-20 strikeout-walk ratio in 77 innings while holding opponents to a .239 average.