Mizzou Baseball in the Majors 2012: Aaron Crow

Former Missouri Tiger pitcher Aaron Crow didn't repeat as an All Star in 2012 and he didn't lead the Kansas City Royals to the playoffs this season.  He did begin 2012 as the guest speaker/interviewee at the Mizzou Baseball First Pitch Celebration in February, and closed out the year participating in Topeka's annual Christmas parade and helping to serve Thanksgiving dinner to the homeless.

Aaron had an overall good season. There was a lot of talk leading up to the season about moving him into the starting rotation, but that never happened and Crow was once again a part of the Royals' solid young relief corps. He had a schizophrenic first outing, when he struck out Albert Pujols as part of a 3-K opening inning, then came back for a second inning and completely went off the rails, giving up four straight hits.  But then he kicked it into gear quickly.  Kings of Kauffman named him the Royals Pitcher of the Month for April.

♦ Aaron contributed to a franchise record for strikeouts by Royals pitchers in 2012.

♦ Looking forward to 2013, Crow will be counted on to once again be an integral part of the bullpen staff, as described at Kings of Kauffman:

Aaron Crow (24): Another guy who is both valuable and can close if asked to do so but will be the primary bridge to the last guy on the list. Former All-Star Crow continues to improve with improve standing out most to fans from 2011 to 2012 and is one of the most important guy at the back-end for KC.

On the other hand, there is, once again, some talk about moving Aaron into the starting lineup.

What the Royals could do instead of trading a starter, is to grant either Kelvin Herrera or Aaron Crow the opportunity to start in 2013. Obviously, both of these pitchers have question marks that will likely deter the Royals from this route. Herrera has already lost nearly two seasons due to injuries. Aaron Crow was ineffective as a starter in his first professional season.


However, the incentive here is clear. Either of these starters, if they could transition successfully, could be a #2 or at least a #3 starter. Herrera has more front end stuff, but Crow has shown that he can handle the workload that a starter would require. If the Royals have a preference between the two, they could chose before camp. If the Royals aren't sure which would be a better fit, you let the two of them battle it out for the final rotation spot.

♦ Aaron Crow tagged posts on tumblr.com feature a variety of photos, tweets and other comments.  Including this stoner shot.