Update: Prior was an amazing pitcher when I left my original rating, but injuries are impossible to predict. He has been unable to stay healthy, and hasn't pitched since 2006. He is now signed to a minor league contract with the Padres, and is still rehabbing his shoulder that he had surgery on in 2007 after a disappointing 2006 season. Who knows if Prior will ever make it back to the Majors, or if he will come close to his previous success. Right now I can't give him any type of positive rating with his lack of recent credentials.

2/24/2004 - ***** Prior should be the best pitcher of the next decade. He has an amazing combination of power and finesse, and has got to be a pain for any batter to face.

This is a temporary rating. If he comes back, he will automatically become a four, and after that, he will probably be a five.

There was a time when fans thought he was the next Clemens, had some fine years early on, but injuries and a sort of baffling but plain ineffectiveness, are turning him into something like a post- 1976 Wayne Garland. May turn around his career, still has time and he's relatively young, but hopefully he won't sink even further.

Baseball has a lot of aging pitchers(Clemens, Schilling, Johnson, Pedro). Him, Santana, and Wood will be the best pitchers in the league in 7 years when all those guys retired.

Why the HELL is he ranked so low? If he had been healthy last year, he'd have 5 stars.

Excellent pitcher. But he's been struggling lately.

umm why does evrey1 hate cubs pitching? i mean prior and wood should be in the top 10 if not at the least 20

Best young pitcher in the game. If you had to choose any one player to build your team around, it would have to be Prior.

My favorite player in the game. He is so dominating it is unbelievable. He is my age and I am going to love to watch him throughout his career and get even better!!!

As dominating a pitcher as there is in the league. His delivery is effortless, and his fasball seems to speed up as it approaches the plate. He rarely seems to catch more than a corner of the plate with a pitch, as his control is absolutely awesome when you consider how hard he is throwing.... and then there is the curve ball. Javy Lopez struck out on a pitch tonight that must have bounced ten feet in front of, and 2 feet to the left of the plate. A scary, scary pitcher.

He is the next Roger Clemens, with an explosive fastball and a beautiful curveball. He's only 23... or is he 24? It doesn't matter... he should be a 300 game winner with the right progress. He will be the greatest Cub pitcher ever

This guy is going to be the man! He's already one of the top pitchers in the league and this is only his first full season. He has a smooth delivery that SHOULD (hopefully) keep him healthy. Watch out....

it's very early, of course, but he's been damn good so far.

His curve scares the hell out of me. His fastball scares everyone. There is no way this guy will not be a superstar. He could eventually be a 30-game winner on a team of bad pitchers, unfortunately, he is on the Cubs.