There’s a story about Larry Bowa bringing a scout over to watch Brett Myers throw during ‘02 Spring Training, and prophesying acehood for his former 1st round draft pick. Myers hasn’t done much since ‘02, winning 45 of his 125 starts and posting a 4.39 ERA and 1.38 WHIP. He was on the way to repeating his “breakout” ‘05 season when he slapped his wife in the face on a Boston street and declared himself inactive until mid-July.

Myers is the NL’s John Lackey; a guy with a low-90s fastball and overhand 12-6 curve that allows him to rack up Ks despite lacking overpowering stuff. The difference between the two pitchers is that Lackey’s willing to learn from his mistakes, while Myers seems perfectly unhappy to repeat them.

From his earliest days with Joe Kerrigan as pitching coach, Myers gained a reputation as a coaches’ nightmare. He cared about his stats more than he cared about his team, and he didn’t want anyone’s help. After he won 11 games in ‘04 with a 5.52 ERA and 1.47 WHIP, he defended his personal .500 season. Now the 27-year-old is likely on his way out of Philadelphia to underachieve in a new MLB city.

He’ll probably turn into a very good pitcher within the next couple years, but that should’ve already happened.

He’s headed back to the team on July 14, and he’ll slide back into the rotation. We’ve seen players like Julio Lugo play through this kind of issue, and Myers is a good bet to keep pitching through his first court appearance on August 4. Considering his wife is the one who posted his bail, there’s no reason to think Myers’s legal issues will drag on.