Frank:
Are you saying he actually had a chance to strike five guys out in a single inning? So two guys reached base on a dropped third strike in one inning?

He must have some wicked movement on his strikeout pitch. That or he's a knuckleballer! Or maybe his catcher was lousy.

Which is it?

It was actually pretty funny to listen to the announcers. They were stating that they had seen 4 K's in an inning but never 5. Josh had thought about going for it but after the error at first he just wanted out of the inning.

Here's the recap:

Danville Bottom 6th


Jesus Sucre strikes out swinging.
Kuyaunnis Miles strikes out swinging.
L. V. Ware strikes out swinging. Wild pitch by pitcher Josh Faiola. L. Ware to 1st.
With Shayne Moody batting, L. V. Ware steals (4) 2nd base.
With Shayne Moody batting, throwing error by Josh Faiola on the pickoff attempt, L. V. Ware scores. Throwing error by center fielder Jason Rook.
Shayne Moody strikes out swinging. Wild pitch by pitcher Josh Faiola. Shayne Moody to 1st.
Joel Campusano reaches on fielding error by first baseman Elvin Polanco. Shayne Moody to 3rd.
Chris Shehan lines out to third baseman Brian Conley.


His slider was working the best it has in a loooonnnng time. Lefties were swinging over his changup which was ending up in the dirt. The catcher has a cannon but not the best footwork. He was replaced before the next inning, lol. They were recorded as wild pitches but the announcers thought that if the catcher had played them better they should have been outs.

quote:

They were recorded as wild pitches but the announcers thought that if the catcher had played them better they should have been outs.

That's the problem when a pitcher has a wicked slider that is working well ... he gets charged with a wild pitch instead of the catcher being charged with a passed ball because the slider broke so well it ended up in the dirt.

Sounds like Josh is coming around well and I fully understand what you are saying about staying sharp without mid-appearance bullpen work. Tough to do for these guys ...

Wicked slider, or a FB that has movement.

I don't always get the wild pitch stuff, to me a wild pitch is a wild pitch, not when teh catcher can't handle the ball. But then again, mine's the pitcher.

Son had one rehab inning today, he said he did well, 10 pitches, whatever that means, haven't seen the box score yet. They will bring him back slowly in rookie league.

TPM

Sorry I didn't know your son was rehabing. Hope he has a speedy recovery

What are these passed balls of which you speak? I thought they were all wild pitches! (Well, I would, wouldn't I?)

There's another possibility -- getting crossed up. And that can be either's fault, down to a lack of communication, a pitcher getting "creative", the catcher not knowing enough about the break of the pitcher's pitches.

In MiLB, it can be pretty much anything. Mine's gotten the chance to catch a few rehabbing MLers ; he fell in love ---- when they throw a pitch that's meant to break 7 inches, it breaks 7 inches....every time. His LE pitchers may throw the "same" pitch....that will go five different ways out of 5 pitches. Their whole emphasis at his level is consistency....heaven knows it isn't holding baserunners!


Hooray!!!!!! I'm listening to the game now and guess who just came in to pitch to my boy! Prepster's son --- battery mates again! His Dad e-mailed me just as I was leaving the office so I called Aeden and he was over the moon. He was in the locker room at the time and he whooped --- "Rob's coming! The guy hits his spots and wants to win!" K'd his first batter, too. The two boys must be pleased, comforting to get to a new team and know your catcher; great to know the new pitcher from the catcher's view as well. Line out to 1B for the second out. Announcer (who calls a pretty good game) is complimenting Rob's mechanics. Poop, broken bat single. Getting ahead of his batters consistently. Another K! Nice introduction to High A, RW!

Orlando,

Good post. That had to be fun to listen to. Especially with the history of the HSBBW on your side!

As a side note, I didn't mean to say they weren't wild pitches. They hit the ground before the catchers glove. Maybe with Aeden behind the dish they could have been avoided.

quote:

Originally posted by FrankF:
Maybe with Aeden behind the dish they could have been avoided.

Well of course they would have been stopped ... !!!! We would expect nothing less of our cyber-brothers

Heading to Tucson today to catch a 'spot' start for AJ ... hoping he has a good game, especially with the cost of gasoline (it might be cheaper to fly), so the 7+ hour drive one way feels worth it. Oh heck, what am I saying? Any time I can see my kid throw, it is worth whatever the cost

I hope AJ has a good game as well, Mary Ann. Good luck. Drive safely.

How cool, Aeden catching Prepster son!

As a catcher's dad, I still think that a WP on strike three borders on being an oxymoron. Sure, there can be cases of some batter swinging wildly at some horrific pitch.

But in general, CU's and CB's in the dirt? Catcher's job is to block those things. If the batter swings at a pitch in the dirt and the catcher lets it go past him, my view is the pitcher did his job and the catcher did not.

JMO

Well, RK, we'll have to agree to disagree . The pitcher did his job if he threw the pitch called with some degree of consistency as to where that called pitch is expected to go. Add in the obstacle of a swinging bat with a factor for speed of pitch and spin as it hits the dirt. Not a clear-cut decision as to PB or WP.

OK --- (PM gang please excuse the redundancy) There has been a change in my son's life:

Aeden was released from the Padres last week. Given playing behind Canham and Aeden's appalling BA for the few opportunities he got, it wasn't exactly a shock. He got so many opportunites last year to show his worth, and so few this year. But that's the chance an NDFA takes. With it getting close to the end of the season, I was a bit relieved that it was done now, rather than his just not being invited to ST.

He arrived home, and then there was a week of phone calls to and from coaches (Padres and his UK National Team) putting his name out, and some excellant advice and assistance from several of our beloved websters here.

It was a bit like watching a World Cup match --- we're close to the goal, close to the goal, blast! didn't score...close to the goal, blast! Here, of course, was where was the last-month timing was unfortunate; barring an injury, Indy ball was playing with what they had and Affiliated ball was pretty much giving their own guys a Last Chance.

So there were the soul-searching talks. Hang 'em up and start 'real life'? Take an in-person tour of the Frontier League? Take advantage of a place to stay, job offer & free personal trainer but no baseball in Columbus and hope the Mariners aren't jiving him on the ST invite? Go to an adult league with a job but digs issues in Atlanta where there has been scout interest in him as a pitcher? He's 23 with no attatchments; me, I figure you've got a lot of years to be responsible....follow your heart.

But it's more complicated --- Aeden does not have the body type "expected" of a catcher. He has stamina and strength, and his only injury ever was the Infamous Testicle Incident of 2004, but...oh, well, people see better than they think. And he has never been a power guy. As BA & power are still more important than pitcher handling and defense, is he, indeed SOL as a catcher? But he loves catching. What to do, what to do.

His UK National Coach (well connected) and Lance Painter have both always seen Aeden projecting as a pitcher as he pitches for the UK, including impressive performances against top European teams (arguably High A equivalent). So, with all these half-chances and possibilites, should he be working towards catching or pitching? (heavy sigh)

Intersperse Real Job discussions, leaning heavily toward working for Amnesty International. (Not to get political )

So...intense time.

So Tuesday, I called him during lunch to hear a very discouraged young man frustrated with the 'almosts' and unwilling to take the broadest option in Atlanta as he felt he would be "putting all his eggs into one very shakey basket"

A couple of hours later, I get a call from him with a sad gravitas in his voice that made my heart turn over. He explained that he felt it was time for him to grow up and get a real job, forget chasing Indy ball, and that he didn't feel that trying to piece together the Atlanta Option was anything other than grasping at straws. I went into Full Mom Mode, and told him he should be sure of what he wants, and to have no regrets. Whatever he wanted to pursue baseball or not, I'll back him anyway I can. "No, Mom, no regrets, it's time for me to get a real job (beat of about 4) like the one the Pirates just offered me!"

Punked me good. And I'll tell you, Mommy's Darling Boy was then called names normally reserved for Longshoreman use. He's done this to me before, but had always betrayed his words with just a touch of upbeat in his voice. Not this time --- particularly with the lunchtime call, hook, line and, indeed, sinker were already being digested by The Mom.

The contact was made through his UK coach. He'll catch at Low A in Hickory, NC for the next month while they get his arm into pitching shape. Then he'll go to Instrux and they'll all see what they've got. Yes, we know the Pirates' rep (So It Goes); but it's the perfect solution right now and he's d*mn grateful for it!

Catches his first game with them tonight. Light candles, sacrifice live chickens, send good mojo starting at 7pm ET

All part of Aeden's rich baseball tapestry.

What a life!

Orlando,
Good story to share, persistance pays off, and Aeden's story proves that one does NOT have to be drafted to play pro ball.

Orlando - that was a nice post. Very honestly written with the emotions and decisions that come with perhaps one of the most challenging professional quests that can be undertaken.

Nice punk job. I'm sure you're already planning your revenge I have a once live chicken in the freezer that should be on the candlelit sacrificial altar by 7.
Good mojo on it's way.

Best wishes for Aeden..............

Some days, you just wish that the powers that be would decide what they want to do with a player and stick with the plan. AJ was always a starter, and continued in that role till last season when they moved him to the pen. Initially, I think he wasn't happy but because of the kind of pitcher he is (= not 90+ mph), he found that he enjoyed the role quite a bit. During spring training, the Dbacks' personnel told him he would have 3 roles on the team - - - relief, long relief, spot start - - - and it seemed okay initially but he has now started as many games as he has relief appearances. And his dad and I have been officially banned from attending any home games where he is starting because it has driven his ERA up ridiculously.

We spent our 32nd anniversary watching our poor son give up lots of hits (not many hard hit ones, either) and runs last night, including a granny in the 2nd inning. When he came out in the third, he had already given up 8 runs, and the first batter he faces in the 3rd gets a single on a broken bat blooper to left field. He got mad and just started firing the ball as hard as he could ... don't know what his velocity was but he ended up striking the next three batters out to end his outing.

His dad commented that he needs to throw like that more often ... instead of being so deliberate. The problem is, he can't do that when he first gets out on the mound for a start because the powers that be are expecting him to eat up innings, which he used to be able to do and can even do in a relief role. But that starting role is soooo different, especially if you are not a fireballer.

But we went out to dinner afterwards and enjoyed seeing him and his wife nonetheless. God is good.

Many good vibes for Aeden coming from Pueblo!

Good post Orlando. You had me punked!!

I can identify as our boys live out their dreams they are always waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Good luck!

FBM,
I am not really understanding an organization taking a player who fits a role really well and trying to fit a square peg in a round hole (if you understand where that's coming from). Dave had to play two roles this year, start and relief. They had this philosophy that beginning a new inning in relief is like starting, but the preparation and mind set is completely different. Two different roles brought two different results and

Unfortunetly, starting pitchers are badly needed and this is minor league life, let's just keep putting them out there (as starters) and see what works and what doesn't.

I am not sure that anyone (even us) can really understand what players have to endure to chase their dream.

What a great story! And what a way to tell Mom that he got picked up by the Pirates! I hope you gave him a good tongue lashing indeed!

You do realize what this means, don't you, Orlando? If he's going to pitch, then you're
going to start agreeing with me on that WP/PB question!

Congratulations! I am really jazzed for you and Aeden!