PITCHING PERKS UP
The ace of the staff. The stopper. The pitcher who the team comes to count on to prevent a few losses from becoming a freefall.
With the tribulations the Rock Cats have encountered from leaky starting pitching, left-hander Brian Duensing has been the one manager Riccardo Ingram has discovered can stop the bleeding.
The smile that Duensing emitted said that he was flattered. His words told a different story.
“I don’t know,” Duensing said after tossing seven innings of five-hit, one-run ball against the Connecticut Defenders Sunday. “I don’t know if I’d call myself that. As a staff, we’re struggling a little bit. We’ve been giving up a few runs but we all know we’re better than that. We’re just going to have to keep working a little harder and executing a little more.”
Duensing, ranked number 18 in Baseball America’s prospect parade, is 2-0 with a 2.75 ERA. He has started four games and the Rock Cats, 7-9 heading into Tuesday’s game against Binghamton, have won all four. Perhaps the most glowing statistic is that he’s walked just four batters in 19 2/3 innings. Walks are always incongruent with success but the Rock Cats have been particularly prone to watching them quickly become runs.
Duensing, 24, was chosen by the Twins in the third round of the draft in June 2005. After an injury-plagued college career that included Tommy John surgery in 2004, he has been healthy as a pro and the result has been consistency.
He was 4-3 with a 2.32 ERA in 12 games with short-season Elizabethton (Appalachian League) after pitching in the 2005 College World Series. Last year, he jumped from low-A Beloit (2-3, 2.94 ERA in 11 games) to New Britain, where he ended his season with a 1-2 mark and 3.65 ERA in 10 games.
“He got his feet wet here last year and he knows what’s required,” pitching coach Gary Lucas said. “(The other starters) know, too, but as far as the lone lefty in the rotation, with the seven innings he pitched (Sunday) and the kind of guy we’re trying to keep on course as much as possible, he’s trying to step up and a lot of that will come with consistency. We have to see it here for awhile.”
A BULL IN THE PEN: While Duensing has been the best starter, left-hander Jose Mijares has been the toast of the bullpen. Mijares, 22, is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA and three saves in seven games. He has struck out 10 in 10 2/3 innings and opposing hitters are batting .135 against him.
“He has stuff,” Lucas said. “We want to keep him healthy all year because he’s had some issues in the past. We want him to be more serviceable. The other thing is staying calm. A lot of that will come with maturity. A lot will come with confidence and being productive.”
Mijares was faced with a bases-loaded one-out dilemma in the ninth inning against Connecticut Sunday when Lucas came out for what he termed “a fireside chat.” Mijares added some zest to the fastball and struck out the next two hitters to preserve the win for Duensing.
“I wanted him to think about throwing it through the glove, not to the glove,” Lucas said. “He attacked better.”
With the tribulations the Rock Cats have encountered from leaky starting pitching, left-hander Brian Duensing has been the one manager Riccardo Ingram has discovered can stop the bleeding.
The smile that Duensing emitted said that he was flattered. His words told a different story.
“I don’t know,” Duensing said after tossing seven innings of five-hit, one-run ball against the Connecticut Defenders Sunday. “I don’t know if I’d call myself that. As a staff, we’re struggling a little bit. We’ve been giving up a few runs but we all know we’re better than that. We’re just going to have to keep working a little harder and executing a little more.”
Duensing, ranked number 18 in Baseball America’s prospect parade, is 2-0 with a 2.75 ERA. He has started four games and the Rock Cats, 7-9 heading into Tuesday’s game against Binghamton, have won all four. Perhaps the most glowing statistic is that he’s walked just four batters in 19 2/3 innings. Walks are always incongruent with success but the Rock Cats have been particularly prone to watching them quickly become runs.
Duensing, 24, was chosen by the Twins in the third round of the draft in June 2005. After an injury-plagued college career that included Tommy John surgery in 2004, he has been healthy as a pro and the result has been consistency.
He was 4-3 with a 2.32 ERA in 12 games with short-season Elizabethton (Appalachian League) after pitching in the 2005 College World Series. Last year, he jumped from low-A Beloit (2-3, 2.94 ERA in 11 games) to New Britain, where he ended his season with a 1-2 mark and 3.65 ERA in 10 games.
“He got his feet wet here last year and he knows what’s required,” pitching coach Gary Lucas said. “(The other starters) know, too, but as far as the lone lefty in the rotation, with the seven innings he pitched (Sunday) and the kind of guy we’re trying to keep on course as much as possible, he’s trying to step up and a lot of that will come with consistency. We have to see it here for awhile.”
A BULL IN THE PEN: While Duensing has been the best starter, left-hander Jose Mijares has been the toast of the bullpen. Mijares, 22, is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA and three saves in seven games. He has struck out 10 in 10 2/3 innings and opposing hitters are batting .135 against him.
“He has stuff,” Lucas said. “We want to keep him healthy all year because he’s had some issues in the past. We want him to be more serviceable. The other thing is staying calm. A lot of that will come with maturity. A lot will come with confidence and being productive.”
Mijares was faced with a bases-loaded one-out dilemma in the ninth inning against Connecticut Sunday when Lucas came out for what he termed “a fireside chat.” Mijares added some zest to the fastball and struck out the next two hitters to preserve the win for Duensing.
“I wanted him to think about throwing it through the glove, not to the glove,” Lucas said. “He attacked better.”
posted by Ken Lipshez at
5:43 PM
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