The complex is closed today (a rare occasion - those folks work most every day) due to Hurricane Helene passing thru. I’ve lived here (Clearwater area) a few years now yet the anxiety that comes with Hurricanes still gets me. This one is a widespread storm with anticipated landfall in the panhandle/big bend area of the state. They have a saying down here “Run from the water, hide from the wind” - I’ve been thru multiple storms back home in PA - none of them compare to the storms down here, anyone who discounts their impact is a freaking fool.
Enough of the storm talk - hopefully it’s past us quickly as forecast. Here a few baseball news and notes to share and get my mind off of the weather for a bit.
Bullpen Sessions :
I watched three pitchers throw bullpen sessions yesterday - RHP Marty Gair and LHP Wesley Moore threw side sessions on Roberts field which was followed by a fifteen pitch live BP by RHP Alex McFarlane (his first live BP in his rehab process returning from September, ‘23 TJ surgery (he last pitched in a game on 8/25/23). Alex threw a few sharp sliders (from my vantage point)
in his session. Before his shutdown last year he had incorporated a relatively new offering for him - a two seam fastball that had both cut and sink to it. In addition he was throwing a four seamer, slider and changeup - easy delivery, nothing forced - saw that delivery again yesterday. It was a good initial session as he threw free and easy and was over the plate with most of his pitches - Kodey Shojinaga caught him while Bryan Rincon and Gabriel Rincones Jr were the batters. Alex is a pleasant young man who always takes time to say hello - has a great attitude and is always ready to put in the work. Fastball ranges from 94 to 100 mph with a changeup, slider and curve as secondaries is what he offers when back to game action.
Marty Gair also is returning from TJ surgery - the 21 one year old was selected in the 13th round of the 2023 draft from Florida Southwestern State Junior College. He has yet to appear in a game as he went into rehab work shortly after being drafted and had surgery last fall. I saw him in a few bullpen sessions before the surgery and was impressed with how the ball came out so quick on a downward angle. He’s a big fella at 6’6” and comes almost directly over the top with his delivery, when healthy he’s a mid to upper nineties hurler who began his collegiate career at UNC Wilmington before transferring to Florida Southwestern - is from Concord, North Carolina. Was impressed with his simulated two inning up-down session again yesterday - this old baseball man thinks there’s a great deal of upside in his future once back into game action.
Wesley Moore is here prepping for the Arizona Fall League - his delivery is a three quarter slot and the ball jumps at the hitter with what I’ll term a seeming “lung” as he releases. He’s got great deception on his change up - it’s a dead fish pitch as it crosses the plate that really screws up the hitters timing as it’s delivered from the same slot and release point/arm speed as his fastball with a 10 to 15 mph differential - I truly think it’s a big league offering. He’s excited for the AFL opportunity and I think he’s gonna make a huge impression there.
On Monday I watched Andrew Painter throw the third live BP I’m aware of (I’ve seen two of them). From what I’ve seen the fastball velocity is certainly back in pre surgery range (mid to upper nineties) but command on both the heater and his secondaries is not Painter like just yet (to be expected). He did an up down two innings Monday totaling about 25 pitches. Andrew had Tommy John surgery on 7/25/23 - it’s been 14 months and he’s back on the mound throwing live BP with velo, that’s impressive in itself. Was on the fast track to the big leagues prior to the surgery after having a standout 2022 season posting a 1.56 ERA across three levels (Low A to Double A) in 22 starts (103.2 IP) with 155 K’s and 25 walks, was flat out dominant. The feel for the secondary pitches to throw them consistently will be the ongoing rehab challenge along with re-gaining the masterful command and control of the heater. He seems on his way to all of that - next step after a few more live BP sessions still TBD - as Mr. Dombrowski said recently to the media there’s no concrete plan just yet. Other than Sixto Sanchez early in his career he’s the most complete and dominant minor league pitcher I’ve ever watched perform. Good stuff!
Did Ya Know 🧐
For the second consecutive season, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs finished 1st in total attendance out of all 120 Minor League Baseball teams with 588,788 fans coming thru the gates at Coca-Cola Park. This is the 4th time the IronPigs have led all of Minor League Baseball (MiLB) in total attendance (2011, 2012, 2023, 2024). For the 2024 season, the IronPigs had 73 total openings and totaled 32 sellouts with 16 capacity (10,100) sellouts. The IronPigs 2024 total attendance mark is their highest since 2019 (585,112) and it is the first time the IronPigs have been over 8,000 in average attendance since 2019 as well (8,066). Since the team’s inception in 2008, the IronPigs have never finished lower than eighth in MiLB in total or average attendance and have ranked within the top-5 in both categories in 13 out of 16 seasons. Congrats to Iron Pigs fans for their dedication and to Sam Jellinek for that tidbit of information.
That’s it for now as we continue to hunker down while the storm passes by - remember if ever in a hurricane “Run from the water, hide from the wind.” That’s our plan at least 🤓
Happy Day, Happy Baseball ⚾️
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