Sunday, June 30, 2013

Remembering the night Jeff Locke ruined my dinner plans

Few places in Bradenton are more aptly named than Ball Park Deli & Sub Shop, located a short fly ball away from McKechnie Field, which is the spring home of the Pittsburgh Pirates and the summer home of the Bradenton Marauders, the Pirates' high Single-A team.
Ball Park became a haven for me of sorts during the summer of 2010, when I started chronicling the Marauders' inaugural season.
My routine went like this: I'd head to the Marauders clubhouse at around 5, get my interviews, grab a spot in the press box, grab a sub from Ball Park (which closed at 6) and spend the rest of the night working on a feature while working my way through a scrumptious sub the length and width of a baseball bat.
It was a good plan. It worked.
Then along came Jeff Locke.
I was covering the Marauders the night after Armando Galarraga, pitching for the Detroit Tigers at the time, came within an out of tossing a perfect game before he was done in on a blown call by first-base umpire Jim Joyce.
As galling as it was for fans to watch Galarraga's quest for greatness get snatched away so unfairly, I figured it was more so for a fellow pitcher, who knows how hard it is to get three professional hitters out in a row, let alone 27.
It was about 5:30 or so when the Marauders' pitchers finished their stretching and tossing and began making their way back into the clubhouse to grab some dinner.
The first guy I saw was Locke, which was good, because not only was he one of the better pitchers on the staff (he went 9-3 that year before a promotion to Double-A Altoona), but he was one of the few guys I hadn't talked to.
So I made my way over and we started chatting. Off the bat, he was one of the nicest and most articulate people I have interviewed.
Lots of eye contact, lots of good answers. This wasn't a guy spouting out a bunch of yes and no answers - he and his teammates watched Galaragga's shot at history get wiped away by a mistake, and Locke, who had never met Galaragga, was hurting for him.
“It’s sad, it’s shocking,” Locke told me that night. “Honestly, as a pitcher, you’re speechless.”
Turns out, Locke lost two no-hitters in the seventh inning twice the season before against the Salem Red Sox, but considered himself lucky because he lost them on clean hits rather than close calls.
“It’s wacky how you can do that — 27 up, 27 down,” Locke said. “Especially because the major-league strike zone is like a postage stamp. It’s tough to throw strikes over that plate and not have professional baseball players hit them.”
We spoke for awhile, after which I thanked Locked for his time and made my way out of the clubhouse. Then I noticed the time: It was 5:55. No way I'd make it to Ball Park in time. Jeff Locke had been such a good interview he forced me to alter my dinner plans.
But I really didn't care. I got a pretty decent column out of it, and, most importantly, a better understanding of Locke.
As I write this, the Pirates are 51-30 and owners of baseball's best record. And Locke, who won a spot in the rotation this spring, has been a revelation, posting a 7-1 record and 2.06 ERA in 16 starts.
Maybe the Pirates will ride this wave all the way into the postseason for the first time since 1992. And maybe Locke will get to pitch in a playoff game. If he does, I'll be sure to watch. And while my diet is much better now than it was three years ago, I may have to celebrate the moment with a sub from Ball Park.
I just have to remember to get there before 6.

Read more here: http://www.bradenton.com/2010/06/04/2335350/pitchers-from-bradenton-to-detroit.html#storylink=cpy


Read more here: http://www.bradenton.com/2010/06/04/2335350/pitchers-from-bradenton-to-detroit.html#storylink=cpy


Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Gregory Polanco selected for Futures Game

Gregory Polanco is headed to New York City.
The former Bradenton Marauder and one of the Pirates' top prospects, Polanco has been selected to play in the 15th All-Star Futures Game, scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday, July 14, at New York's Citi Field.
A native of the Dominican Republic, Polanco will play for the World Team.
Polanco, 21, began this season with the Marauders. He hit .312 with 30 RBIs and 24 steals in 57 games before he was bumped to Double-A Altoona, where he is batting .313 with six RBIs and a home run in eight games.
Entering this season, Polanco was ranked the 51st-best prospect by Baseball America and 65th by MLB.com.
Dilson Herrera, 19, an infielder, will also represent the Pirates in the Futures Game. He was named the Gulf Coast League's Player of the Year in 2012 while with the GCL Pirates and is currently with low Single-A West Virginia.

Friday, June 21, 2013

David Price talks about his rehab start vs. Marauders

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher David Price threw 2 1/3 innings at McKechnie Field as he works his way back from a triceps strain.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Stetson Allie coming to Bradenton

When the Pirates selected him during the second round of 2010 draft, Stetson Allie was figured to be another piece of the team's pitching resurgence.
Now it's his bat leading Allie up the organization's ladder.
Allie has been promoted to Bradenton after hitting .324 with 17 home runs with 61 RBIs in 66 games with low-A West Virginia.
Not bad for a guy drafted as a pitcher.
Allie struggled with control during his pitching days, as he walked 37 in 26 2/3 innings with the Pirates' New York-Penn League in State College, and the Power. He was converted into a first baseman/designated hitter in 2011 and is a career .282 hitter in 125 games.
The Marauders open the second half of the season at home Thursday against the Charlotte Stone Crabs.

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Three Marauders off to FSL All-Star Game

photo by Paul Videla
Nick Kingham is one of three Bradenton Marauders who will suit up for the South All-Stars during the Florida State League All-Star game, slated for 7:05 p.m. Saturday, June 15 at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium in Dunedin.
Joining Kingham will be fellow Marauders Alen Hanson and Gregory Polanco.
Ranked the Pittsburgh Pirates' 13th best prospect by MLB.com, Kingham is 6-2 with a 3.34 ERA in 11 starts. He leads the Florida State League with 68 strikeouts.
Hanson, a shortstop, is ranked third in the Pirates' system and is hitting .284 with 22 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. He also has a .345 on-base percentage and is tied for second in the league in triples (five).
Polanco, ranked fourth, is an outfielder. He is sixth in the league in batting (.321), second in steals (23) and seventh in hits (62). Polanco has 30 RBIs and is slugging .497
The South team features players from Bradenton, Charlotte, Fort Myers, Jupiter, Palm Beach and St. Lucie.
The North features players from Brevard County, Clearwater, Daytona, Dunedin, Lakeland and Tampa. 
The North and South rosters can be found here.