The last month of regular season play

5 starts, 3 of those quality. Unfortunately the last two outings were sub par. Of the three that were quality, I gave up 3 runs in 20 innings pitched with 1 win and 2 no decisions. At that point I had lowered my era from an abismal high 5.xx to 4.25. I thought I had a chance to lower my era into the 3s before the regular season would conclude. Wrong. My last two starts did not bode well. My last regular season start was a little misconceiving. I faced the Southern Maryland Bluecrabs and gave up 11 runs, 7 earned, but three of those runs came in the 8th inning when my pitch count was well over 120 pitches. I ended that game with 140 pitches total. I know, ” why in the world did you throw that many pitches?” We had two relievers missing from the pen and the others needed rest for the playoffs. With the day off in between the regular season and the division playoffs. It would be a few extra days till my first playoff start.

Win #2 vs. York

Camden	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
R. Dittfurth (W, 2-3)	6.0	5	4	4	4	8	0	5.97
B. Hernandez	1.0	1	1	1	2	0	0	4.44
F. Rodriguez	1.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1.30
A. Zumwalt (S, 23)	1.0	0	0	0	0	2	0	2.11
York	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
R. Viera (L,1-1)	5.1	7	6	5	4	7	0	2.75
T. Phelps	1.2	1	0	0	1	3	0	4.88
J. Padilla	2.0	3	1	1	1	5	0	3.94

3 of the 4 runs came in the 7th inning, and 1 of the 4 was an inherited runner that I left at first base when I came out of the 7th without recording an out.  Every walk came with a 3-2 count, the last one came on a questionable call with a runner on first and no outs in the 7th.  Definitely changed the game. I had a shot to lower my ERA until that 7th inning.

Numbers aside.  Huge positives in the aspect of pitch quality.  I was able to keep my higher arm slot the whole game which helped my “stuff”.  I was able to throw my curve for strikes as well as a good strikeout pitch.  I think at least 4 of the 8 K’s were curves.  A huge plus last night was the fact that I was able to feature a slider again.  I really have to give thanks to my Pitching Coach Dick Such.  He spent some extra time with me this week with my arm slot and a new grip for my slider.  The slider really helps me out, because it allows me to offer a pitch with late movement that is pretty easy to throw for strikes.  I was able to get righties to pull off and tied lefties up inside.  The one hit batter was a lefty that I threw a slider to.  I hit him in the back foot with no attempt to get out of the way- it was a hard late breaking pitch that would have been excellent with two strikes, but for the first pitch of the at bat it was a different story.  This “new” slider was anywhere from 80 to 84 mph. 

Last night I was able to throw 4 pitches for strikes.  Fastball 88-92 with sink. Curve 70 mph with sharp 12-6  break.  Slider 80-84 mph with a late tight break.  And my change up 78 – 80 with downward movement.

Numbers for last night could should have been better.  Time to make a late push here for the last month before the playoffs.  With 6 starts in this league and probably 5 more before the playoffs, I can defintely change my numbers to reflect the ability I still have. 

With all I have been through, I truly feel blessed to still have the ability to play this great game.  Although this year has not been my best, adversity truly brings out the real you.

Aug 17 vs. Bridgeport

Was not a good day.   5 innings 5 runs.  Ended up being a  no decision due to an outstanding comeback to win the game in the later innings by our offense.  I have been struggling with my command and arm slot something that has to be worked on.  I am hurting myself by putting extra batters on base by either walking them or hitting them.  I have given up less than a hit per inning and my opposing batting avg is below .225 but I have been walking around 4 per 9 innings.  Way to high.  Add in the fact i have been a victim of homeruns here in the Atlantic league, something I have not been too familiar with in my carreer.  Bad experience is still good experience…  take the bad learn from it and hopefully you don’t repeat it.  Something I have tried to do thoughout my career.

First W as a Shark

August 11 vs. Somerset Patriots

A lot of positives from this game.  First off I carried a no hitter into the 5th which was broken up by the lead off hitter on a poorly executed change up.  It takes skill and some luck for innings to be strung together like that.  I have been working hard in the recent weeks to sharpen my curveball and I was able to throw it on a somewhat consistant basis.  My problem is I will slow my arm speed on my curve as compared to my fastball resulting in me “casting” my curveball also resulting in the curve hanging out on the right side of the plate hitting the batter.  FRUSTRATING.  I was able to mix it in for strikes and strike outs as well.

Faced the Ducks 5 days ago…gave my team a chance

Not a quality start, but close. 7 innings 4 runs. Victim of a 2 run Carl Everett homerun in the first inning. 3 of my 7 Ks came in the first inning. Although my velocity has not been where I normally think it should be, 88-91, I commanded the zone better on both sides of the plate with sink. Included in the mix was my change and curveball which showed some similarities to my Pre injury days.

I face the Somerset Patriots tonight barring any rain. There is currently a low pressure system floating over New Jersey right now as we travel to the field. I love being able to post using the mobile version of WordPress on my iPhone. Lately Internet connections have been hard to come by. Confident and ready to face competition. I will let you know how it goes tonight.

Glimpses

Sometimes self evaluation reveals your own strengths that you must pay attenttion to, and give yourself some credit. A little egotistical in most cases, but pitching and baseball is equal parts psyche and physical ability. Without rambling on, what I am trying to get to without sounding cocky. My 2 seam fastball/sinker moves a lot. My gameplan for success revolves around the pitch. In order to be successful I can’t stray away it. In the 5th inning, I did. Result 3 run homer because I chose the wrong pitch in the wrong situation. I went with a changeup to a big righty that did not sink. It has to be one of the worst things; realizing in tenths of second that a pitch is not coming back.
Overall I gave up 5 runs, I believe 4 earned, 5hits, 4ks 3bbs. Alot of ground balls, Alot of bad sliders, which I am going to put on the back burner for now and stick with my curve.
There were times tonight where I was able to control the hitters and visa versa(spelling/grammar/usage). Like the title states GLIMPSES.
So far I am 0-2 as a rivershark. I face Long Island and there big league roster Wednesday. I look forward to that.

rain, rain, go away

A heavy dose of sinkers were washed away by thunderstorms that came in the top of the 6th inning. Things appeared to be on the upside, we had one out and the bases loaded. After a lightning bolt and a crack of thunder, the tarp was pulled and play was suspended for over an hour until the game was ultimately called. Up until that point I had pitched very well. Of the 15 outs recorded through the 5th inning 10 were ground balls. I did allow a run. One hit batter, a ground ball, and a weak ground ball down the line that bounced around in the bullpen scored the runner at second. 4 K’s a walk and two hit batters. Overall, I comanded the inner half of the dish, and used some breaking balls and change ups to keep hitters off balance. Who’s to say what would have happened if play continued.

Update… Now a Rivershark

The past two weeks have been interesting to say the least.  Let me catch you up.  The road trip to Wichita (July 11,12,13) did not bode well in the aspect of baseball.  Once again I struggled against the Wichita Wingnuts.  They have been my nemesis this year.  I lossed to them as a reliever once and now as a starter twice (July13).  I did not last 5 innings and allowed way to many runs– 7.  Although I did not fare well with baseball, I had the opportunity to spend some time with Melani and Lynli. The opportunity to see them was wonderful. Mel-I love you so much and thank God everyday that he has put you in my life.  You are a great wife and mother. 

Following our return from the Wichita roadtrip, I was informed that my services were no longer needed(July16).  It was great to see the support from my teammates as they became aware of the situation.  Alot of thoughts crossed my mind the next few days–do I give up my dream or press on.  I left to Lincoln to meet Melani and Lynli in Tulsa as they were spending some time with Granna and Grandaddy Ross. Ultimately we made our way back home to Dallas(July 18).  Soon I was contacted by several other teams, and I was left with a decision.  Do I continue with my pursuit or focus solely on my education and family?

Although I have not achieved the same level of greatness, I can understand why Brett Farve has flip-flopped several times regarding retirement.  It is so hard to walk away from the game I have known my most of my life.  I have been pursuing my dream of reaching the big leagues for 10 years.  10 years of bus rides–you know the ones that last more than 12 hours and the AC doesn’t work, double headers in the dog days, bad meals late at night, day games and every kid in day care is at the park singing SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS, wins, losses, and no decisions.  This is one situation that a pitcher can not settle or be content with a no decision.

I want to play, and I want to play well. 

I have signed a contract with the Camden Riversharks of the Atlantic League.  By signing with the sharks I have opted to delay school for one semester as the end of the season will not be over in time to start school.  The Riversharks won the first half and are playoff bound.  I will pitch in my first game as a shark on Sunday.

A step in the right direction

Tuesday, I pitched the second half of a double header against the Sioux City Xplorers.  6 and 1/3 innings, 3 runs, 1 earned, 2 Walks, 2 K’s, 3 hits, and a no decision.  I left the game with the score 3-2 our favor, but our bullpen had a rough night.  Its just a part of the game.  We still won, thats the good part.  In the past week’s bullpen and through the onset of the Tuesday’s game, a couple of key notes need to be made.  Keep the elbow up and finish the pitch.  Plain and simple.  And now that it is noted here I can reference it anytime.  If I forget these key points, it is my own fault.  Bullpen today, I can easily say that it has been the first bullpen in a long time that I am excited to throw.

On a side note, I get to see my Wife and daughter this weekend.  I get to pull the midnight feeding duty this weekend and I have to say– I can’t wait.  Although my opinion of the matter might change on Monday, I don’t care.

Family

Two Weeks, Two Bad Outings, One Amazing Event In Between

My last start,  before last night, was June 22nd.  5 innings and a loss.  Last night I did not even make it out of the the 5th and another loss.  Horrible, just plain horrible.  Alot has happened in between the two starts.  I have become a father.  My wife and I have been blessed with a beautiful healthy baby girl- Lynli Mae.  She was born on June 24th at 7:50 am.  9lbs 7oz.  I spent about a week at home.  The time off hurt me.  I have to get back into the routine. Last night my stamina was horrible, arm strength bad, results even worse.  Currently we have moved to a 4 day rotation, so I have to bounce back fast.