I Can Build on This

I mentioned in last week’s column that I was hopeful to get one last appearance under my belt before the playoffs started. I was fortunate enough to get two.

I threw two innings versus the Hamilton Thunderbirds on Friday night in our final home game of the regular season. In an ironic twist, I started against the Thunderbirds in our home opener back in May and here I was on the mound versus the same opponents two months later.

I was happy with my performance. My first inning was three up and three down and included a strikeout. The first batter I faced in my second inning of work got a hold of a get-me-over fastball with a 1-0 count and deposited my offering over the left field fence.

I bore down after the home run and finished the inning off without giving up another run. The most important stat for me was that I had zero walks, which means that the command and control of my arsenal was where I want it. I was throwing all of my pitches for strikes.

It was Rock the Park in London over the weekend which is a concert that brings a variety of big bands to Harris Park, which is just across the Thames River from the ballpark. It was a surreal experience while I was on the mound to pitch while listening to Meat Loaf rock out to Rock and Roll Dreams Come True.

We played Toronto on Sunday afternoon and if we won it would clinch us second place in the league and avoid a first round match up with the Ottawa Fat Cats (an arduous bus trip that we desperately wanted to avoid).

We came out unbelievably flat and were down 8-0 by the end of the first inning. We weren’t able to recover and fell to the Maple Leafs 17-2. I threw the last inning of the game as our bullpen was short (which has become a common theme over the last couple of weeks). Once again, I didn’t walk a batter and did not give up an earned run.

That’s three straight appearances — encompassing four innings – without giving up a walk. I’m extremely happy with those results. It’s taken a lot of hard work, but I’m confident I can be an effective option for the team during the postseason. I know what I need to do mechanical-wise to throw strikes and if I feel like my command is slipping, I can get myself back on track.

That’s the most important thing: being able to make adjustments mid-game, rather than be at a loss when the ball isn’t doing what I want it to do.

Playoffs start tonight versus Ottawa. Unfortunately, we will have to travel to the Nation’s Capital over the long weekend, but, the way we’re looking at it, if we have to drive that far, we may as well ensure that the series doesn’t need to come back to London next week.

The three months of foreplay is over. Now it’s time for the real thing.

A Breakthrough

The Labours of Hercules-like stretch I mentioned in last week’s column has mercifully come to an end. Our shortened bench only made the task at hand all the more difficult.

I missed last Thursday’s game because of my work commitments as a reporter with the Metro News London. We lost 7-6 to Kitchener in a game that wasn’t nearly as close as the final score indicates. We fell behind early and often and only managed to score the runs in our last three at-bats — otherwise we couldn’t muster anything offensively.

I was to be the second guy out of the bullpen in Friday night’s rematch with the Panthers from Kitchener. This game was the reverse of the night before. We jumped out to an early lead and managed to hold on for dear life, closing out a hard-fought 10-7 victory. I was in the bullpen warming up in the ninth inning ready to come in if our reliever wasn’t able to shut the door.

He did and I was able to get some much-needed work in on my mechanics and delivery.

The doubleheader in Barrie on Saturday was a disaster from the time we left London. Horrible traffic made us late for the game and we were forced to forgo batting practice and jump right into a contest against the first place team in the league.

The lack of preparation showed as our hitters couldn’t get anything going offensively in either game. I was the lone reliever available out of the bullpen. We had just three pitchers to get us through 14 innings against one of the top lineups in the IBL.

The heat and humidity was unbearable at times. I was drenched in sweat just by walking from the dugout to the bullpen. I entered the game to pitch the 6^th inning of Game 1 to face the top of Barrie’s batting order. I had a 1-2-3 inning, three up and three down.

It’s the first perfect inning I’ve pitched since my first start of the season on opening day. I retired the three batters I faced on two groundouts and a strikeout. I was throwing strikes with good velocity and I was able to command my off-speed pitches as well. It felt like I’ve really turned a corner and that I’m back to where I was at the beginning of the season.

It took me long enough, but better late than never.

Unfortunately, we came up on the short end of the stick in both games, losing two straight games to Barrie, basically eliminating ourselves from contention for the regular season pennant.

However, we bounced back beautifully on Sunday against Brantford and hammered the Red Sox 11-1. That win basically assures us of second place in the league, barring a horrible collapse this week in the remaining four games of the season.

Our pitching staff is still pretty thin so I will most likely have one more appearance before the playoffs start. I’m hoping I can build on my performance on Saturday and be counted on to throw important innings in the postseason.

"Life with the Majors Column"

A Work in Progress

The London Majors pitching staff has been decimated in the past week. Where we once had a complete bullpen with a full complement of arms, we’re now faced with the difficult task of wading through our most difficult stretch of the season with a roster of arms that, at best, would be considered a minimum requirement to field a competitive team.

Between injuries—two guys have been shut down for the summer with arm troubles—and work commitments forcing guys to miss games (myself included; I’ve been working regularly at the Metro News London as a reporter in addition to my weekly column), we’ve been forced to take an all hands on deck approach.

Case in point Sunday afternoon: we travelled to Hamilton for an afternoon tilt against the Thunderbirds with exactly three pitchers, one of whom is a starter and could only be called upon to throw an inning at most.

I was designated as the first—and I guess by default, only—arm out of the bullpen. We were cruising along through the first five innings of the game up 8-0. However, in the sixth, our starter—typically a reliever all season long—ran out of gas and Hamilton began stringing some hits together.

A three run home run chased our starter and I was brought into the game with our lead cut to 8-5. I was hoping to build on my previous outing and continue my long, arduous climb back to respectability and hopefully the talent I showed in the home opener.

I gave up a run in my first inning on a loud double to the leftfield corner. My command wasn’t great to begin the outing but I got out of the frame without further damage. Our bats went silent for the remainder of the contest and it was left to me to hold onto our tenuous lead.

My control started to come around and my confidence continued to creep upward. Any command issues that did arise were purely the result of a lack of focus on my part. Not a lack of focus in the game, but a lack of focus in terms of replicating my mechanics. I would forget to hit my delivery checkpoints and the ball wouldn’t cooperate as it headed towards the plate.

Oddly, I felt the best and most confident in my stuff in the 9^th inning as we tried to close out an 8-7 nailbiter. Unfortunately, this was the time when every ball Hamilton hit bled into the gap for a cheap single. I was pulled with two outs in the ninth. Luckily, we won mere minutes later by picking off a guy wandering too far off of second base.

We got the win and I was able to throw three serviceable innings to help the team. I’m enthused about keeping the lead, but I still know there’s lots of room for improvement. And I need these improved results for these next few days. We play tomorrow, Friday, a doubleheader on Saturday and a single game on Sunday.

That’s five games in four days. And we’ll only have six pitchers available. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that it’s going to be a dogfight to come out of the weekend with a .500 record. I will definitely be throwing again soon.

“Life with the Majors” (back after a one week hiatus)

Back in the Game

I pitched in a game for the first time in a little less than three weeks over the weekend. It was an emergency type situation as our starting pitcher only lasted two innings. I was brought in to bridge the gap to later in the game and hopefully eat some innings, while not letting the game get further out of hand than it already was.

I wasn’t expecting to pitch, but I was ready for it because we had a short bullpen available for the game. I’ve been working on my mechanics every time I’ve thrown recently and I really focused on throwing strikes in the bullpen warming up. I wasn’t concerned with velocity in the slightest.

I’ve had difficulty throwing strikes in my last three outings, so I needed to right the ship and pound the zone. And with our team down by several runs when I came into the game, it was imperative that I force our opponents to hit their way on base. I had to let our defence have the opportunity to defend; I couldn’t do that by walking batters.

I came into the game wanting to be aggressive and wanting to show my teammates and coaching staff that my first start of the year wasn’t an aberration.

I threw strikes but I ran into an insanely hot offence. I forced the opposing hitters to swing the bat, but by being so consumed with pounding the strike zone, some of my pitches caught way too much of the plate and veered right into their wheelhouses.

I threw three innings total and gave up five runs, but also struck out three. I pitched with more confidence than I have in my last couple of outings and I was pleased with my command. Of course, the results weren’t very good and I’m by no means happy with my performance, but after the struggles I’ve gone through—not to mention being inactive for about three weeks—it’s a step in the right direction.

Ironically, in an odd twist, I actually had the lowest game ERA of all four Major pitchers who threw on Sunday. That just shows you how honed in their bats were. It didn’t matter what we threw or how hard we threw it; they hit it and they hit it hard.

It happens from time to time. Just one of those days. However, those days seem to be occurring more frequently for the London Majors.

We are now 14-8. We have fourteen games remaining and the regular season has to be finished by July 24^th. There’s a lot of baseball coming up in the next few weeks. We’re going to need all hands on deck.

I will be counted on again. And now I’m confident I can throw strikes with all of my pitches.