Stroman, Otero and Freiman

[Jim3k]

No, that's not the name of a law firm.

Blue Devils Marcus Stroman, Dan Otero and Nate Freiman squared off today in a Fourth of July ballgame—Oakland A’s v. Toronto Blue Jays. I was fortunate enough to see the game—which ended 1-0 in the bottom of the twelfth.

I hadn’t seen Stroman pitch before, but I was very impressed. The rookie went seven solid and scoreless innings, struck out seven and allowed only three hits. After the game, A’s hero Nick Punto said Stroman had really nasty stuff, mentioning in particular a cut fastball and a really tough curveball. He said Stroman has a real major league future based on what he saw today. This no-decision means Stroman’s record remains 4-2, with an ERA of 3.44.

For the A’s, which had used up most of their bullpen after eleven innings, Dan Otero came in as their last reliever in the top of the twelfth. He faced four batters, allowed a harmless hit and finished the inning having thrown only ten pitches. He was the pitcher of record when Punto drove in the only run of the game. So Otero’s record is now 7-1 as a middle/late reliever and has an ERA of 2.03.

Nate Freiman did not start, but came in as a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the eighth. He promptly deposited a Texas League double into short right’s no-man’s land. He showed some speed as he dove head-first into second base. Unfortunately he was stranded. In the bottom of the tenth, he was robbed of hit up the middle (wickedly hard hit but a great stop by second baseman Kawasaki) which was turned into a force at second. Nate's speed, though, broke up the double play attempt. Yet, once again he was stranded.

I don’t know if Duke has ever had three major leaguers play in the same game before. I certainly enjoyed the play of all three.

[OldPhiKap]

No, that's not the name of a law firm.

Blue Devils Marcus Stroman, Dan Otero and Nate Freiman squared off today in a Fourth of July ballgame—Oakland A’s v. Toronto Blue Jays. I was fortunate enough to see the game—which ended 1-0 in the bottom of the twelfth.

I hadn’t seen Stroman pitch before, but I was very impressed. The rookie went seven solid and scoreless innings, struck out seven and allowed only three hits. After the game, A’s hero Nick Punto said Stroman had really nasty stuff, mentioning in particular a cut fastball and a really tough curveball. He said Stroman has a real major league future based on what he saw today. This no-decision means Stroman’s record remains 4-2, with an ERA of 3.44.

For the A’s, which had used up most of their bullpen after eleven innings, Dan Otero came in as their last reliever in the top of the twelfth. He faced four batters, allowed a harmless hit and finished the inning having thrown only ten pitches. He was the pitcher of record when Punto drove in the only run of the game. So Otero’s record is now 7-1 as a middle/late reliever and has an ERA of 2.03.

Nate Freiman did not start, but came in as a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the eighth. He promptly deposited a Texas League double into short right’s no-man’s land. He showed some speed as he dove head-first into second base. Unfortunately he was stranded. In the bottom of the tenth, he was robbed of hit up the middle (wickedly hard hit but a great stop by second baseman Kawasaki) which was turned into a force at second. Nate's speed, though, broke up the double play attempt. Yet, once again he was stranded.

I don’t know if Duke has ever had three major leaguers play in the same game before. I certainly enjoyed the play of all three.

Great question, have no idea. Always good to hear of alums doing well! Thanks for the report.

[Olympic Fan]

Three Blue Devils in one game?

It's certainly been awhile ... I know that in the late 1930s, the Athletics once boasted five Duke players on the roster. I imagine that there were a couple of games where two or three were in the lineup together. I know that in the spring of 1939, Connie Mack started all five Duke players in an exhibition against Jack Coombs' Duke team ... but I doubt that happened in the regular season, Wayne Ambler, Eric Tipton and Chubby Dean saw a lot of action -- Dean was interesting because he was a pitcher and a first baseman. But Hal Wagner and Dave Smith barely played.

It might have happened since then, but I can't guess when (I looked carefully to that period in the late '50s and early '60s when Dick Groat and Gordy Coleman were regulars in the NL. So was Al Spangler, but they played on three different teams, so never three in one game).

[arnie]

And assuming Capuano isn't on a roster, those 3 are the only Blue Devils currently in the majors.

[budwom]

I think Stroman gave up three hits in seven innings, no runs...in his previous start i think he gave up a couple of runs but only two hits in eight innings...so, something
like five hits in the last 15 innings (IIRC, too lazy to check the box scores)...pretty good stuff.

[Olympic Fan]

And assuming Capuano isn't on a roster, those 3 are the only Blue Devils currently in the majors.

The Red Sox released Capuano last Tuesday ... he pitched in 28 games for them this season.

As I type this, he is not on anybody's roster, but he is still getting paid -- $2.25 million this season.

Alex Hassan has been up and down with the Red Sox this season -- he's currently in Pawtucket. He is on Boston's 40-man roster.

Greg Burke is pitching for Colorado's triple A team, but he's not on their 40-man. He pitched briefly for the Mets last season.

[arnie]

The Red Sox released Capuano last Tuesday ... he pitched in 28 games for them this season.

As I type this, he is not on anybody's roster, but he is still getting paid -- $2.25 million this season.

Alex Hassan has been up and down with the Red Sox this season -- he's currently in Pawtucket. He is on Boston's 40-man roster.

Greg Burke is pitching for Colorado's triple A team, but he's not on their 40-man. He pitched briefly for the Mets last season.

Thanks for the update.