Independent Baseball Insider

Vol. 11, No. 17, May 30, Inc. 2013 665-A North Trail, Stratford, CT 06614 TEL: 203 380-9931 Wirz & Associates,

Email:RWirz@aol.com

Trio of Indy Hurlers Helping Angels Surge The Los Angeles Angels bid to bounce back from their horrific startthey have won nine of 11 was fortified Wednesday night when onetime Atlantic League (Camden, NJ) trainee and current ace Jered Weaver came off the disabled list to start the 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers, but the truth is the Halos would not be as upbeat about getting back into the American League West race without the contributions of no less than three bonafide Independent Baseball graduates. Jerome Williams (Lancaster, PA, Atlantic League as well as the former Golden League) has given Mike Scioscias crew a major lift since he returned to the rotation, turning in wins in his only three decisions and compiling a 2.02 earned run average in his last four starts. He has not given up more than two earned runs in any of the games to improve his season record to 4-1, 2.58. Robert Coello (Edmonton and Calgary, Golden League), who had only 12 uninspired major league appearances prior to this season, has been brilliant out of the bullpen with his so-called WTF out pitch, and fellow right-hander Dane DeLaRosa has been a workhorse ever since his early-season promotion from Triple-A Salt Lake City. All three are earning their way. Jeromes been pitching terrific baseball, Scioscia told The Whittier (CA) Daily News, and that was before his latest victory in which he limited Kansas City to two runs in six innings earlier this week. It seems unimaginable he will not continue in the rotation. Coello, the youngest of the trio at 28 and a converted catcher, has emphasized the WTF pitch, as he described it to Yahoo Sports, to limit opponents to six hits and one earned run in 10.1 innings over eight appearances since coming up from Salt Lake City. The 1-1 record, one save and 0.87 ERA tell only part of the story because he has fanned 18 batters and walked only one. His mystery pitch Yahoo described as a forkball, jammed deep between his index and middle fingers and released, amazingly, with next to no spin, like a knuckeball. DeLaRosa, who has pitched in both the Atlantic League (Southern Maryland) and American Association (El Paso, TX), told The Los Angeles Times recently that he actually found himself while working with private pitching coach Dom Johnson, the son of former slugger Deron Johnson, before joining his fourth Golden League team back in 09. Johnson helped correct mechanical flaws, and it pretty much changed my career, the pitcher said. He has worked in 25 games for the Angels already, even though he did not open the season with them. He is 1-1 with a 4.21 ERA for the season, but except for one bad outing against the Chicago White Sox would have a 1.04 ERA for his last 10 appearances.
(Bob Wirz also writes about Independent Baseball on www.IndyBaseballChatter.com. Fans may subscribe to this Independent Baseball Insider column, which will be published 40 times in 2013, at www.WirzandAssociates.com or comment to RWirz@aol.com. The author has 16 years of major league baseball experience with Kansas City and as spokesman for two Commissioners, and lives in Stratford, CT.)