from official site:
Big-league debut: Chris Bootcheck is a soft-spoken 24-year-old, but he couldn't help but smile when asked about his upcoming Major League debut Tuesday night against the Oakland A's.
Bootcheck spent his second straight year at Triple-A Salt Lake after impressing the Angels enough in Spring Training to be one of the team's final cuts.
Things didn't work out so well for Bootcheck in the early months of the Triple-A season -- he carried an ERA over 6.00 for a good portion of April and May.
But one slight adjustment enabled him to look like a different pitcher in the second half.
"I moved all the way to the right on the rubber and it allowed me to hide the ball a little bit longer," Bootcheck said.
He tested it out with his pitching coach, Rich Bombard, and the first try yielded an eight-inning, one-run win.
"It obviously worked," Bootcheck said. "And it helped build my confidence."
A few months later, here he is in the big leagues.
"It's exciting," he said, after mentioning that his parents, wife and brother would attend Tuesday's game.
"It's what I've dreamed of ever since I was drafted."
/////////////////
from official site:
09/07/2003 1:46 PM ET
Notes: Duchscherer starts Tuesday
By Kent Schacht / MLB.com
ST. PETERSBURG -- The Athletics announced after Sunday's game that right-hander Justin Duchscherer, the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Year, will start on Tuesday against the Angels.
Duchscherer, who went 14-2 with a 3.25 ERA at Triple-A Sacramento, limited Edmonton to one hit over six innings in picking up the victory in the first round of the PCL playoffs last Wednesday.
The right-hander came up in the Red Sox system before being traded to Texas in 2001. He made his big-league debut with the Rangers in September of that season, appearing in five games -- two starts -- with a 1-1 record and 12.27 ERA.
"He's a control pitcher," A's manager Ken Macha said. "His walks-per-innings-pitched (ratio was) amazing this year. He's got a good curveball and good changeup."
Macha said calling Duchscherer up at this point gives him the ability to keep left-hander John Halama in the bullpen, as well as durable knuckleballer Steve Sparks -- the two pitchers mentioned as candidates to start before the announcement that Duchscherer will toe the rubber.
A's pitching coach Rick Peterson said since Duchscherer will be facing an Angels club with plenty of Triple-A reinforcements, the situation could work to his advantage.
"He's probably pitched against a lot of these guys -- they had a lot of call-ups," Peterson said.
Barry Zito, who pitched in a pennant race during his rookie campaign, guessed that the battle for the American League West will probably be the furthest thing from Duchscherer's mind.
"A lot of times, ignorance is bliss," Zito said. "Guys don't know. They're like, 'Dude, I could care less about the pennant race -- I just got here.' I think that's what these new guys are thinking."
from official site:
09/08/2003 10:50 PM ET
Notes: Duchscherer's been there
By Kent Schacht / MLB.com
OAKLAND -- After Sunday's game in Tampa Bay, Barry Zito heard that the A's would be calling up right-hander Justin Duchscherer to start Tuesday's game against Anaheim. His first reaction was a telling state of the A's these days.
"Jeez, we've got a lot of young guys."
Hearing Zito -- who at 25 was the club's youngest player for most of the season -- make that statement, emphasizes the kind of second half it's been for the A's.
Oakland cruised through the season's early months with few changes in its staff, but since the All-Star break, Chad Harville, Rich Harden and Mike Wood have all been called up from Triple-A Sacramento, with the latter two making their big league debuts.
The one thing that Duchscherer, 25, will have going for him that Harden and Wood did not is did not is 14 2/3 innings of big league experience in 2001 -- something he's hoping will make a big difference on Tuesday.
"Last time I was up, I didn't have the confidence to throw my own game," he said, saying he just went with his catcher's calls, not shaking many pitches off. "This time, I have the confidence to pitch my own game."
A's catcher Adam Melhuse, who caught Duchscherer early in the Triple-A season before being promoted to the big league club, said he expects the even-keeled Duchscherer to handle the pressure of pitching in a pennant race.
"It seemed like his natural demeanor is pretty easy going," Melhuse said. "It's kind of how he pitches.
"Overall, his a pretty basic guy out there -- nothing flashy, nothing extraordinary, just effective," he said. "If he can keep that same pace and take what he was doing in Sacramento and come over here, he's going to be fine."
Duchscherer earned PCL Pitcher of the Year honors at Sacramento, going 14-2 with a 3.25 ERA. With numbers like that, he admits it wasn't always easy watching as some of his teammates got the call from Oakland.
"Like everybody in here, this is where you want to be. When you're doing well at Triple-A but there's no room for you to move up, there's not a lot more than you can do than keep going out and pitching well."
Duchscherer started game one of the River Cats' PCL playoff opener, limiting Edmonton to one hit over six innings in picking up the win last Wednesday. He was scheduled to start Tuesday in Sacramento's second round opener at Nashville.
Jumping from a minor league playoff to a pennant race is something he wasn't expecting quite yet, but he'll be ready.
"I think this is more exciting," he said. "If I go out and have a good game I'll be a lot more excited -- it's a lot more important."
A's manager Ken Macha said based on his Sacramento numbers, he expects Duchscherer to be just fine.
"The most important thing is that he pitched tremendously the whole year," he said. "His confidence should be real high."
from SF Chron:
A'S NOTEBOOK
The right time for a right-hander
Ron Kroichick Monday, September 8, 2003
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. Petersburg, Fla. {ndash} -- Even now, in the thick of a playoff race, the A's are reaching into their deep reservoir of minor-league pitching talent. Justin Duchscherer, the PCL Pitcher of the Year at Triple-A Sacramento, will join Oakland to start Tuesday night against Anaheim.
Steve Sparks and John Halama had been the prime candidates to make that start, but manager Ken Macha said the A's want to keep Sparks and Halama in the bullpen. Halama and Ricardo Rincon are Oakland's only left-handed relievers.
"We felt like Sparks gives us help (in relief), he can pitch almost every day, and Halama gives us a little balance in the bullpen," Macha said.
Duchscherer, a 25-year-old right-hander, was 14-2 this season at Sacramento, with a 3.25 ERA and an astounding walks-to-strikeouts ratio (18 walks, 117 strikeouts). He appeared in five games for Texas in 2001, so at least Tuesday night's start will not be Duchscherer's major-league debut.
"A lot of times, ignorance is bliss," Barry Zito said. "These new guys don't think about the standings, they're worried about pitching their a-- off and not going back to the minors."
Big-league debut: Chris Bootcheck is a soft-spoken 24-year-old, but he couldn't help but smile when asked about his upcoming Major League debut Tuesday night against the Oakland A's.
Bootcheck spent his second straight year at Triple-A Salt Lake after impressing the Angels enough in Spring Training to be one of the team's final cuts.
Things didn't work out so well for Bootcheck in the early months of the Triple-A season -- he carried an ERA over 6.00 for a good portion of April and May.
But one slight adjustment enabled him to look like a different pitcher in the second half.
"I moved all the way to the right on the rubber and it allowed me to hide the ball a little bit longer," Bootcheck said.
He tested it out with his pitching coach, Rich Bombard, and the first try yielded an eight-inning, one-run win.
"It obviously worked," Bootcheck said. "And it helped build my confidence."
A few months later, here he is in the big leagues.
"It's exciting," he said, after mentioning that his parents, wife and brother would attend Tuesday's game.
"It's what I've dreamed of ever since I was drafted."
/////////////////
from official site:
09/07/2003 1:46 PM ET
Notes: Duchscherer starts Tuesday
By Kent Schacht / MLB.com
ST. PETERSBURG -- The Athletics announced after Sunday's game that right-hander Justin Duchscherer, the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Year, will start on Tuesday against the Angels.
Duchscherer, who went 14-2 with a 3.25 ERA at Triple-A Sacramento, limited Edmonton to one hit over six innings in picking up the victory in the first round of the PCL playoffs last Wednesday.
The right-hander came up in the Red Sox system before being traded to Texas in 2001. He made his big-league debut with the Rangers in September of that season, appearing in five games -- two starts -- with a 1-1 record and 12.27 ERA.
"He's a control pitcher," A's manager Ken Macha said. "His walks-per-innings-pitched (ratio was) amazing this year. He's got a good curveball and good changeup."
Macha said calling Duchscherer up at this point gives him the ability to keep left-hander John Halama in the bullpen, as well as durable knuckleballer Steve Sparks -- the two pitchers mentioned as candidates to start before the announcement that Duchscherer will toe the rubber.
A's pitching coach Rick Peterson said since Duchscherer will be facing an Angels club with plenty of Triple-A reinforcements, the situation could work to his advantage.
"He's probably pitched against a lot of these guys -- they had a lot of call-ups," Peterson said.
Barry Zito, who pitched in a pennant race during his rookie campaign, guessed that the battle for the American League West will probably be the furthest thing from Duchscherer's mind.
"A lot of times, ignorance is bliss," Zito said. "Guys don't know. They're like, 'Dude, I could care less about the pennant race -- I just got here.' I think that's what these new guys are thinking."
from official site:
09/08/2003 10:50 PM ET
Notes: Duchscherer's been there
By Kent Schacht / MLB.com
OAKLAND -- After Sunday's game in Tampa Bay, Barry Zito heard that the A's would be calling up right-hander Justin Duchscherer to start Tuesday's game against Anaheim. His first reaction was a telling state of the A's these days.
"Jeez, we've got a lot of young guys."
Hearing Zito -- who at 25 was the club's youngest player for most of the season -- make that statement, emphasizes the kind of second half it's been for the A's.
Oakland cruised through the season's early months with few changes in its staff, but since the All-Star break, Chad Harville, Rich Harden and Mike Wood have all been called up from Triple-A Sacramento, with the latter two making their big league debuts.
The one thing that Duchscherer, 25, will have going for him that Harden and Wood did not is did not is 14 2/3 innings of big league experience in 2001 -- something he's hoping will make a big difference on Tuesday.
"Last time I was up, I didn't have the confidence to throw my own game," he said, saying he just went with his catcher's calls, not shaking many pitches off. "This time, I have the confidence to pitch my own game."
A's catcher Adam Melhuse, who caught Duchscherer early in the Triple-A season before being promoted to the big league club, said he expects the even-keeled Duchscherer to handle the pressure of pitching in a pennant race.
"It seemed like his natural demeanor is pretty easy going," Melhuse said. "It's kind of how he pitches.
"Overall, his a pretty basic guy out there -- nothing flashy, nothing extraordinary, just effective," he said. "If he can keep that same pace and take what he was doing in Sacramento and come over here, he's going to be fine."
Duchscherer earned PCL Pitcher of the Year honors at Sacramento, going 14-2 with a 3.25 ERA. With numbers like that, he admits it wasn't always easy watching as some of his teammates got the call from Oakland.
"Like everybody in here, this is where you want to be. When you're doing well at Triple-A but there's no room for you to move up, there's not a lot more than you can do than keep going out and pitching well."
Duchscherer started game one of the River Cats' PCL playoff opener, limiting Edmonton to one hit over six innings in picking up the win last Wednesday. He was scheduled to start Tuesday in Sacramento's second round opener at Nashville.
Jumping from a minor league playoff to a pennant race is something he wasn't expecting quite yet, but he'll be ready.
"I think this is more exciting," he said. "If I go out and have a good game I'll be a lot more excited -- it's a lot more important."
A's manager Ken Macha said based on his Sacramento numbers, he expects Duchscherer to be just fine.
"The most important thing is that he pitched tremendously the whole year," he said. "His confidence should be real high."
from SF Chron:
A'S NOTEBOOK
The right time for a right-hander
Ron Kroichick Monday, September 8, 2003
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. Petersburg, Fla. {ndash} -- Even now, in the thick of a playoff race, the A's are reaching into their deep reservoir of minor-league pitching talent. Justin Duchscherer, the PCL Pitcher of the Year at Triple-A Sacramento, will join Oakland to start Tuesday night against Anaheim.
Steve Sparks and John Halama had been the prime candidates to make that start, but manager Ken Macha said the A's want to keep Sparks and Halama in the bullpen. Halama and Ricardo Rincon are Oakland's only left-handed relievers.
"We felt like Sparks gives us help (in relief), he can pitch almost every day, and Halama gives us a little balance in the bullpen," Macha said.
Duchscherer, a 25-year-old right-hander, was 14-2 this season at Sacramento, with a 3.25 ERA and an astounding walks-to-strikeouts ratio (18 walks, 117 strikeouts). He appeared in five games for Texas in 2001, so at least Tuesday night's start will not be Duchscherer's major-league debut.
"A lot of times, ignorance is bliss," Barry Zito said. "These new guys don't think about the standings, they're worried about pitching their a-- off and not going back to the minors."
