Saturday, March 25, 2006
Zach Duke's Horoscope Promising
The stars seem to be aligning for Pirates '05 rookie Zach Duke to have a big year if he's got one in him. If Duke can get past the perennial sophomore jinx, circumstances could not be favoring him better as he has been dropped to the No. 3 spot in the rotation, meaning he will face mostly second tier opposition pitchers. Also, as a lefthander, Duke can force most righthanded batters to hit flies where they go to die in Pittsburgh's caverous left field. Moreover, Pittsburgh's offense has been punched up, as has the defense. Duke, who has a low-90s fastball, has been regarded as something of an overachiever after going 8-2 with a 1.81 ERA in 81 innings last year for the Pirates, and 12-3 with a 2.92 ERA for Triple A Indianapolis.
Posts
Doctor X -- the 'Baseball Medic' -- is an anonymous U.S. government trauma specialist with a Duke University sports medicine background and more than 20 years experience in emergency medicine. From time to time he considers MLB rumors, events and news reports as they pertain to baseball players' injuries, illnesses and various other disabilities, both on the field and off.
MLB Rumors editor Greg Fieg is a former sports news editor and award-winning writer whose bylines have appeared on the wires of the Associated Press and in numerous publications, including San Antonio Express-News, San Antonio Light, Houston Chronicle and Philadelphia Bulletin. He formerly was posted in various positions on the U.S.-Mexican border with Freedom Newspapers, and was a regular, independent contributor to United Press International.