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Bonestorm
05-06-2009, 01:56 PM
Interesting read about a switch-pitcher in the Yankees farm system. He's a closer that pitches both lefty and righty depending on the batter. One of my favorite parts of the piece is a new rule that single-A umpires have instituted when a switch hitter faces him:


And switch-hitters will switch batter's boxes, making Venditte switch the glove, starting a cat-and-mouse game that can go on for 10 minutes. Minor league umps now have the Venditte Rule: At the start of an at-bat, the pitcher must declare his throwing arm, then the hitter can pick his side, with each man able to switch once.


http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=4145564

cawacko
05-06-2009, 02:27 PM
I saw this but haven't had a chance to read it yet. That is pretty wild he has that ability.

Minister of Truth
05-07-2009, 12:07 AM
The MLB banned switch-pitching decades ago in the majors, and I didn't realize that it was still allowed in the minors. Awesome!

That said, this asset could still help him in the majors because he could still switch every other game, depending on what the scouts say about the specific team's ability to hit righties and lefties. Awesome, this guy rocks!