Jurrjens strong in debut with Bats
Jair Jurrjens made his 2014 debut an impressive one for the Louisville Bats.
The 28-year-old former All-Star struck out eight while allowing only a run, a walk and five hits over five innings in the Bats’ 4-1 victory over Columbus on Monday night before an announced crowd of 5,826 at Louisville Slugger Field.
Jason Bourgeois put the Bats up for good with a two-out, two-run triple in the bottom of the fourth to cap a three-run inning off Clippers starter Travis Banwart (3-2). Hernan Iribarren went 3 for 4, scored a run and drove in one, and Felix Perez hit his seventh home run for Louisville. Three relievers combined to back up Jurrjens (1-0), including Curtis Partch, who went the final 12/3 for his first save of the season.
But all eyes were on Jurrjens. He struck out four of the first five Clippers he faced, all of them looking.
“Everything was moving today,” Jurrjens said. “I was hitting my spots. They didn’t think I was going to be more aggressive.”
His only blemish was from a bad break. Audy Ciriaco walked with two out in the second. He would break for second with Ryan Rohlinger at bat. On the pitch, Rohlinger hit a bouncer up the middle. Bats second baseman Ruben Gotay, breaking toward the bag to cover the steal, was there to field the ball, but it took a bad hop and went into the outfield for a single, allowing Ciriaco to reach third. He would score on Carlos Moncrief’s double to right.
Jurrjens would get Justin Sellers to foul out and end the threat.
As Jurrjens tries to make his way back to the bigs, Bats skipper Jim Riggleman is just glad to have another pitcher in his arsenal. Especially one who can eat innings. Over the last 10 games, during a span of nine days, he’s had to use at least four pitchers in each game. Some extenuating circumstances with rehabilitation stints have exacerbated the situation, but Riggleman — who managed against his new starter when he was with the Washington Nationals — is hoping to ease the load on his relievers.
“It’s just a way of life in Triple-A,” he said.
The Cincinnati Reds signed the Curacao native on May 20 as a veteran insurance option in case a major league starter became injured. In 125 major league starts, Jurrjens has a 53-37 career record with a 3.62 earned run average. He last pitched in the majors on June 29, 2013.
In 2008, he finished third in the National League Rookie of the Year voting by going 13-10 with a 3.68 ERA for the Atlanta Braves. He earned a National League All-Star spot in 2011 when he went 13-6 with a 2.96 ERA. But knee injuries sidelined his career, as he’s only completed two full major league seasons in seven seasons. His velocity also began to decline. His average fastball went from 91.8 in 2008 to 88.6 by 2012.
Monday night, in 85 pitches, Jurrjens threw 33 pitches between 90-92 miles per hour, including three of his final five pitches. Prior to his arrival here, he pitched in two games in the Reds’ extended spring training session in Arizona, where he also topped out in the 90s.
“I can’t remember me being in the 90s three games in a row” for a long time, Jurrjens said.
To make room for Jurrjens on the Bats’ roster, the Reds released Matt Maloney. The Bats’ all-time winningest pitcher and strikeout leader was signed by the parent club on May 23. But in two starts, he allowed 16 runs — 12 earned — and 25 hits over just 62/3 innings.