White Sox A (Adv) pitcher of the month: SP Matt Heidenreich
Last month Matt Heidenreich fell just short of being the Chicago White Sox pitcher of the month at Winston-Salem (A Adv) but his spectacular numbers were still good enough for honorable mention. This time around, Heidenreich was outdone by no one.
The White Sox fourth round selection in the 2009 amateur draft did not lose a game in May. He went 4-0 with a 2.08 ERA in six starts.
His best start came on May second in which he picked up his fourth win of the season. Heidenreich limited the Wilmington Blue Rocks (Kansas City Royals affiliate) to no runs on five hits while striking out four in seven innings.
Nine starts into the 2015 season and Heidenreich looks like a new pitcher. Over the last two seasons, opponents have roughed him up to the tune of a .332 average or higher.
In addition to a 7-0 record and a 1.78 ERA this season, opponents are hitting .236 against the big right-hander. And those seven wins are two more than any pitcher currently in the Carolina League.
Heidenreich will look to go 8-0 later today as he is slated to start the first game of a double-header against the Lynchburgh Hillcats (Cleveland Indians affiliate).
Honorable mention
The White Sox have another big right-handed starting pitcher who is performing at a high level at Winston-Salem in Jake Cose.
Cose was a 27th round pick in 2011 and struggled during his first two years in the minor leagues. In 2013 he performed well at Kannapolis (A) going 4-3 with a 1.72 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 57.2 innings over 10 starts. He wasn’t quite as effective later that season when he was promoted to Winston-Salem.
The next year, Cose was unable to pitch due to injury.
This season, Cose made his debut at Winston-Salem on May 6th and has yet to allow more than two runs in a start.
For the season (all in May), he is 2-1 with a 2.10 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 25.2 innings. He has held opposing hitters to a .202 batting average. Right-handers are hitting just .160 against him.
His best start came in a victory on May 22nd against the Salem Red Sox (Boston Red Sox affiliate). Cose went 6.2 innings giving up no runs on four hits while walking four and striking out four. It was his first win of 2015.
Cose is on track for his best season as a pro.
Adv A pitcher notes
The Winston-Salem Dash have the worst record in the Carolina League this season and it’s not because of their pitching. They come into today with 3.21 team ERA, third best in their league…. James Dykstra may not have repeated as pitcher of the month but he is still pitching well. He is 3-2 with a 2.70 ERA and has only walked five batters in 43.1 innings of work…. Jace Fry was the White Sox third round pick in 2014 and has only one start this season where he has allowed more than three runs. He is 1-8 on the year and currently on the disabled list.