BRADENTON, Fla. — Pittsburgh Pirates farmhands Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel became the first players from India to appear in organized baseball when each pitched an inning for Bradenton of the Gulf Coast League on Saturday.
Singh allowed one run on two hits and struck out one, throwing 13 of 20 pitches for strikes during the seventh inning of the Pirates’ 4-2 loss to the Yankees. Patel threw a scoreless eighth, throwing seven of nine pitches for strikes while striking out one.
The two signed last fall after appearing on a TV reality show called Million Dollar Arm designed to find athletes who could throw more than 90 miles per house in a country where baseball is almost unknown. Singh won the contest and the $100,000 prize and Patel was the runner-up. The contest is now in its second year.
“I was very excited to pitch in my first professional game,” said Singh, who was nervous despite the fact Gulf Coast League games attract few spectators. “The first time I walked to the mound I was very fast but I threw a couple of pitches then I felt good.”
Singh’s fastball topped out at 83 miles per hour and Patel’s at 84, but Pirates general manager Neal Huntington expects the 20-year-old pitchers’ velocity to increase once they become more accustomed to the sport. Neither player had appeared in a game before signing.
“It was difficult to learn how to pitch, now it’s difficult how to pitch inside then outside,” the left-handed Singh said. “But now everything is going good.”
The right-handed Patel doesn’t doubt he can pitch, although the Pirates were one of the few teams interested after he and Singh worked out for major league clubs.
“Single-A, Double-A, Triple-A then the majors,” he said of his anticipated career path.
Also playing was Pittsburgh catcher Ryan Doumit, who was 0-for-5 with a strikeout on a rehabilitation assignment. Lastings Milledge, acquired by the Pirates from Washington this week, was 1 for 3 with a double and played six innings in left field.
Baseball
Indian pitchers debut for Pirates’ club
- Baseball
-
-
Miners advance to state final
The Mountain Ridge Miners blanked Bohemia Manor, 3-0, in their Class 1A state semifinal late Wednesday night at McCurdy Field.
-
Red Sox power past Orioles
Daniel Nava and Kelly Shoppach hit sixth-inning homers to turn a tie game in Boston’s favor, and the Red Sox withstood two home runs by Nick Johnson in a 6-5 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday.
-
Hamels hurls Phillies over Nationals, 3-1
Cole Hamels pitched eight scoreless innings, finishing up by retiring Bryce Harper on a grounder as the Philadelphia Phillies snapped a season-long four-game losing streak Wednesday night with a 3-1 victory over the Washington Nationals.
-
Ortiz leads Red Sox in comeback victory
David Ortiz homered in the sixth inning to start Boston's comeback from a three-run deficit, and the Red Sox got three hits from Will Middlebrooks in an 8-6 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
-
Salisbury loses in District playoffs
Evan Appleby hit a grand slam on top of throwing a complete game to lead McConnellsburg past Salisbury by a score of 14-3 in the first round of the Pennsylvania District 5 Playoffs.
-
Jones’ dozen strikeouts leads Lakeview
Lakeview Auto Parts rallied for four runs in the top of the seventh and pitcher Trevon Jones struck out 12 in pitching a complete-game five-hitter in a 6-2 Hot Stove Baseball League win over previously undefeated Riverside Sports Monday at Bel Air Field.
-
Strietbeck leads Mountain Ridge to region crown
Dan Strietbeck kept Manchester Valley’s bats quiet and Mountain Ridge scrapped its way to four runs to win the Maryland Class 1A West Region baseball title with a 4-1 victory Friday evening at McCurdy Field in Frederick.
-
Harrison single ends Verlander no-hit bid in 9th
Justin Verlander came within two outs of his third no-hitter, allowing only Josh Harrison’s ninth-inning single in the Detroit’s 6-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night.
-
Wood gets final strikeout, retires after 13-plus seasons
Kerry Wood arrived in the majors 14 years ago, a fresh-faced kid with No. 34 on his back, slinging fastballs at 100 mph, delivering breaking pitches that were often unhittable and striking out 20 batters in just his fifth start.
-
Miners upset Northern on Malone, Mills homers, 7-3
Mountain Ridge added three runs to a 4-3 lead during the top of the sixth inning to pull away from top-seeded Northern as the No. 2 Miners played their way into the Maryland 1A West Region finals with a 7-3 win Wednesday at Northern.
- More Baseball Headlines
-
Miners advance to state final
