Mike Burke
Even the truest of true Maryland fans had to be happy North Carolina won on Friday, defeating Virginia Tech in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals in Atlanta.
Why?
Fair question. Well ...
A.) The Tar Heels were already assured a berth in the NCAA Tournament, if not one of the four top seeds.
B.) Virginia Tech, entering the game as the No. 8 seed with an 18-13 record, was not assured of an NCAA berth. Now, having won just one game in the ACC tournament, they’re going to be even harder pressed for one, which appeared to have cracked the door a little wider for the Terps before their 74-65 quarterfinal win over Wake Forest.
C.) Virginia Tech ... Well, let’s just say there have been some hard feelings between the Terps and the Hokies recently, not only on the court, but on the recruiting trails as well, and we’ll leave it at that. Tech coach Seth Greenburg’s very complimentary words for Maryland coach Gary Williams and the Maryland program last month notwithstanding, it never hurts a Terps fan’s feelings to see the Hokies’ tournament berth imperiled.
D.) Aaron Laffey is a diehard Carolina fan.
“That got me a little fired up ...” Laffey told mlb.com about the Tar Heels’ 79-76 victory on what would have been Friday morning in Goodyear, Arizona, site of the Cleveland Indians’ spring training home.
You never want a sinkerball pitcher to be too fired up, but one can’t argue with the edge Laffey must have had Friday afternoon in Goodyear once he shed his Carolina blue for Cleveland Indians blue and turned in his strongest outing of spring training.
The lefthander from Allegany High School was perfect on Friday (if that can ever be said about a Carolina fan), working four innings in Cleveland’s 4-3 win over the Oakland A’s, not allowing a baserunner and recording eight groundball outs to take a leg up on Jeremy Sowers, who threw three scoreless innings Wednesday against Colorado, for the fifth spot in the Indians starting rotation.
“The mindset I’m in,” Laffey said, “is that (the fifth spot) is already my spot.”
In his previous start against the Kansas City Royals, Laffey threw 39 pitches in the first inning, giving up three runs on four hits, and didn’t come out for the second. On Friday, he threw 40 pitches in four innings, cutting and sinking his fastball in retiring all 12 batters he faced, striking out two. He was so effective that he wasn’t out of pitches through four, but the Indians couldn’t afford to send him out in the fifth because they were running out of innings to get other pitchers work. Thus, Laffey went to the bullpen and threw 20 more pitches to get in his required work.
“Laffey was very good,” manager Eric Wedge said. “He was more aggressive with his approach.”
“Today I pitched more like I would in a game,” Laffey told The Cleveland Plain Dealer. “The last time I was making sure I was throwing my sinker down the middle, staying behind the ball, throwing change-ups. I threw eight or nine change-ups the last time; I didn’t throw one today.”
It’s a fact that a pitcher’s best pitch is strike one, and the best way to get strike one is usually with a well-placed fastball. It doesn’t have to be a Nolan Ryan fastball, but if it’s put in the right place it sets up the rest of your pitches, which in turn makes your fastball even more effective.
Laffey has been considered the favorite for the No. 5 slot since the beginning of spring training. And while he had a couple of tough outings prior to Friday, the Indians had to be at ease, because when a sinkerballer such as Laffey has these rough times despite not having his pitches blistered by hitters, but in part because of seeing-eye hits, bleeders and some shaky defense, it’s a sign that his arm is sound.
Laffey has been pleased with the condition of his arm since before he left for spring training. In fact, he felt so good he had to guard against overthrowing during his offseason workouts while he was still home in Cumberland. He has had some rough times this spring, but call them spring training times when a lot of different outside factors are at work. From the outset, though, Laffey has felt confident and relaxed because his arm and his stuff are doing what he wants them to do.
“I’ve felt great all spring,” he said. “I knew it was just a matter of time before things started going my way.”
Credit the North Carolina Tar Heels, of all people, for being a harbinger of the good things the Indians and Aaron Laffey believe are about to come.
Mike Burke is sports editor of the Cumberland Times-News. Contact Mike Burke at mburke@times-news.com.
