Special for baseball fans.
Ambidextrous pitcher's pro debut brings game to standstill
Switch-hurler, developed by dad, plays cat-and-mouse with switch-hitter
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=67641Switch-pitcher Pat Venditte in his professional debut last night
Baseball has thousands of rules developed over its history to solve most any dilemma, but when a switch-hitter came to the plate to face a switch-pitcher in a minor league contest last night, the game came to a standstill.
In his professional debut, Pat Venditte of the Staten Island Yankees a natural right-hander whose father taught him to pitch with both arms got into a cat-and-mouse game in the ninth inning with the Brooklyn Cyclones' Ralph Henriquez as each player tried to gain an advantage, holding up the game for seven minutes.
With a custom-made glove, Venditte switched hands each time Henriquez switched sides of the plate, seeking an edge based on the conventional baseball wisdom that left-handed batters fare better against right-handed pitchers and vice versa.
Video of the faceoff has been posted online.
The teams eventually appealed to the umpires, who decided the batter and pitcher can both change sides one time per at-bat. They ruled the batter must declare first, favoring the pitcher, who could adjust accordingly. Venditte used his right arm to strike out Henriquez, batting right, on four pitches to end the game.
Venditte's scoreless ninth inning sealed a 7-2 win over the Cyclones in the Yankees' Class A Penn League contest.
Venditte's extraordinary skill began developing at the age of 3 when his father, Pat Sr., a life-long ballplayer himself, came up with the idea, according to the Sporting News.
"One day in the batting cage, I just said to myself, 'Why can't someone throw with both arms?'''
Switch-pitcher Pat Venditte in a showdown with switch-hitter Ralph Henriquez in Class A minor league game last night
Pat Sr., a retired schoolteacher, said he never imagined his son would take his game to the professional level he just wanted to spend time with him.
"You prioritize the things you want to do in a lifetime, and you get those things done," Pat Sr. told the Sporting News. "I think too often we put our kids on the back burner. Fortunately, my wife and I had kids later in life. So we were able to arrange our priorities a little differently."
Father and son began a daily training regimen that continued through high school, 100 throws from the right and 120 from the left. But Pat Jr.'s ambidextrous development was not limited to baseball. He learned to kick and punt a football with both legs, and his mother, who homeschooled him through the eighth grade, taught him to write equally well with either hand.
In high school, the Sporting News said, father and son were at the gym every morning at 6 a.m. to work out.
Venditte, 22, said he still is not sure exactly why his father did it.
"It was all pretty strenuous when I was younger," he said. "He obviously thought it would be an advantage for me. I'm just grateful he did what he did.''
Venditte attracted the Yankees' attention as a walk-on pitcher at Creighton University. He decided to return for his senior season after New York drafted him in the 45th round. The Yankees picked him 20th this year after he posted strong numbers a 9-3 record with seven saves, a 3.34 ERA and 101 strikeouts in 86 1/3 innings.
The Yankees' director of amateur scouting, Damon Oppenheimer, says the organization views Venditte as strictly a right-handed prospect, "but the idea that he can do this and has shown the ability to get out lefties makes it more exciting."
Venditte says he has more power from the right side, hitting 88 to 90 mph, but still can reach the low- to mid-80s from the left, where he relies more on breaking pitches and changing speeds.
Staten Island manager Pat McMahon told the Sporting News Venditte's ability will test traditional assumptions about how much rest a pitcher needs between outings.
"Pat is very comfortable pitching left and right," McMahon said, "so we'll just have to see after he pitches right if he needs a little time before he can pitch using his left."
The manager is excited about options Venditte gives him when matching up with opponents.
"It really is like having two pitchers in one," he said.
In high school, Venditte regularly started Friday as a lefthander and Monday as a right-hander. During the week, he pitched from both sides as a reliever.
Pat Sr. says his son has never had significant soreness or pain in either arm, pointing to daily long-toss sessions growing up as the secret.
"One day he stood at home plate in Creighton's stadium and threw a ball over the left-field fence right-handed, then turned and threw a ball over the right-field fence left-handed," Pat Sr. told the Sporting News, noting both fences were 335 feet away.
Pat Sr. said he never has had to convince coaches, at any level, to let his son pitch with both arms.
"One coach after another just let him pitch, and the development just started to happen," he said.
Venditte downplays his ambidexterity.
"When you're younger, kids don't realize what's going on," he told the Sporting News. "I didn't even realize it was that big of a deal. To me it's still not. I've been doing it my whole life. It's just what I do, what I have to do to be effective."
