Guardians Baseball Insider

Akron RubberDucks 5, Binghamton Rumble Ponies 1

Shane McCarthy’s pledge to pediatric cancer research

Shane McCarthy was solid in today’s outing as he gave up just one run in three innings of work. After a first inning RBI double, McCarthy was able to strand two runners on base, not allowing the Rumble Ponies to extend their lead any further.

McCarthy was strong over his final two innings of work, stranding another two runners on base, and working a 1-2-3 third inning. McCarthy talked about his outing and about grinding through some jams. 

“[It] didn’t start the way that I planned, but I thought we did a good job of grinding through those first two innings [and] limiting the damage,” McCarthy, “[And] then finishing strong with our third inning and we’ll build on that with our next series against Erie.” 

More importantly, McCarthy notched two strikeouts tonight, which means he will be donating $6 total, $3 for each strikeout, to his Vs. Cancer campaign that goes to support pediatric brain tumor treatment and research. 

“When I was in college at Seton Hall University, we started supporting the ‘Vs. Cancer’ Foundation,” McCarthy said, “We would shave our heads every year and I have been doing it for the past seven years, even while in pro ball, and the Lake County manager and I Greg DiCenzo started a fundraising page. We have raised over $13,000 so far, and that just started at the end of spring training.”

“It’ll be running all year and all the money goes to kids and families that are in need of some real big support, [especially] those kids that are battling brain tumors,” Shane continued, “Anything we can do to help them is huge and I’m proud to be supporting them.”

Hopefully, McCarthy says, he can improve on that strikeout total moving forward, and continue to donate more money to this cause over the season. Shane will continue this pledge of $3 per strikeout through the entire 2021 season. 

You can find out more about Shane’s mission and donate to the cause at the link here, https://team.curethekids.org/team/352680 or by visiting Shane’s twitter page (@SJM_29) for more information. 

Pitching Speeds

Shane McCarthy

1st: No velo readings on the scoreboard for the first 6 pitches, 91, 92, 90, 81, 82, 92, 87, 85, 92, 86, 79, 92, 91

2nd: 91, 91, 91, 91, 92, 92, 83, 92, 81, 91, 91, 92, 81, 90, 83, 85, 92, 91, 92, 81, 90, 82, 92, 81

3rd: 91, 89, 92, 91, 86, 85, 80, 82, 91, 82, 84, 91, 92, 82 

3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 SO, 59 pitches, 36 strikes

Chris Roller picks up first hit as a member of the Cleveland organization

IBI’s #68 prospect Chris Roller came through for the RubberDucks Saturday, singling in two runs in the fourth inning, giving the Akron a lead that they would not relinquish. This was Roller’s first hit of the campaign and it came in a crucial moment, as this put Akron up 2-1, paving the way for the team’s fifth win of the season. 

Roller also had a sensational diving catch in shallow left field during the second inning, taking away a base hit from Binghamton’s Manny Rodriguez. 

Roller, who was selected from the Los Angeles Dodgers organization in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft, talked about how he has transitioned to the new organization this season. 

“When I was ‘Ruled 5ed’, it was a little bit unexpected,” Chris said, “The [Cleveland] organization has been nothing but good to me. As far as transitioning to a new organization [goes], all the guys in the clubhouse, and when I got to spring training, have pretty much accepted me with open arms. I [have] nothing but good things to say about the [Cleveland] organization and I appreciate them for the opportunity and for picking me up.”

The outfielder said he hasn’t had any problem fitting in so far, and that a bit of familiarity playing them in the past has helped with that process. 

“I played against a lot of these guys at Lake County, so I had a decent idea of who they were as players,” Roller said about his new teammates, “[The outfield group] has been helping me out a lot, like Trenton Brooks and he has been nothing but good to me… it’s just baseball [and] it’s easy to get to know guys when you [have] something in common. 

Roller will look to continue to seamlessly transition into a team where he is the only position player, and one of two players (Joey Cantillo), that were not with Cleveland in 2019. 

As a team, Akron will look to bring their hot streak to Erie this week, as they will bring an undefeated record to the Seawolves on Tuesday. Eli Lingos is expected to start with the postponement of the 5/9 Sunday afternoon game due to inclement weather.