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BALTIMORE – In the suspended game that ended Friday here at Camden Yards, Dakota Bacus, 29, made his primary league debut with the Nationals.
The right reliever of Moline, Illinois, fired two innings in the bush, without allowing runs or hits with a punch, ending a 6-2 loss to the Orioles.
Bacus did his job. He hit Austin Hays in a three-stroke strike with an 87-mph cursor. The Orioles couldn’t get the ball out of the box in any of the frames. Bacus combined a cursor and a 19-pitch lead, 14 for strikes.
On Saturday night, Bacus allowed one hit, but scored two in the seventh scoreless inning in the Nats’ 7-3 defeat. His last strikeout that night called a third strike to get Rio Ruiz.
His last retirement on Friday recorded him in a pitch opposite to first base asdr-bal Cabrera. Bacus hit the relay early and hit the bag to finish the half-inning.
The work is also a vital step for Bacus. It marked the start of a new adventure after nine seasons in the minor leagues.
“I actually made it. I did it!” Bacus spoke of this sentiment in a Zoom video call before Saturday’s game. ‘I was like, ‘Oh, my God! I actually did it! Actually, he didn’t hit me. That’s not the case yet. At first, when Cabby threw the ball at me, I looked inside the glove and thought, “I think so, man. Look at this!” It’s pretty good to be able to say I’m a major league player now.”
Bacus was added to the list early Friday morning after spending the last month and a portion at the club’s pick educational facility in Fredericksburg, Virginia.
“I think I was more nervous in climbing,” Bacus said. “I think the explanation is that we put as much tension into a scenario like this, and I think it took me a long time to realize that no matter where we are, at what level, it’s 60 feet, six. Inch.
“For me, it helped me calm one’s nerves. Think about this with the reader. Once I got hit here, it helped me. I think it somehow helped not to have 40, 000 enthusiasts yelling at you.
Bacus has been in the Nats minor league formula since 2013. He acquired it on August 23, 2013, in an exchange with the A for Kurt Suzuki. Ironically, they are now teammates in the Nats.
Last season, Bacus got off to a good start for the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies. Before the All-Star break, Bacus amassed a 4-3 record with 3.05 MPM. He allowed only 15 earned runs in 44 0.33 innings. And at the top height of the Pacific Coast League and friendly to hitters.
“For me, it was knowing where I was,” Bacus said of his 2019 season. “It’s the PCL, the boys need to lift the ball. I’m one of the pitchers who probably wouldn’t let that happen. If I do, then this is one of the days when it’s not for me. I’m a boxer, so the most important thing on PCL was to stay lower than the belt. Otherwise, it will be a long year, if I’m still here. The most important thing for me was to be able to attack the hitters in the right places, executing my pitches. The effects were in my favor. I don’t know if it was luck or anything. But it was a very smart year.
Bacus worked his art during the offsequeling season, then excelled in spring training before the coronavirus closed baseball in mid-March. In five appearances, he has amassed an impressive 1.93 MPM in four 2/3 innings.
“We talked a lot about him,” said Nats manager Davey Martinez. “I liked spring training. The most vital thing for him is that he wants to know who he is and what kind of launcher he is. I think he got it. He did well (Friday). He’s a guy who’s been around for a while, but it’s still his first step in the majors. He told me he was nervous on the bus. I said Array “Normal. You’re going to have butterflies. But once you get there, compete. “He did it and he’s smart after the game.”
Bacus has been running since his time in the Arizona Fall League in 2018 to avoid overturning, trusting his stuff and keeping the ball in the area. He says for him they’re trouble of concentration on the mound.
“I’m definitely a guy who seems to be looking to throw it a hundred miles/hy doesn’t come out like that,” Bacus said. “It’s just one of the things you have to buy for who you are. It took me a long time, about seven years, to realize who I am as a pitcher, to control everything I can control.
Bacus pitched 225 minor league games, 609 2/3 innings, dating back to 2012, when he played as a rookie in the Arizona Athletics League. But Bacus says it’s too early to think about this big step forward. He wants to be in a position for his next appearance.
“I think if you look at my hotel room, you can tell, ” said Bacus. “I didn’t unpack anything. He didn’t hit me at all. The last 24 hours have been pretty crazy.
“Nine years in the miners. I’m one of the guys with this long history in the minor milling and grinding leagues. I was lucky enough to spend most of it with a team. For me, I feel like the Nats have really taken care of me and gave me many opportunities to introduce myself, and the Nats as a family, so it’s pretty good to do it with this team.”
Maybe now you can keep some of your shirts in the closet. After this road trip, of course.
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