Published: August 29, 2009 11:36 pm         

From Terre Haute to the Major Leagues: Former Sycamore catcher teaming with MLB protege Stephen Strasburg

Nevin Ashley, a former Indiana State catcher, will play for the Phoenix Desert Dogs of the Arizona Fall League in October and November.

A teammate of Ashley’s will be pitcher Stephen Strasburg, the Washington Nationals’ recent No. 1 draft pick. Strasburg signed a multimillion-dollar contract with the Nationals’ organization earlier this week.

Ashley is in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, currently playing for its Class A-advanced affiliate Charlotte Stone Crabs. With just a few days left in the regular season, Ashley is batting .225 with three home runs and 35 RBIs.

• • •

Former ISU pitcher Ryan Tatusko struck out 11 batters for the Bakersfield Blaze on Monday. But he earned a no decision, allowing three earned runs in six innings vs. Stockton.

Earlier this season, Tatusko tossed a one-hit shutout.

• • •

News of former Indiana State or Wabash Valley-connected players last week:

• Clint Barmes — Barmes was 5 for 24 with a home run, three RBIs and two stolen bases with Colorado.

• Mitch Stetter — Stetter made two relief appearances with Milwaukee. On Monday, he tossed a scoreless inning in a 7-1 win at Washington. On Wednesday, the only batter he faced was hit by a pitch.

• Joe Thatcher — Thatcher made five relief appearances with San Diego, allowing no runs, one hit in a combined four innings. He picked up his first victory of the season in a 2-1 win at Atlanta on Tuesday, then got his first hold in a 9-5 win at Florida on Friday. In 21 games since being recalled on June 21, he has not allowed a run in 19 games — including the last nine in a row.

• Alex Graman — Graman remains on the disabled list with Seibu.

• Ronnie Prettyman — Prettyman remains on the disabled list with West Tennessee.

• Jake Eigsti — Eigsti played in just one game for St. Lucie, going 2 for 3 with a double and RBI on Aug. 22.

• Brian Omogrosso — Omogrosso remains on the disabled list for the Charlotte Knights.

• Matt Zaleski — Zaleski lost his first game of the season with Birmingham on Tuesday, allowing three earned runs in 52⁄3 innings at West Tennessee. He dropped to 6-1 with the Barons this season.

• Nevin Ashley — Ashley was 3 for 15 with six strikeouts in five games for the Charlotte Stone Crabs.

• Ryan Tatusko — Tatusko fanned 11 batters in six innings, but earned a no-decision on Monday.

• Josh Phegley — Phegley was 3 for 21 with a home run and three RBIs in five games with Kannapolis. All his hits and RBIs for the week came on Aug. 23, then was 0 for 16 in his other four games.

• Nick Ciolli — Ciolli was 6 for 15 with three home runs and five RBIs in four games with Great Falls. On Aug. 23, he was 4 for 5 with two home runs and four RBIs.

• Brady Shoemaker — Shoemaker was 7 for 25 with five doubles and three RBIs in eight games for Bristol.

• Bronco Lafrenz — Lafrenz was 0 for 7 with a walk and six strikeouts in three games for Lakewood.

• Eric Valdez — Valdez made two relief appearances for Everett, allowing no earned runs in a combined three innings.

• Michael Manus — Manus made just one relief appearance for the Gulf Coast League Tigers, tossing a scoreless inning with one strikeout on Aug. 22.

• John Purdom — Purdom was 3 for 12 with Camden.

• Chris Jones — Jones did not pitch for the second week in a row with Gary, but is still listed as active on their roster.



(Listed by league level)

Through games of Thursday

Position players

Player (Team; Class/Parent club) AB R H HR RBI Avg.

Clint Barmes (Colorado Rockies) 441 64 109 21 67 .247

Ronnie Prettyman (W.Tenn.; AA/Seattle) 67 7 16 3 10 .239

Nevin Ashley (Charlotte; A-adv./Tampa Bay) 298 29 67 3 35 .225

Jake Eigsti (St. Lucie; A-adv./NY Mets) 204 22 49 1 16 .240

Josh Phegley (Kannapolis; A/CWS) 160 25 35 9 27 .219

Bronco Lafrenz (Lakewood; A/Phil.) 50 1 9 0 6 .180

Nick Ciolli (Great Falls; Rookie/CWS) 198 31 58 7 29 .293

Brady Shoemaker (Bristol; Rookie/CWS) 199 36 70 9 34 .352

John Purdom (Camden; Independent) 134 12 36 0 12 .269

Pitchers

Pitcher (Team; Class-Parent club) IP H BB SO W-L Sv ERA

Mitch Stetter (Milwaukee Brewers) 37.2 29 21 39 3-1 1 3.82

Joe Thatcher (San Diego Padres) 35.0 28 14 43 1-0 0 2.83

Alex Graman (Seibu, Japan) 5.0 6 2 1 0-2 3 5.40

Brian Omogrosso (Charlotte; AAA/CWS) 78.2 79 43 70 7-2 0 5.03

Matt Zaleski (Birmingham; AA/CWS) 94.1 79 25 70 7-3 2 2.19

Ryan Tatusko (Bakersfield; A-adv./Texas) 108.2 108 35 79 6-6 0 4.39

Eric Valdez (Everett; A/Seattle) 27.2 30 12 37 1-0 4 4.23

Michael Manus (GCL Tigers; Rookie-Detroit) 23.0 27 10 20 1-1 0 6.26

Chris Jones (Gary; Independent) 84.0 80 25 53 6-3 0 3.75