July 20th, 2018. It was a Cubs loss for the ages, against the St. Louis Cardinals. Not only did they give up 18 runs to those ferocious Cardinals, but they had to pitch THREE different position players that day. Two of them, Victor Caratini and Ian Happ, I did not make customs of for this Anyone Can Pitch series. I didn't want there to be too many Cubs, as I've already got another one in the can.
Happ and Caratini did...well enough. Happ threw 5 strikes, but pitched a solid inning without letting any runs in, and only allowing one hit. Caratini wasn't so lucky, with 2 earned runs, an 18.00 ERA, and 10 strikes.
Tommy La Stella's turn up was...just another day for him. La Stella is the bench player extraordinaire in Chicago, playing several different positions (though primarily third base), and stepping in whenever needed. Putting him on the mound wasn't exactly a far-fetched request for La Stella.
His time on the mound, while flawed, wasn't terrible, leaving with only a 6.75 ERA, 14 strikes from 6 batters faced, and 3 hits, including a home run. It wasn't an especially lucky turn for La Stella, but it could have been a lot worse.
Still, La Stella proved his versatility on a team that values such a trait.
Next Time, expect a spotlight on a backup catcher that has notched THREE mound appearances this year so far, and isn't too bad.
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