Trio of veterans lead Mat-Su pitching staff

** Editor’s Note: The following is the first part of a preview packaged of the 2008 edition of the Mat-Su Miners. For more, see the Friday edition of the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman.

PALMER — Unless you pack a power arm and unload 100 mph heaters, excelling on the mound can be a lot like making money selling real estate.

It’s all about location.

Mat-Su may not have a pitcher who can hit triple digits on the radar, but first-year head coach Conor Bird feels the Miners have assembled a group of pitchers who can own the plate.

“We expect another good year from our staff,” said Bird, the Mat-Su pitching coach last year and mentor of a staff that recorded an Alaska Baseball League best 2.17 eared run average. “It’s going to be hard to top last year. We put up some pretty impressive numbers.”

As hard as it may be to best those marks — that 2.17 team ERA, a 2-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio and a .244 batting average against — Bird said, judging by what his pitchers have done for their college clubs during the spring, the Miners could once again have the top staff in the ABL.

Bird said the Miners have brought together a group of pitchers who throw in the 88-90 mph range. But most importantly, they know how to locate their pitches.

A prime example is Washington junior Jason Erickson, one of three pitchers returning for a second tour of duty with the Miners.

Armed with a fastball that can hit 90, the right-hander posted a 1.56 ERA and fanned 35 hitters, while allowing only eight walks in 52 innings.

Also returning is lefty Max Peterson, who led the ABL with a 1.31 ERA. Peterson, with a fastball that can creep into the low 90s, was also a perfect 5-0 with a team-high 37 strikeouts.

Bird said it’s certainly a good thing to have a pair of ABL veterans back on the Hermon Brothers mound.

“They know the ropes, know how the league is, know it’s a grind,” Bird said. “They can help the other guys out.”

Erickson and Peterson will most likely make up two-fifths of the starting rotation, a unit that Bird feels could be a strength of his team.

California Poly-San Luis Obispo sophomore Steven Fischback and Santa Clara freshman Thain Simon should also be in the rotation, Bird said, and the Miners have yet to pencil in the name of the fifth starter.

Simon, who will also play for Team Canada this summer, put together wicked numbers for the Broncos during his freshman campaign. After starting the season in the bullpen and recording a pair of saves early in the season, Simon ended the year with a 9-2 record and a 2.59 ERA.

His ERA was fourth-best in the West Coast Conference, and his 71 strikeouts placed him fifth in the WCC.

Simon will have to leave the Miners in early July to join Team Canada, but Bird said the right-hander could be back for the end of the summer season.

While Fischback’s numbers were more modest than those of Simon, the Cal Poly-SLO sophomore made 14 starts and chewed through 85 innings. He also had 79 strikeouts to go with his 5-4 record and 4.55 ERA.

Oklahoma freshman Michael Rocha, Oklahoma sophomore Jeremy Erben, Lehigh sophomore and Lafayette sophomore Jeremy Atkins also made eight or more starts during the college season.

Also on the staff is Connecticut sophomore Will Musson, Odessa Community College sophomore Mike Carlson, Chabot Community College sophomore Charles Ruiz and Pacific sophomore David Rowse.

Ruiz fanned 22 hitters in 13 appearances and saved five games for Chabot College.

Carlson is a former Palmer High School standout who is entering his second summer with his hometown team. Carlson pitched in nine innings last year and Bird expects the former Moose starter to see much more work this season.

“Mike’s not just going to be the Alaska guy on the roster,” Bird said. “He’ll be a guy who’ll contribute, just like the other guys we have.”

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.