Cooney Pitches in Texas League All-Star Game
6/26/2013 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
June 26, 2013
By Steven Wright, Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeBaseball)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Former Wake Forest pitcher and All-ACC performer Tim Cooney was selected to Tuesday night's Texas League All-Star Game and pitched an inning for the North All-Stars at Arvest Ballpark in Springdale, Ark.
Cooney, who was representing the Double-A Springfield Cardinals, pitched the sixth inning and struck out two batters. The left hander struck out Jake Goebbert looking, surrendered a home run to All-Star Game MVP George Springer (who was called to Triple A immediately following the game), struck out Anthony Aliotti looking and got Jack Blackwood to ground out to second.
After his junior season in 2012, Cooney was taken in the Third Round of the MLB First Year Player Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. He pitched for the Batavia Muckdogs for the remainder of 2012 and posted a 3-3 record with a 3.40 ERA.
Cooney began the 2013 season with the Palm Beach Cardinals, the Class A Advanced affiliate to the Major League club. He shined in six starts with Palm Beach (3-3, 2.75 ERA, 23 K, 4 BB) and was promoted to the Double-A affiliate Springfield Cardinals of the Texas League.
Since joining Springfield, Cooney has made eight starts and has posted a 3-4 record with a 4.53 ERA. His strikeout-to-walk ratio has continued to impressive with 44 strikeouts and just eight free passes.
He won his Double-A debut over the Tulsa Drillers on May 13, pitching 5.0 innings and striking out seven. In addition, he went 2-for-3 at the plate in that game with a double and a run scored. For the season he is 4-for-5 at the dish.
Combined between both levels in the 2013 season, Cooney is 6-7 with a 3.75 ERA, including 67 strikeouts and 12 walks.
Below is a brief summary of other former Demon Deacons who are currently playing in the professional ranks.
Pat Blair has played in six games for the Hudson Valley Renegades, the Class A Short Season affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. Blair is 5-for-19 (.263) with five walks and a team-high seven runs scored. He also has one home run and two RBIs.
Dave Bush is currently pitching for the Buffalo Bisons - the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Bush is 7-5 with the Bisons this season and has posted a 3.88 ERA in 69.2 innings. He has struck out 46 batters and has walked just 11.
Michael Dimock is in his second year of professional baseball and is a perfect 6-0 in relief this season. Dimock, who is in the Houston Astros farm system, began the year at Single-A Quad Cities before being promoted to Class A Advanced Lancaster. In Lancaster, Dimock has pitched 11.2 innings and has a 3.86 ERA with six strikeouts. With Quad Cities, Dimock was 5-0 and had a 3.09 ERA in 11. Innings of work with 15 strikeouts compared to two walks.
Allan Dykstra is in his third year with the New York Mets system after spending his first three years of professional baseball with the San Diego Padres organization. He is currently playing for the Double-A Binghamton Mets where he is second on the team with a .321 average, 12 home runs and 50 RBIs. He also leads the team with 20 doubles, 56 walks and a .477 on base percentage.
Brian Holmes was a New York-Penn League All-Star last season with the Tri-City ValleyCats and began this season a step up with the Quad Cities River Bandits (Single-A). Holmes has made 11 appearances and six starts while posting a 3.55 ERA and 41 strikeouts in 38.0 innings. Opponents are hitting just .236 against the lefty.
Carlos Lopez began the season with the Single-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals, the Hagerstown Suns. Lopez played in just nine games though and has not appeared since April 14. In his nine games, Lopez hit .296 with three doubles and an RBI.
Mike MacDougal, who has spent 12 years in the Major Leagues, pitched in 17 games for the Louisville Bats, the Triple-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. He was released by the Reds on June 8 and was picked up by the Philadelphia Phillies on June 25. He is currently on the roster for the Triple-A club Lehigh Valley IronPigs.
Niko Spezial has made two appearances and has pitched two innings for the Auburn Doubledays, the Class A Short Season affiliate of the Washington Nationals. He has three strikeouts and has given up two runs in relief.
Justin Van Grouw has made one appearance for the AZL Diamondbacks (Rookie League) after signing a free agent deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Van Grouw picked up a save by pitching a scoreless inning of relief on June 22.
Mac Williamson is with the Class A Advanced affiliate of the San Francisco Giants, the San Jose Giants. Williamson is third on the team with nine home runs and 14 doubles. He has also driven in 33 and is second on the team with 44 runs scored. He currently has more at bats than anyone else on a team that recently won the first half North Division title with a 42-26 record.
