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| The left hander Josh Faro about to release one of his pitches. |
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| Josh Faro throws to 1st base. Watch Faro’s first college recruiting video of him pitching at https://youtu.be/_nJdWsg3Nuo. |
Every Little League pitcher dreams of pitching in the World Series and winning the deciding game for his team. Every Little League position player dreams of hitting that walk off home run in the 7th game of the World Series.
For Bill Mazeroski that dream did come true in
1960. The underdog Pittsburgh Pirates and the feared New York
Yankees, one of the best teams of all time, were locked in at three wins
apiece. The Yankee wins were blowouts; the Pirate wins were close. I
saw one of each in Yankee Stadium. In the last half of the 9th
inning the teams were tied 9-9. Bill Mazeroski, noted more for his
fielding than hitting, connected for a home run over the left center field wall
that still stands today as a monument. As the ball sailed over the
wall, the two Hall of Famers, Yogi Berra and Mickey Mantle looked at each other
and shrugged in disbelief as the Pirate fans poured onto the field. Harvey
Haddix was the winning pitcher. You can
see the description and video clips in my blog article at http://paulrsebastianphd.blogspot.com/2016/08/173-major-league-baseball-in-old-days.html. Probably Bill
Mazeroski and Harvey Haddix had dreams as kids that came true on that October
day.
Josh Faro, a 17 year old kid from
rural Gallipolis in southeastern Ohio, also has dreams as a top high school pitcher
and a 1st baseman. He, as thousands of
other kids like him, must pursue that dream and won’t forgive themselves for
not giving it a try. Otherwise, he would
be plagued by thoughts of what could be.
The great majority never make it, including thousands who play in
college, but a few do, a fraction of a percent.
He can pursue his dream through a college scholarship to play baseball while obtaining a good education. And if the
major league scouts don't show an interest in him, Josh Faro still has a
college education and career to fall back on.
Josh
Faro is by no means a jock, but rather a student athlete who cares about his
studies. He was raised that way by his
father Dr. David Faro, a podiatrist, his mother who is college educated, three
brothers, and a sister who are college graduates or currently in college. Thus Josh’s life is a lot more than baseball.
To better prepare himself for his career
after baseball he simultaneously earns high school and college credits by
taking courses at the University of Rio Grande.
This is a program that the state of Ohio has for high school students to
take more challenging college courses at state supported community
colleges. It’s called the Post
Secondary Education Option.
At the moment of this writing it’s game 3 of the 2018 World Series with
Boston ahead in the series at 2 games to none for the Red Sox. The
game is tied 1 – 1 with the Dodgers batting in the last half of the 9th. The
Dodger fans are rooting for a walk off home run. Cody Bellinger led off with
a single, but was picked off 1st base (now 2 outs) by pitcher David Price (a
starter in the last game two days ago) after Yasiel Puig flied
out. Then Yasmani Grandal followed with a walk. All the
players on both sides are competing to help their team win and add on to their
dreams coming true. Let's leave it there and go back to Josh
Faro. The reader can look up what happened in that game and who
ultimately won the series.
In this year’s World Series it’s not only athletes out there for the big salary. They love the game and put in a lot of sacrifice and hard work along with blood, sweat, and tears along the way. Many of them take being a role model seriously and try to give back to the communities around them. Most notable is Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers, a deeply committed Christian who is involved in charity work. Mookie Betts is sometimes seen working at a soup kitchen. Andrew Benintendi, a faithful practicing Catholic, also does charity work.
In this year’s World Series it’s not only athletes out there for the big salary. They love the game and put in a lot of sacrifice and hard work along with blood, sweat, and tears along the way. Many of them take being a role model seriously and try to give back to the communities around them. Most notable is Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers, a deeply committed Christian who is involved in charity work. Mookie Betts is sometimes seen working at a soup kitchen. Andrew Benintendi, a faithful practicing Catholic, also does charity work.
In the spring of this year Josh Faro, a junior, was the ace of his Gallia Academy High School. When Faro pitched, Gallia won; when he did not pitch, Gallia lost except for one game. He even pitched a no hitter (they play only 7 innings in high school) (see http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/26330/faro-tosses-no-hitter-at-ironton-11-0 for details). This brings to mind the 1948 pennant winning Boston Braves who had two great pitchers, lefty Warren Spahn and righty Johnny Sain. The pitching rotation was: "Spahn and Sain and pray for rain".
Josh
carried his team to the sectional playoffs with a record of 11 wins and 11 losses
in the regular season. Faro got credit for almost all of the
wins. Gallia beat Marietta 5-4 to win
the sectional championship. Gallia Academy
beats Marietta for Sectional Championship 5-4 in the 8th inning on
Thursday May 10. Josh Faro pitched 6⅔
innings before being taken out after reaching the maximum allowed pitch
count of 75 pitches. Davis got the win and Simms the
save. Josh’s mother Beverly, brother
Jacob, and I were there. See the newspaper account by clicking on
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/27416/blue-devils-win-sectional-title-2.
District Playoffs. Next Faro had to face Hillsboro,
a heavy favorite in the district semifinal game. It was a scoreless pitching
duel. In the 7th inning Gallia loaded
the bases on an error, a walk, and a hit batsman with no outs A
successful squeeze bunt would have won the game, but inexplicably, it was not tried. With two force outs at home and a pop up, the
Hillsboro pitcher got out of the jam. See
the photos below.
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| Saxon, a courtesy runner for Faro who reached on an error, slides but is forced out at home after a throw from the shortstop who fielded a bounding ground ball. |
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The Hillsboro pitcher was later taken out, but Josh stayed in. In the first extra inning (the 8th) with the game still scoreless and nearing his maximum pitch count (75 pitches) that would force Faro out of the game, Hillsboro had runners on 1st and 2nd through an error and a walk. Josh then gave up a walk off hit in a heart breaking defeat to lose 1 – 0. The throw from center field was on time, but skipped past the catcher and the winning run scored. See the newspaper account at
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/27519/hillsboro-edges-blue-devils-in-8.
 |
| Harvey Haddix |
This brings to mind another lefty and Medway-Ohio product, Harvey Haddix and his classic pitching gem for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Milwaukee Braves on May 26, 1959. He pitched a perfect game for 12 innings against Lew Burdette, who went the distance scattering 12 hits, all singles but no runs over 13 innings. Finally, in the last half of the 13th, an error and a walk ruined the perfect game. Joe Adcock then hit a walk off double with 2 outs for a heartbreaking defeat 1 - 0. The run he gave up was unearned. Lew Burdette (career record 203 – 144 and said to have often used the illegal spit ball), the winning pitcher, called the gem of Haddix (136 – 116 lifetime), the best game ever pitched. He had a remarkable efficiency, only 115 pitches (82 strikes) for an average of 9 pitches per inning. Click on the same link as for the 1960 World Series above in which he won two games. For a great story about the game, go to http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/pirates/2009/05/24/In-1959-Harvey-Haddix-pitched-perhaps-the-best-game-ever-and-lost/stories/200905240102.
After the
season was over, big brother John Faro had his friend, Nathan do a video taped
interview of "little brother" Josh. To a large extent big
brother, who also starred for Gallia Academy as a center fielder and is now a
medical student at the University of Cincinnati Medical School, acts as his de
facto agent. Click on https://youtu.be/u37YUyzI1EU to see this
interview.
College scouts have been
watching Josh Faro, specifically the University of Rio Grande, Marietta
College, and the University of Miami (Ohio).
Then it was summer baseball in special leagues against the best
high school players in the country, many of whom were already committed to big
Division I colleges and universities.
Doing well in summer competition would give Josh more experience and provide
more opportunities for a college scholarship of his choice. After all the scouts are watching.
College scouts have been watching Josh Faro, specifically the University of Rio Grande, Marietta College, Ohio University, and the University of Miami (Ohio). Currently, his velocity is in the middle 80s; if he can continue developing and increase his velocity above 90 mph with better control (pitching efficiency), the major league scouts will be watching as well.
College scouts have been watching Josh Faro, specifically the University of Rio Grande, Marietta College, Ohio University, and the University of Miami (Ohio). Currently, his velocity is in the middle 80s; if he can continue developing and increase his velocity above 90 mph with better control (pitching efficiency), the major league scouts will be watching as well.
Big brother John
Faro saw some of those games and wrote a play by play and summary of how “little
brother” (actually bigger in size) did. Read on for a lot of detail.
http://maruccielitetexas.com
College Showcase of
100 of Ohio’s Top Baseball Prospects
June 15, 2018
It’s been an exciting week
full of baseball! I had the privilege of taking Josh to his first college showcase last week at Wright State University’s Nishwitz
Stadium in Dayton, Ohio. The event served as an opportunity for 100 of
Ohio’s top baseball prospects to step in front of scouts for the first time.
Over 30 college scouts were in attendance, and several collegiate and
professional scouts requested video of the event.
The showcase, organized by local high school and college
coaches, began with batting practice on the field and basic running and
throwing drills. Later, Josh threw a brief bullpen session. Finally, players
were split into teams for inter-squad games. Josh capped off the day by
pitching one inning in front of the scouts, during which he faced four
batters.
The lead off hitter reached on an error by the third baseman, an
overthrow to first that allowed the runner to reach safely and advance to
second base. Josh bounced back by retiring the second batter in a ground ball
to third base. The third batter, another all-state selection, fell victim to Josh’s
curve ball for a quick 3-pitch strikeout. Lastly, the cleanup hitter flew out to
shallow left field. Thirty-six pitchers threw in the showcase game (one inning
each, to allow each player a chance), and I had the pleasure of seeing 23 of
them. Josh was the second fastest pitcher of the cohort, and he faced the
fewest hitters.
The exercises and in-game footage were filmed, and video will be
posted online for any scouts who wish to see. Per a local high school coach,
Josh should begin hearing back from schools in 4-6 weeks.
While it may take time for colleges to take note of his
performance, Josh managed to impress his showcase squad’s coach, Coach Ray
Hamilton of Lakota East High School near Cincinnati. Coach Hamilton invited
Josh to pitch in a few of his summer
league team’s games throughout the Midwest. The first game is tonight at Wilmington College against US Elite, a tough squad
from Pennsylvania featuring seven starters who have already committed to play
at Division-1 programs. Thirteen scouts will be in attendance, eight of whom
hail from Division-1 schools. I’ll send results when I receive them.
Against US Elite
7 IP, 7k, 3BB, 3H, 0 Earned Runs vs. US Elite
Complete game win, 3-1
On June 17 Josh Faro received a full ride scholarship (tuition,
room, board, and books) to the University of Rio Grande.
Summer
League Games
June 29, 2018
16th annual 17U WWBA National Championship
Fayetteville, GA, a suburb of Atlanta.
With 392 participating teams from all across the United States
and Puerto Rico, this wooden bat tournament is one of the largest in the world.
Check out the tournament homepage link below for a full list of teams and other
important information: https://www.perfectgame.org/Events/Default.aspx?event=5898
The 392 teams have been divided into 49 groups of eight. Each
team is guaranteed seven games between 6/29 and 7/4, one against each team in
the group. From there, group winners will advance to a single elimination tournament
beginning on 7/4. Teams who do not win their groups will not advance to the
single elimination tournament and will not play consolation games.
Josh will be pitching in the team’s first group game today at
2:00pm against Marucci Elite-Texas (Houston, TX). Here’s a link to the team
roster—they’ve got some big players, several of whom have already signed to
play at Division-1 Colleges:
Several former players have signed major league contracts, two
of whom are in the Pirates system:
The remaining guaranteed tournament games are as follows:
6/29 @ 2:00pm against
Marucci Elite-Texas (Houston, TX).
6/30 @ 9:00am against
Mac-N-Seitz 17U (Olathe, KS)
7/1 @ 11:30am against
SJ Elite 2019 (West Hampton, NJ)
7/2 @ 2:00pm against
Team 17U Elite National (Winder, GA)
7/3 @ 12:45pm against
Ostingers Baseball Academy (Lithla, FL)
7/3 @ 5:30pm against
Rawlings Southeast National (Alpharetta, GA)
7/4 @ 4:30pm against
Cross Hits Baseball Black 17U (Gallatin, TN)
Scouts from hundreds
of colleges and all MLB teams will be attending games throughout the
week.
June 30, 2018
Results from
yesterday’s game against Marucci Elite - Texas (Houston, TX): Yesterday was a scorcher—92 degrees with no
cloud cover and high humidity—but a great game of baseball made the heat
tolerable. The matchup featured Josh’s team squaring up against a strong
all-star squad based out of Houston. The team was comprised of players from
Texas, Oklahoma, and North Carolina, many of whom fly to Houston for the summer
baseball season and stay with host families. Of the 22 men on their roster, 11
have verbal commitments to Division 1 colleges including Georgia Tech, Texas,
Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Rice, Baylor, Wichita State, Xavier, Oklahoma, and
Arkansas; however, based on the talent level that I saw, I surmise that a
couple of these young men will forego their verbal college commitments in order
to enter the MLB draft next June. This tournament showcases a level of talent that
I didn’t know existed. Plain and simple—these boys can play. To them, baseball
isn’t a hobby; it’s a lifestyle, and for some, a future occupation.
Josh pitched and had a designated hitter who batted in his
place. He had four strong innings, as outlined below
Top of 1st—Josh on the
mound:
1. Lead-off single on
a soft line drive to right field.
2. Fly out to left
field (batter was an Oklahoma commit); runner on first was stealing on the
pitch, and was thrown out returning to first. 2 outs.
3. HR to left (Texas
commit). That ball was a missile. Probably 370 feet.
4. 6-3
ground out.
1-0 going into bottom
of 1st. Texas commit (the same one who hit the HR) is pitching for them. RHP
91-93 mph.
Bottom of 1st
1. Lead-single on a
ground ball up the middle.
2. Ground ball to
third base. A fielder’s choice to get the out at second. Attempted a double
play, but safe at first.
3. Line drive to
shortstop.
4. Strikeout swinging
on a terrific curve ball.
Top of 2nd:
1. Fly out to Left
field (Xavier commit).
2. Single, thrown out
trying to stretch it to a double (Another Texas commit).
3. Fly out to right
field (Rice commit).
Strong inning!
Bottom of 2nd:
1. We reached on a
lead off Texas-Leaguer single to RF. stole second.
2. K looking.
3. Single up the
middle. Runners at first and third for us.
4. K swinging. 10
pitch at-bat.
5. Fly out to left
field.
Still 1-0 them, but we
are hitting their pitcher quite well.
Top 3rd.
1. HBP on a curve ball
in the dirt (Texas Tech commit).
2. 4-6 fielder’s
choice at 2nd.
3. Line drive single
to left field. Runners at first and second.
4. Fly out to right
field. Runners stay in place thanks to a great throw.
5. Top of order.
Infield ground ball. Collision between third baseman and shortstop. Runner
scores on some miscommunication.
6. Soft line drive
single to right field. The ball tipped off of the 2nd baseman’s glove as he
attempted what would’ve been an ESPN-worthy diving catch. Run scores. Runners
at 2nd and 3rd.
7. Intentional Walk to
the kid who hit a homer in the 1st inning. Bases loaded.
8. Fly out to right
field.
2 more unfortunate
runs.
3-0 Marucci Elite
going into Bottom of 3rd.
Bottom 3rd:
1. Ground out to first
base, unassisted.
2. HBP
3. Grounder to 2nd.
Fielders choice to get batter. Runner at 2nd with 2 down.
4. Hard-hit liner up
the middle. Caught by shortstop who was playing shift.
Still 3-0 them.
Top 4th: Josh still on
mound:
1. Fly out to Right
field (Wichita St commit).
2. Double down the
left field line (Texas A&M commit). Runner stole 3rd.
3. Ground out to 2nd.
Runner freezes at 3rd.
4. E-6 on a ground
ball that was booted. Run scores.
5. Single to left.
Runner at first and third.
6. Single to left. Run
scores.
7. Fly out to center
field.
5-0 Marucci after 4 1/2.
He’s looking strong at
this point. Some defensive misfortune, some earned runs, but overall
good.
At this point, Josh
was beginning to fatigue and was pulled from the game. I got distracted talking
with one of Josh’s teammate’s fathers and stopped recording the play-by-play.
While Josh is credited with a loss, he had an outstanding performance against
what is allegedly one of the strongest teams in this tournament. We exhausted
two more pitchers over the final innings, and when the dust settled the score
was 10-0. I’m not sure which colleges were in attendance, but I did see several
scouts. Seven or eight schools maybe. Total pitching statistics below:
Final Game Stats for Josh
4.0 innings pitched
5 earned runs
75 pitches (45
strikes, 30 balls)
10 hits
2 walks
0 K
Due to tournament
rules, Josh must take a three day rest from pitching. I believe that he is
slated to start again on Tuesday or Wednesday.
July 4, 2018
After a long week of
baseball, I’m on my way back to Ohio. I’m riding shotgun while my father drives
and Josh snoozes in the back seat. My co-pilot duties of disc jockey and chief
snack distributor are fulfilled for the moment, so I thought I’d leverage this
opportunity to update you on today’s game results. I’m writing this on my
phone, so please excuse any typos or grammatical errors.
We played a tough team
called Cross Hits Black 17U from Nashville, TN. They were quite successful in
pool play, amassing a 4-2 record going into today’s final game, highlighted by
a big win over the stellar Texas squad that Josh pitched against in game one.
Like Marucci-Texas, this team had several players who have committed to baseball
powerhouse schools like U Louisville and U Kentucky.
As you may recall from
my previous email, only the top team from each pool advances to the
single-elimination tournament beginning tonight. Going into today, Cross Hits,
today’s opponent, was tied with Marucci Texas for the lead in the pool (every
team in the pool lost at least two games, an indicator of the talent here). Per
tournament rules, pool leaders would be decided by record. If two or more teams
were tied, the leader would be the team who surrendered the fewest runs. In
order to advance to the tournament, Cross Hits would need to 1) win the game
against us and 2) hold us to one or fewer runs. With this knowledge in mind,
our boys were motivated to bring out the bats!
We arrived at
beautiful Joe Cowan Park, which I believe is located about an hour from
downtown Atlanta, around 2:30 pm. We watched the latter half of the game before
ours while the boys took batting practice in an indoor cage. At 4:30, we took
the field for our final game of pool play.
Per the tournament
schedule, we were the home team during this exhibition. Knowing our 0-5 record
would prohibit us from advancing out of our pool, Josh relished the opportunity
to throw one final, low-stress game in the Georgia sun.
Top 1st. Josh on the
hill:
1. F8 on first pitch
of the game. One pitch; one out.
2. F3 on a 3-2 count.
2 down.
3. Line drive single
up the middle on a 3-2 count. Runner on 1st with 2 down. Josh is averaging
79 mph so far; I suspect he is still settling in on the mound.
4. Groundout to first,
unassisted. Strong inning.
Bottom 1st:
1. F9 on the first
pitch. Blooper between second and right fielder. Excellent sliding catch by the
right fielder to retire our lead off hitter.
2. K swinging. Three
pitch strikeout.
3. K looking on a 3-2
pitch. The opposing right-handed pitcher is looking strong, averaging 84-85 mph
on his fastball and topping out at 87 mph.
Top 2nd:
1. 5-3 ground out on a
2-2 count
2. F4 on the first
pitch.
3. Shattered bat;
ground ball to shortstop. Great 6-3 putout to retire the side.
Bottom 2nd:
1. Ground ball up the
middle on a 2-1 count. Second baseman hustles over to make the play, but
juggles he ball. Safe at first. Would’ve been a bang-bang play even on a
cleanly fielded ball. Ruled a hit.
2. Single to left.
Runners at first and second.
3. Deep fly ball to
right field. Off the fence! Runners were freezing in the event of a catch, so
they only advance one base. Bases loaded.
4. The opposing team’s
coach wisely brings his infielders into the grass, hoping to make a play at the
plate. Ground ball to second. Out at home. 1 down.
5. Line drive to
center field. Drops right in front on a diving center fielder and bounces past
him. Right fielder was there to back him up. 1 run scores. Bases still
loaded.
6. F5 in foul
territory. Great play made against the fence.
7. 1-3 putout. Side
retired.
The score is 1-0 us
after 2 innings of play.
Top 3rd:
1. F3 in foul
territory on the first pitch. These anxious lead off hitters are helping Josh
today.
2. 6-3 ground out on
first pitch. 2 pitches—2 outs.
3. The strike zone
seems small! Three questionable calls result in a walk. Fans and coaches are
giving the umpire some feedback. Runner on first with 2 down.
4. K swinging.
Bottom 3rd:
1. Top of our order.
First pitch ground out to second base. 4-3 putout.
2. K looking on a 1-2
count.
3. K swinging on a 1-2
count. Terrific curve ball in the dirt from the opposing pitcher.
Top 4th:
1. First pitch strike.
The batter offered a bunt attempt, but missed. The third baseman scoots in to
cover in the event of another attempt. Several pitches later, the batter
singles on a ground ball to the right side, just out of the second baseman’s
reach.
2. Runner thrown out
stealing. Josh walks the batter on a very questionable full count pitch (right
down the middle from my point of view behind home plate). Runner at 1st with
one out.
3. Chopper to third
base on a full count. 5-4 putout to get the lead runner at second. One runner
on first; 2 outs.
4. This umpire won’t
give josh any calls. All he can do is laugh and try again. 6-4 putout to retire
the side.
Bottom 4th:
1. First pitch ground
ball that bounces right over first base. Batter trots safely into second with a
double.
2. K swinging on a
curve ball in the dirt.
3. F6 on a towering
fly ball
4. Soft liner to CF.
Runner on second has a great jump and easily scores. The batter is thrown out
trying to advance to second.
Top 5th:
1. 4 pitch BB.
2. Another walk. The
zone is the size of a fly.
3. E5 on a slow
grounder. Bases loaded with nobody out.
4. K swinging. 1
down.
5. K looking. Filthy
change up. 2 down.
6. F8 on an 8 pitch at
bat (7 strikes). Fantastic at bat, even better pitching.
Josh showed great
perseverance in the face of adversity here. This could change the outcome. He
looks angry, and he is rolling now. Five straight pitches at 83-84 mph to finish
the inning.
Bottom 5th:
1. Ground ball to
third base on a 1-2 count. 5-3 putout.
2. Line drive hit
strongly—right to left fielder. F7
3. K looking.
Top 6.
Josh is running out of
pitches (93 going into this inning; 105 is the max).
1. Ground out to
shortstop on a 1-0 count. 1 down.
2. F9 on a 3-1
count.
3. 6-3 putout on a 0-0
count.
4 pitches left.
Bottom 6th:
Retired in order.
Didn’t catch the play by play because I was grabbing water for Josh.
Top 7th:
Back on the hill for
the 7th to exhaust all remaining pitches. He is at 101 pitches; 105 is the max.
If he hits 105, he can finish the at bat. 5,6,7 due up in their lineup. Their
batters were instructed to force as many pitches as possible to get Josh out of
the game.
1. F8 on a 1-0
count.
2. F8 on 0-2 count.
Josh must be pulled from the game due to pitch limit. One out short of a
complete game shutout! Josh received a standing ovation from our fans.
3. Bringing in our
first baseman to pitch. BB
4. F4. Ballgame.
Shutout.
Final Game Stats
for Josh
6.2 IP
2 hits
3 Ks
0 runs
4 BB
108 pitches (61
strikes)
Following the game,
Josh took to his phone to alert his high school coaches and some college
recruiters (Ohio U, Malone, U Indianapolis, and Marietta College among others)
about today’s success, all of whom responded with excitement. Unfortunately, I
didn’t see any scouts at the game (we played today’s game at a field located
about an hour from the main, multi-field complex where most of the scouts were
located). However, I’m confident that several scouts will see today’s box score
online and take note. Josh managed to strikeout a Louisville commit (swinging)
and was the only pitcher in this tournament to hold this team to 0 runs—quite
an accomplishment!
Josh’s team now heads
to Lexington, KY for another tournament beginning tomorrow afternoon. Because
Josh will not be eligible to pitch again until Sunday, he will return to
Gallipolis with us, then to Cincinnati with me on Friday to help me move things
into my new apartment. I will drive him from Cincinnati to Lexington on Sunday
so he can lace up his spikes and return to the mound for his team.
Stay tuned for more
great baseball!
Josh is playing
for the Cincinnati Baseball Club (CBC) Red 17U coached by Ray Hamilton, the
varsity baseball coach at Lakota East High School near Cincinnati. His pitch
count was around 75 in game one of the tournament. He hadn’t thrown for about
two weeks prior, so his arm was in good shape. At present, he has no complaints
of pain in his arm. We’ve been keeping a close eye on that—as you mentioned,
Tommy John surgery would not be good for such a young player!
Editor’s Comment: Jaga
(my wife) just knew that Josh would pitch a great game because she prayed
especially for him. Last night she bugged me a couple of times about the
result. When I told her, Jaga said to the effect there was no doubt about
it. A virtual shutout (6.2 innings) against the first place team!
WOW! My only concern is efficiency to keep the pitch count down.
The ideal is that the number of balls should be about half the number of
strikes. Usually big league managers take their starters out after 90
pitches or so; 108 pitches is high even for an established major leaguer
although occasionally they'll let him stay for 120 pitches if on the way to a
shutout. But still, Josh only had a couple of walks as I recall.
For a high school pitcher, Josh did fabulously. May he keep that up into next season!
Appendix
Newspaper Accounts
www.mydailytribune.com/sports/25388/blue-devils-rally-past-point-9-6-2
– March 27 - Opening Day 9 – 6 win at Point Pleasant.
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/25869/blue-devils-burn-ironton-7-1 –
April 6 - Josh Faro gets the 7 – 1 win at home.
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/25986/blue-devils-double-up-redmen-2-1
– April 9 - Josh Faro gets a hit, scores the winning run, and pitches complete game win 2 -1 over Rock Hill at
home.
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/26204/blue-devils-burn-portsmouth-24-14
– April 13 - Faro pitches 3 innings in relief and gets win as Gallia Academy
wins in a slugfest 24 - 14.
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/26330/faro-tosses-no-hitter-at-ironton-11-0 – April 17 - Josh Faro pitches a complete game (7 innings)11
– 0 no hitter at Ironton.
*http://www.mydailysentinel.com/sports/25525/blue-devils-blank-chesapeake-5-0 – Friday April 20 - Another Josh Faro Shutout 5
– 0 over Chesapeake at home which big brother John, his Mom, Naomi, and I saw.
https://m.irontontribune.com/2018/04/22/faro-blue-devils-blank-panthers-5-0/ - April 22- coverage of Josh Faro’s 5 – 0 shutout
over Chesapeake at home as covered by the Ironton Tribune.
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/26683/blue-devils-rally-past-jackson-3-2
away on April 25 – April 25 – Gallia rallies to beat rival Jackson 3 - 2. Josh Faro gets
the win.
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/26862/gallia-academy-drops-dragons-6-1 - Game I saw on April 30 with both of Josh’s
parents in 6 – 1 win over Fairland. Josh
gave up only one run and that was on an error in the last home game.
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/27069/blue-devils-sweep-portsmouth-7-0 - May 3 - Faro pitches 7 – 0 complete game
shutout in last game of the regular season at Portsmouth.
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/27416/blue-devils-win-sectional-title-2 -
Thursday May 10 -Gallia Academy beats Marietta for
Sectional Championship 5 - 4 in the first extra inning, the 8th. Josh
Faro pitches 6⅔ innings before being taken out after reaching the maximum
allowed pitch count. Josh’s mother Beverly, brother Jacob, and I
were there.
http://www.mydailytribune.com/sports/27519/hillsboro-edges-blue-devils-in-8 -
Monday May 14 - Josh Faro loses shutout and the game 1 - 0 in the first extra
inning (the 8th) in the District Semi-Final game, which Beverly,
Jaga, and I attended.
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