Pries savors Cape League no-hitter07/06/2010 5:42 PM Article By: SOUTH YARMOUTH ---- Many players will have magical moments in their careers as they strive to reach the big leagues. For Yarmouth-Dennis’s Jordan Pries (Stanford), that moment came on June 30 when he fired the first no-hitter of the Cape League season.“It was incredible. It’s a special thing for me,” he said after shutting down the Orleans Firebirds in a 2-0 win. “It’s one of those once-in-a-lifetime things.” Technically, it was not a once-in-a-lifetime event for the 6-1 right-hander. Pries also tossed a no-hitter in high school. But he said this was tougher and meant a lot more. “He’s a four-pitch pitcher who spotted up for us the other night,” field manager Scott Pickler said. “He is a good kid, and a good teammate. It is real nice having him up here.” “He was in complete command. Joey Panik (St. John’s) and Matt Jensen (Cal Poly) both made really good plays to keep the no-hitter (alive). Then (the Firebirds) hit four or five balls really hard, and they just happened to hit them right at us.” Pries admitted he knew what was going on for the entire game. He is a self-proclaimed “stat rat” and joked that he knew he had a perfect game after the first inning. “You just try to go out there and not think about,” he said. The perfect game lasted six innings before he walked two to begin the seventh. He walked three on the night and struck out four. The no-no was just a small step in Pries’ journey as he attempts to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps and play in the big leagues. Bud Daley played in the majors for 10 seasons in the 1950s and 1960s for the Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Athletics and New York Yankees. Pries has other family ties to Major League Baseball. His great uncle, Don Pries, started the Major League Scouting Bureau after playing in the Boston Red Sox organization. Stanford recruited Pries as a pitcher and middle infielder. He became a full-time pitcher before his sophomore season. “It was real tough to give up the field,” he admitted. The Red Sox righty is the current single season-record holder at his high school in Alameda, Calif. for batting average (.560). He also ranks second on his school’s all-time list for strikeouts (95) and ERA (1.05) in a single season. For the time being, he remains a student, majoring in civil engineering. If his baseball career does not take off, he plans on becoming an engineer and hopes to build in under-developed areas. Pries started playing baseball at age 5, and has tried his hand at basketball, golf, football and hockey. He says his choice was between basketball and baseball and believes he made the right one. “Playing in the Cape League is another one of those once-in-a-lifetime things,” he said. He has a 1.23 ERA over 14.2 innings and two starts, helping the Red Sox to a first-place tie with the Brewster Whitecaps in the Eastern Division. Both teams have a 14-6 record, the best in the league. “It’s nice out here,” he said. “I’ve never been to the Northeast before.” |