The Victoria HarbourCats have increased the number of available arms on its pitching staff, and added another highly-touted catcher to the mix.
With the 2014 baseball season less than a month away, the team has grown its roster to 40 players.
The new signees include: catcher Gunner Pollman and pitchers Alex Garcia, Dylan Stowell and Don Sullivan.
“It has long been said there are three keys to baseball – pitching, pitching and pitching,” said HarbourCats head coach Bob Miller.
“We have gone after the best arms we can find, and we have gone after lots of them. We know injuries, academic requirements and other factors can change the look of a staff in the West Coast League in a hurry, so it has been important for us to load up on arms and have enough of them to keep guys fresh and sharp throughout the season.”
Pollman bats and throws right and is known for his defence, throwing out 75 per cent of would-be base-stealers in his senior year of high school.
Sullivan plays for former HarbourCats head coach Dennis Rogers at Riverside, and has been used almost exclusively out of the bullpen this season. The left-handed Sullivan, 3-2 with a 3.54 ERA and one save, has thrown 53 innings surrendering 55 hits, fanning 23 and walking 25.
Stowell, who throws and bats right, is a freshman out of Capistrano Valley High School, where he was 19-1 in his prep career.
Garcia is a top recruit out of Bishop Amat Memorial High School in La Puente, Calif. The right-hander simply blew away high school competition, with 63 strikeouts in 41.1 innings, leading to four wins and a 2.54 ERA. His fastball touches 90 and his slider will help him succeed at the next levels.
The HarbourCats open on the road June 6. The home-opener series in June 10 to 12 at Royal Athletic Park. Tickets are available online at harbourcats.com/tickets.
