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49er
makes debut in Red Sox game scheduled for
today
By
Daniel Frias
Daily Forty-Niner
Former Long Beach State men's baseball player
Abe Alvarez will get his chance to show
Boston and the rest of the baseball world
what he is made of as he takes the mound
in his first major league game. Alvarez
was called up from Boston's Double-A Portland
(ME) Seadogs and is scheduled to make his
debut for the Red Sox today in the first
game of a double header against the Baltimore
Orioles in Fenway Park.
A
spokesperson for the Red Sox organization
said that Alvarez was one of the names being
tossed around to pitch Thursday but the
decision would not be made until today.
Alvarez,
a native of Los Angeles, played for the
Dirtbags from 2001-03 before being drafted
by Boston in the second round of the 2003
MLB Draft.
Alvarez
began his minor league career with a short
stint at Lowell pitching just 19 innings.
He began this season playing for the Sea
Dogs where he has continued to pitch well
making good use of his speed and ability
to control and locate his fastball, curveball
and change-up. He is currently 8-6 with
a .353 ERA and 82 strikeouts with the Sea
Dogs this season.
The
laid back, bushy long hair, with a cap tilted
sideways, pitcher was a devastating leftie
for the Dirtbags. In 2003 Alvarez pitched
in 18 games going 11-2 with a 2.35 ERA and
102 strikeouts.
He
was second only behind Jared Weaver who
had 144 strikeouts that year and finished
third in batters retired in the Big West
Conference earning him 2nd Team All-American
Honors by Baseball America.
Alvarez
was named Big West Pitcher of the Year in
2002 and again in 2003, sharing the accolade
with teammate Weaver in 2003.
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