Incaviglia to make return
Rocker stays in Troy to prep for home start Friday
Tri-city Valleycats manager Pete Incaviglia will rejoin the team during its three-game Canadian trip, while Kumar Rocker will stay in Troy.
Valleycats general manager Matt Callahan said Monday that Incaviglia plans to reconnect with the team at some point on Wednesday, the second day of their series at the Troisriveres Aigles in Quebec.
He has missed the past four games while being home in Texas to attend to a personal matter. The Valleycats (19-19) have gone 3-1 in his absence with bench coach Thomas Incaviglia, his nephew, and pitching coach Scott Budner on hand.
“I don’t know that he’ll be there in time for the game, but he’ll be meeting them in Canada on Wednesday,” Callahan said.
Meanwhile, Rocker won’t make the trip to Quebec because he’s skipping what would have been his normal spot in the rotation on Wednesday at Troisrivieres. He’ll start next on Friday against the Empire State Greys at Joseph L. Bruno Stadium.
“He’s not going to travel,” Callahan said. “He’s going to stay behind and do some work on the side in the bullpen and just getting ready for Friday.”
Pete Incaviglia said last week The Boras Corporation, which represents Rocker, is more comfortable with him pitching at home.
“I think it’s the unknown of Three Rivers (Trois-rivieres),” Incaviglia said. “They don’t know exactly what the mound is like, what the facility is like.”
Rocker, the former Vanderbilt star and Mets unsigned first-round pick, has been impressive in his four starts in preparation for re-entering the MLB draft on July 17. He has a 1.80 earned-run average with 25 strikeouts in 15 innings.
Callahan said after Friday, Rocker might get one more start with the Valleycats — July 7 at home against the Quebec Capitales — before he departs Tri-city.
“But that’s still a question mark,” Callahan said.
Callahan said there was mention of Rocker also making a home start on July 13 against the New York Boulders, but Callahan doesn’t think they would push Rocker that close to the draft.
Devenney out six to eight weeks
Valleycats catcher Ciaran Devenney will probably miss six to eight weeks after being hit in the face with a pitch on Saturday, Callahan said.
Devenney’s cheekbone was broken in two places by the pitch from Empire State’s Johsson Arias, according to Callahan.
Devenney was facedown on the field for a few minutes before walking back to the dugout and eventually going to the emergency room that night. It was undetermined whether he’ll need surgery.
“The doctors thought he was doing pretty well aside from the cheekbone,” Callahan said. “He’s a tough kid to get back on his feet after that one.”
The Valleycats placed Devenney on the 14-day injured list.
“You never want to see a player in that situation,” Callahan said. “Obviously, it’s part of the game and kind of comes with the risk of stepping between the lines in any sport. For us, I think right off the bat, he was responsive and moving and able to communicate, so that’s obviously a good sign. Being a catcher, they’re a different breed. They set a tone with their level of toughness.”
Devenney, a Uconn alumnus, hit two homers with four RBIS in eight games with Tri-city.
Valleycats to add two local players
Tri-city is signing University at Albany pitcher Marshall Winn and outfielder-pitcher Tom Kretzler of Colonie High to join them on the trip to Trois-rivieres.
Winn had a 4.66 ERA in 191⁄3 innings of relief for the Great Danes this season. He struck out 19 and had three saves.
Kretzler, a SUNY Brockport alumnus, batted .367 with 17 homers and 63 RBIS this season for the Golden Eagles. He also went 7-2 on the mound with a 2.07 ERA and 71 strikeouts in 692⁄3 innings.
Callahan said the Valleycats could dip further into the recent college graduate market in late July. Last year, Tri-city had success getting college pitchers Austin Cline and Patrick Murphy in June after their college seasons were over.
“I think what seems to be happening this year is a lot of guys are going to wait until after the draft,” Callahan said. “And then, if they don’t get drafted, they will potentially sign in independent ball.”