Baseball: Bulldogs overcome illness

Pitcher Nick Burgess works into the sixth inning to help understaffed Zephyrhills earn the win.

By JOEY KNIGH T
Published February 22, 2008

ZEPHYRHILLS - The flulike epidemic that has ravaged Zephyrhills' youth-laden roster struck the Bulldogs' lone starting senior shortly after his lunch Thursday.

Left-hander Nick Burgess lost it about six hours later, just before the bullpen session preceding his start against Ridgewood.

"I actually threw up, just went and splashed some water on my face and went into the bullpen," he said. "I was feeling bad all day, then after that I felt pretty good."

Good enough to keep his fastball down far more successfully than his lunch.

In his first start of the year, Burgess retired the first nine hitters he faced and worked into the sixth inning to help the understaffed Bulldogs (4-0) earn an 8-4 victory.

Had Burgess (51/3 innings, three hits, five strikeouts, three walks) not gutted it out, Bulldogs coach Bruce Cimorelli might have been the one feeling queasy.

Sophomore right-hander Tyler Guy was too sick to attend the game, and left-hander Chris Fern - who worked the final 12/3 innings - starts tonight against Nature Coast. Junior right-hander Austin Adams, meanwhile, is out the first three weeks with upper forearm problems.

"I said (to Burgess), 'You've got to suck it up and go,'" Cimorelli said. "He did a heck of a job for us tonight."

Burgess, nephew of former Bulldog and current New York Yankees pitching coach David Eiland, didn't allow a baserunner until Jay Mattos reached on an outfield error to lead off the fourth. He fanned four through the first four innings, three on called third strikes.

"Fastball, fastball, fastball," he said of his repertoire Thursday. "Throw a curve in there every now and then, but it was all fastballs pretty much."

The Rams defense aided Burgess' cause with five errors, which Coach Larry Beets said will result in 250 push-ups at today's practice.

The Rams had cut their deficit to 6-4 in the top of the sixth when George Duncan drew a bases-loaded walk that chased Burgess, and Jesus Vazquez followed with a suicide squeeze that scored Justin Chittum.

But Ridgewood (0-3) committed two infield errors in the bottom of the inning, leading to Zephyrhills' final two runs. Adams led off the inning with a double for the game's only extra-base hit.

[Last modified February 21, 2008, 23:37:47]