The 2014 World Series developed some intrigue beyond the play inside the lines Wednesday night, after a brawl nearly broke out thanks to the histrionics of Giants' rookie reliever Hunter Strickland.
Strickland was brought in to put out a fire the Royals' offense started, but merely fanned the flames by giving up an RBI double to Salvador Perez, followed by a home run to infielder Omar Infante. Following the home run, Strickland jawed at Perez while he waited for his teammate to touch home plate, then challenged him to come out to the mound causing the Royals to spill out of their dugout.
Nothing serious occurred, but after the game Strickland remained defiant. "I'm not going to back down from anything," Strickland said. "I thought he must have thought I said something to him so, and like I said, it was just the way it is. I got caught up in it."
Strickland was a virtual unknown prior to the 2014 playoffs, so this is a good opportunity to learn what he is about.
Strickland didn't pitch much in the majors this season. He appeared in nine regular season games, posting a 0.00 ERA and striking out nine hitters in seven innings of work. His repertoire is mostly limited to heat right now. Per Fangraphs.com, Strickland hurled his fastball close to 70 percent of the time, mixing in a slider about 25 percent of the time.
His career started in the Red Sox' farm system in 2007, but he emerged as an MLB-caliber player in 2013 while pitching for the Giants' High-A team. This season he began in High-A, but threw just three innings before moving to Double-A, where he posted a 12.11 strikeout-per-nine rate. He skipped Triple-A and headed right to the big ball club, where it appears Giants' manager Bruce Bochy intended to deploy him as a secret weapon a la Francisco Rodriguez.
Strickland's postseason run hasn't been very smooth though. Despite a fastball that can reach triple digits, he's surrendered five home runs in 5.1 innings. His outburst in Game 2 of the World Series may be an indication he's been rushed into this big spot, and may not be usable again in the series.
Fellow reliever Jeremy Affeldt said the incident was just a case of a young pitcher who was frustrated and is learning the ropes on a big stage.
"With Strick, he's still learning this game," Affeldt said. "He was in Double-A and we brought him up and he's in the big leagues pitching in the World Series. There is a lot of stuff to learn in these situations and a lot of stuff he will continue to learn."
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