By Kenny Barto
The Blue Devils have an alumni playing in the major leagues for the first time since Ricky Bottalico last pitched in 2005 for the Milwaukee Brewers.
Former CCSU pitcher Evan Scribner made his major league debut Tuesday night for the San Diego Padres, allowing two hits and one walk over two scoreless innings as the Atlanta Braves defeated the Padres 8-2.
Scribner began the season with the Tucson Sidewinders, his first stint in Triple-A. Scribner was 0-1 with a 5.62 ERA and had three saves in four opportunities with the team. However, Scribner’s highest ERA at any level was in 2009 with Double-A San Antonio, where he went 8-4 with a 3.07 ERA.
Scribner has primarily filled the role of closer in the minor leagues. He was drafted in 2007 in the 28th round by the Diamondbacks, and was considered to be a gem of the draft by how late he fell. He was traded to the Padres on July 18th, 2008 for slugger Tony Clark.
Scribner saw action with the big league club in spring training, working four scoreless outings in March before being optioned to the Triple-A club on March 11th. Although Scribner has struggled with Tucson this year, he could become an integral part of the Padres’ bullpen as the season goes on.
Scribner sports a fastball at 90-94 mph, followed by a curveball that is known to have a 20 mph difference that has been fooling batters in the minor leagues.
He is only the third CCSU alum to make it to the major leagues. Bottalico, and Skip Jutze are the only other two Blue Devils to make it that far.