Alessandro Ercolani: Fastball/Cutter key to building on 2023 mid-season surge
Teenager was picking up momentum before not pitching after July
If Alessandro Ercolani makes it to the majors, when he makes his first appearance at PNC Park, the entire population of his home country, San Marino, could fit in the whole stadium.
That alone makes it a fun story to follow his journey through the minors.
It turns out there is a lot to like about the arm of the Ercolani, who will be entering his second full season of baseball at 19 (he’ll turn 20 in late April after the season has started).
His 2023 season with Bradenton was cut short due to an injury, but it looked like he was starting to figure things out at the time.
In his first eight games, Ercolani posted a 1-4 record with a 5.52 ERA, with batters hitting .301 against him and posting strikeout and walk rates of 18.2% and 13.3%, respectively.
Then, in his final seven appearances, Ercolani saw an increase in his strikes (30.3%) while decreasing his walks (9.1%), and opponents just batted .208 against him.
He didn’t pitch again after July 30th against St. Lucie but did make a brief cameo in the Arizona Fall League, where control issues plagued him, and he only pitched 3.2 innings before being shut down for good.
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