In the wake of Lewis Thorpe’s first start for his new team the Altoona Curve, we sat down with the 24 year old Australian lefty to discuss his hopes for the season and his personal goals moving forward
We asked Thorpe about his thoughts on joining the rotation in Altoona. “It’s an honor, I didn’t have too many innings out of the bullpen but manager Ron Gardenhire sat me down and told me he liked what he saw, he said if I can keep controlling my fastball and keep the ball in the ballpark I could have a great future with this ball club. When someone who’s been around the game as long as he has tells you he sees potential in you its kind of surreal, it really makes you reflect on how you’ve gotten to this point in your Career.”
As our conversation with the young lefty went on we asked him about his personal goals moving forward and how he feels he stacks up with the rest of the Altoona rotation. “I’m just looking to improve and learn something new every outing. I’m still a student of the game, I don’t think you can ever not be a student of the game. Baseball has so many layers and it’s a complex but beautiful sport. Hitters have different tendancies and flaws that I really need to study and learn. I learned last night from the first hit I gave up in the ball game being a monster two run home run by Miguel Cabrera that every pitch counts, mistakes at this level will be hammered and I have to limit them as much possible… As for where I see my self fitting in the Altoona rotation I think that’s something I can’t worry about, these are my teammates and I shouldn’t compare myself to them but rather learn from. Peralta and Sale have been around for a long time and have so much knowledge to give, those are the types of guys that will make me better. I’m going to worry about my next performance not the next few years to come, I believe with baseball you need to live in the moment.”
We spoke to GM Justin Zima about his take on Lewis Thorpe. “We like this kid a lot, he showed some true grit against Syracuse last night and from what we’ve seen from this kid he’s gotten smarter every appearance. That being said he has some work ahead of him, he needs to minimize the mistakes that allow hitters to leave the ball park. Too often he can be cruising and then all of a sudden the game changes because of one pitch and one swing. He got great stuff he just needs to be more consistent with his pitch selection and location. I’m excited to watch Thorpe grow and I think if he keeps the ball in the ballpark he could help out our Altoona pitching rotation out a lot.”
Lastly we asked Ron Gardenhire about the choice to move Erlin to the bullpen and Thorpe to the rotation. “Thorpe has more upside in my mind. You know what Erlin is going to give you and a lot can be said about consistency but we think Thorpe can shut down some lineups and grow while doing that. I love the kids poise and his stuff and I think he just needs to put it all together. He’s gritty and he’s a competitor who has a level head. I think people might be surprised how this guy produces in the Altoona rotation.”
Be sure to check in with next weeks Altoona Curve Player Spotlight and until then GO CURVE!