The awe-inspiring sight that is Oakland Athletics pitcher Pat Venditte was on a brief display for MLB hitters before he went down recently with an injured shoulder. Venditte is a journeymen relief pitcher who had finally seemed to find a home with Oakland. The hype around Venditte is because he is ambidextrous and can attack hitters by pitching from both sides of the mound. He has shocked hitters with his ability to pitch with his left arm as well as he does his right.
Even though he is just now settling into a major league bullpen, USA Today explains that Venditte has already made an impression on the game he loves:
"So it is easy to get caught up in the spectacle of Venditte, who has thrown right-handed and left-handed since the age of 3. There's the six-fingered glove that suits both hands, and the fact that he gets the same number of warm-up pitches (thus, half as many for each arm). The Pat Venditte Rule on the MLB books - a pitcher must declare which arm he's using for each batter and can't change until next the one -- is a nod to how his singular double talent forced a complex game, centuries old, to account for him."
With the injury to his right shoulder, the Athletics thought it was a smarter move to put him on the disabled list rather than have him on the mound even though he could pitch with his left. SB Nation has the Athletics thoughts behind the move:
"Their reasoning is simple enough: the rookie's delivery and results appear nearly identical from either side, and his strength lies in the flexibility he lends to the A's matchups, allowing them to gain an edge no matter how the opposition stacks the lineup. Reverting to an exclusively left-handed approach would make him the fourth lefty reliever in Oakland's arsenal and his unique advantage would be lost."
What are your thoughts on Venditte and his ambidextrous pitching style? Will he be able to succeed in Major League Baseball? We want to hear from you. Tell us your thoughts below.
