Editor’s Note: This story appeared in Thursday’s York Dispatch.

The native son took the mound a few minutes past 7 p.m., and suddenly an energy absent for months was restored to Sovereign Bank Stadium.

The crowd of 4,263 hung on every pitch. Routine fly-ball outs from the opposition were cheered vigorously. Every set of eyes in the place were fixed on one man.

Of course, that would be Shawn Hedrick, 34, the 18-year veteran of the Central and Susquehanna leagues. Hedrick made his debut for the independent York Revolution on Wednesday night.

And somehow, battling nerves he hadn’t felt in quite some time, Hedrick delivered the same steady performance local baseball fans have come to expect from one of their own.

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Filed under: Game Recaps, Newark Bears, York Revolution | 1 Comment »

Editor’s note: A version of this story ran in Tuesday’s York Dispatch.

On sandlot baseball diamonds across the county, his name has come to stand for dynamite fastballs and pressure-packed playoff victories.

Now, with perhaps just about the entire community behind him, Shawn Hedrick will get to experience what he acknowledged will be one of the highlights of his life.

Hedrick, 34, signed a contract with the independent York Revolution on Monday. The right-hander, regarded as one of the best pitchers the Susquehanna or Central leagues have ever seen, will make his professional debut Wednesday night in a start against Newark at Sovereign Bank Stadium. First pitch is set for 7 p.m.

And with Hedrick’s first offering to the plate, he’ll jumpstart a story that could very well be on the fast track to becoming a Hollywood script.

A third-shift worker with zero professional experience suddenly becomes a pro pitching sensation. How about that for a flick on the big screen?

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One of the most accomplished pitchers on the York sandlot scene has signed a contract with the York Revolution.

Shawn Hedrick, widely regarded as the best pitcher in either the Susquehanna or Central League for several years, will start for the Revolution Wednesday night, according to team officials.

Hedrick, 10-1 for regular season champ Red Lion of the Susquehanna League this year, has pitched at Sovereign Bank Stadium before. Leading the game off for the local all-stars in an exhibition against the Revs on April 18, Hedrick fired two scoreless innings and struck out four hitters.

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The York Revolution picked up a new shortstop Monday afternoon, acquiring Liu Rodriguez from the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs for future considerations.

Originally working on a plan to net the Crabs’ Chuck Jeroloman last week, the Revs landed Rodriguez, who brings a steady bat and slick defense.

The Venezuela native hit .280 for Southern Maryland in 143 at-bats after joining the club in early July.

For his career, Rodriguez is a .289 hitter in the minors (3,589 at-bats entering the year). He also appeared in the majors briefly with the Chicago White Sox in the 1999 season. His career numbers are here.

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Hoping to bolster the club’s defensive strength at shortstop, the York Revolution remains close to trading for infielder Chuck Jeroloman.

The Revs hope to soon acquire the current Southern Maryland infielder for a player to be named later. The move was first announced by Revolution general manager, Matt O’Brien, on Twitter.

Jeroloman, 26, was only a .232 career hitter in five seasons in the minors entering this season after enjoying a college career at Auburn University. And he hasn’t done well at the plate this year, batting .197 in 229 at-bats with the Blue Crabs.

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Editor’s Note: This story appeared in Wednesday’s York Dispatch.

Of all the memories, all the exhilarating moments he was a part of on a baseball field, Chris Ashby can’t seem to shake the mental image framed by a few seconds.

Playing in a winter league in Puerto Rico nine years ago, Ashby (pictured above) headed to rinse off after a game. He passed by a teammate in the shower. That’s when he couldn’t help but notice the peculiar red rash on the man’s chest.

The teammate explained the outbreak with a tone approaching bravado, telling Ashby he, too, could have any performance-enhancing drug he needed.

Ashby, 34, arguably the best player in the York Revolution’s short history, can spend hours recalling encounters like this one. Tales of drug use in the heart of professional baseball’s steroids era particularly irk Ashby because he spent nine years toiling in Triple-A — a heartbeat from the big leagues — only to be passed by time after time by allegedly tainted players.

That reality left a bitter Ashby in the independent Atlantic League a season ago, where he found himself in an all-too-familiar culture. While Ashby said he did not witness any drug use by Revolution teammates first hand, he says the Atlantic League’s steroid- and drug-testing policy is a joke.

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There were times when it happened before — a line drive slamming into Shane Youman’s leg or shoulder.

But nothing prepared the former major leaguer for the misfortune he experienced recently in a game with Camden.

Pitching in the third inning, with the Riversharks’ Jose Leon at the plate, Leon slammed a line drive right into Youman’s face. The ball landed directly above the southpaw’s left eye, forcing him to the ground.

Youman never lost consciousness. He admitted in a recent interview, though, that the force of the ball — which subsequently caused both his eyes to swell nearly shut — left him experiencing easily the scariest moment of his career.

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Editor’s Note: This story ran in Tuesday’s York Dispatch.

For Ryan Goleski, one afternoon as a high school teenager changed his life forever.

Considered a stud pitching prospect in his younger years, Goleski went to show off his arm for the Colorado Rockies.

He did well, feeding scouts some jaw-dropping velocity. But then they asked the question that changed everything.

Can you hit, too?

A series of tape-measure shots later and that was it. Goleski has been a home run-hitting outfielder ever since — not to mention a pretty good one (he was once selected ahead of the Rangers’ Josh Hamilton in the Rule 5 draft).

A struggling season in independent baseball almost complete, though, and Goleski, 27, has turned back to the skill that harnessed all the attention from scouts in the first place.

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Cashing in on the promise he made to make changes, newly minted York Revolution manager Andy Etchebarren has done just that only a few days into his tenure.

According to team officials, the Revs made a series of internal and external roster moves Monday.

For starters, the club released Jason Olson, one of the longest tenured Revs and the franchise’s career leader in appearances.

Starting pitcher Dave Gassner has also been moved to the bullpen, clearing the way for lefty Brian Holliday to enter the starting rotation.

Finally — and perhaps most shockingly — outfielder Ryan Goleski, a former Rule 5 pick ahead of Texas’ Josh Hamilton once upon a time, has been converted to a pitcher. The hard-throwing right-hander typically known for gunning men out on the base paths was recruited as a pitcher in his younger days before settling on playing the outfield.

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Filed under: Coaching Staff, Roster Moves, Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, York Revolution | 1 Comment »