Former Illini pitcher Tanner Roark is now 5-0 with a microscopic 0.94 ERA since being called up by the Washington Nationals last month. More importantly, he earning glowing praise from his teammates AND his manager, Davey Johnson.
After his latest victory on Saturday, a six inning scoreless effort, Johnson drew some complimentary comparisons to Roark, likening him to some historic big league pitchers of the past:
"I knew I had something," Johnson said of Roark. "He’s got great command and he’s made quality pitches out of the ‘pen. I see it from where I’m sitting and even with talking to [Wilson] Ramos — he loves to catch him because he hits his spots. It’s one thing to have good stuff, but best thing in the world is to have that good command. He throws it like Satchel Paige — ‘Be where I want it to be.’"
Fellow Nats third baseman Ryan Zimmerman chimed in with:
"Good game to come back after last night and get a win," Zimmerman said. "Tanner threw the ball great, scored some runs early for him and good way to answer what happened last night."
Comparisons to pitchers like Satchel Paige don’t come off the tongue very easily, I’m sure. It sounds like Roark has found his home in Washington for the time being. That’s a good place to be as the Nats are fighting for a for a Wild Card spot in the NL. That’s plenty of inspiration and motivation for a young pitcher like Tanner Roark to prove his worth.
Wow! Keep up the good work, Tanner! Maybe time for a road trip to St. Louis for Illini fans later in Sept. to perhaps see him pitch in the bigs!