As you might expect, Paul Janish had a sore shoulder the day after his major league pitching debut. Dusty Baker wanted to give him a day off yesterday, but with Alex Gonzalez injured and Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips sick, he had no choice but to start Janish at SS. Janish stepped up, going 2 for 3 with a walk, including a nine-pitch at-bat that ended in a double. He started again tonight, and was 1 for 4 with a double. The guy is starting to win over the Cincinnati fans.
Janish said that Rice recruited him as a pitcher, but moved him to SS because they had a bunch of superstar pitchers. One of them started for the Rays against the Yanks last night: Jeff Niemann. He was drafted in the first round, the same year Janish was drafted in the fifth round. Niemann is probably the most successful of the crop of pitchers that displaced Janish. Phil Humber hasn't been able to stick in the big leagues, and Wade Townsend never got past AA. (He's sitting out this year after surgery to repair a torn labrum.) It's possible Janish could turn out to be a better pick than any of them.
Labels: Paul Janish
