Font ResizeThe season started in a bad way for left-handed reliever Jason Kershner. Nothing felt comfortable.
Hitters talk about finding timing early in the year, and pitchers struggle to locate their arm slot -- or where they hold their arm when they release a pitch.
Some pitchers might take months to locate their arm slot, but Kershner didn't want to wait that long. He wanted to get off to a fast start and earn another contract with a major league organization.
Struggling ever since the Phillies organization changed his mechanics the year before, Kershner said he finally felt comfortable when he pitched 42/3 innings in a blowout loss to Lancaster on May 2. He's looked solid ever since, setting a team record for pitching 292/3 innings without allowing a walk.
"It got to the point where every time I saw one of out guys walk, I'd think, 'OK I haven't walked anybody,'" Kershner said. "It was just one of those things where you know eventually you're going to walk somebody."
Kershner (1-1, 3.62 ERA) is one of four York players invited to the Atlantic League All-Star Game, which will be held Tuesday night at Bears & Eagles Riverfront Stadium in Newark, N.J.
Right-handed starter Corey Thurman (2-3, 3.81 ERA), designated hitter Tom Collaro and infielder Keoni DeRenne have also been invited to play in the game.
They will be joined by York manager Chris Hoiles, who will manage the Freedom Division club. First-base coach Jeff Barkdoll, third-base coach
Usually the managers from championship series manage the All-Star Game, but Somerset's Sparky Lyle will not work the game this year. The league chose the other Freedom Division playoff skipper from 2008 to take his place.
Camden's Joe Ferguson will manage the Liberty Division squad.
"For me, this was all about what the team accomplished last year," Hoiles said.
He will bring Collaro, who entered play Wednesday ranked fifth in the league in batting with a .320 average. DeRenne entered the night batting .285. He contemplated retirement during the offseason after struggling last season.
"It's a bonus," Thurman said, "but it's also an opportunity to showcase your ability."
Hamstrung: DeRenne doubled in the third inning Wednesday, and he appeared to injure his hamstring. Only able to limp to third on a wild pitch, he remained in the game.
Hoiles said after the 3-0 loss to Newark that DeRenne's hamstring tightened up on the play, but he refused to leave the game. Center fielder Kennard Jones remains out of the lineup after suffering a cramp in his hamstring Monday.
"When Keoni gets in (today) we'll see how it is," Hoiles said. "When you're dealing with a hamstring it can be a very delicate situation."
Revs acquire catcher: The Revs signed and activated John Purdom moments before Wednesday's game at Sovereign Bank Stadium. York's backup catcher Luis Taveras has played part of one game since pulling his groin June 10.
Asked about the injury Tuesday night, Taveras said he continues to struggle to make lateral movements when he's behind the plate.
Purdom spent a large portion of his career at the Class A level, but he had been playing in Triple-A this season -- batting .203 in 20 games for New Orleans.
He entered the 2009 season with a .250 career batting average in five minor league seasons spent with the Reds and Marlins organizations. He also has experience playing first base.
Eure traded: The Revs traded third baseman Jeff Eure to the St. Paul Saints of the independent American Association for future considerations before Wednesday's game. Eure batted .234 in 37 games with York. He hit one homer and knocked in eight runs.
Expected to be a middle of the order hitter for York, Eure admitted he struggled to adjust to the higher level of pitching in the Atlantic League.
Eure batted .295 with 13 homers in the short-season Northern League last season, but that independent circuit places a cap on the number of minor league veterans each team can sign.
"Anytime you come to a league for the first time you have to make adjustments," Eure said earlier this month. "It's a long season, so you just try to grind it out.
"In this league everybody has got experience and some big league experience or at least Triple-A experience. They know how to pitch and they won't give in to you."
The Revolution moved Matt Padgett to third base to replace Eure. Although York didn't acquire a player in the deal, it opens up a roster spot. York now has 24 men on its active roster.
jseip@ydr.com; 771-2025
