November 25, 2008

Huntington '91 signs Indians, not of Cleveland variety

From the “you can’t make this stuff up” department:

Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Neal Huntington ‘91 made headlines yesterday when it was announced that the Pittsburgh Pirates signed two 20-year old pitchers from India to free agent contracts. While the story is alone remarkable for the fact that the two men are believed to be the first from India to sign a professional contract with an American baseball club, one cannot ignore how they came to the attention of Major League Baseball Scouts:

Singh and Patel [neither of whom had picked up a baseball until earlier this year] came to the United States six months ago after being the top finishers in an Indian reality TV show called the “Million Dollar Arm” that drew about 30,000 contestants. The show sought to find athletes who could throw strikes at 85 miles per hour or faster.

While neither pitcher threw hard enough to earn the $1 million prize, Singh made $100,000 from the contest and Patel made $2,500, plus his trip to the United States.

The contest was sponsored by a California sports management company that believed it could locate major league-worthy arms in a country of more than 1 billion. After working extensively with Southern California pitching coach Tom House since May, the pitchers staged a tryout in Tempe, Ariz., on Nov. 6 that was attended by 30 major league scouts.

The AP report notes that one of the pitchers hit 90mph on the radar gun during the workout, but leaves out the critical fact of whether the pitchers are left or right handed.

Huntington provided some stock comments on the new signings:

“The Pirates are committed to creatively adding talent to our organization,” Pirates general manager Neal Huntington said Monday. “By adding these two young men, the Pirates are pleased to not only add two prospects to our system but also hope to open a pathway to an untapped market. We are intrigued by Patel’s arm strength and Singh’s frame and potential.”

While Huntington’s approach is certainly novel, I don’t think the long-suffering supporters of the club, which has not had a winning season since 1992 (when Barry Bonds was in their lineup), are going to be excited that the club is taking flyers on two former javelin throwers who have less than six months experience throwing a baseball.

Dave Nardolillo '98 | November 25, 2008 09:04 AM | Alumni | Athletics

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