Local boys get big wins
Honolulu Star-Bulletin Sports
New York Mets pitcher Tyler Yates, left, of Kauai, and San Francisco Giants pitcher Jerome Williams, of Waipahu, each started and earned victories last night for their respective teams.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Local boys get big wins
Kauai's Yates earns his
first major league victory
as Mets defeat Expos
Williams wins 2nd of season
By Al Chase
achase@starbulletin.com
The excitement was evident in Tyler Yates' voice.
The rookie right-hander for the New York Mets was ecstatic after earning his first major league victory last night. Yates pitched 5 2/3 innings in a 4-1 win at Shea Stadium, then watched three members of the bullpen hold Montreal scoreless the rest of the game.
Even more important to Yates than the personal win was that it came at a good time for the Mets.
"The biggest thing for me was stopping our three-game losing streak," Yates said. "I'm happy with the way I performed. I think this will give my teammates more confidence in me, that I can go out and win games for them."
The Kauai High School graduate and former Hawaii-Hilo pitcher said he didn't feel any extra pressure after his first big-league win. He knew if he went out and produced a quality start, the first victory would come eventually because of confidence he has in the Mets' bullpen.
Yates threw 59 strikes among his 97 pitches. He got the Expos to ground out nine times and retired seven batters on fly balls.
"I just try to go out and throw strikes on every pitch and throw a ball when I want to," he said. "I try to put a batter away as fast as I can and that doesn't always mean striking them out. I don't want them to get good wood on a pitch."
Yates had worked on some mechanical adjustments with pitching coach Rick Peterson after his previous start against Atlanta that ended up being his first major league loss.
"We worked a lot on keeping my head still (during delivery) and not overthrowing. We want to let my arm work and let the ball fly," Yates said. "We agreed on a lot of things, worked on those things, and it paid off tonight. I have to discipline myself to keep my head still. If I can do that, then I'll be successful."
Yates said he used all his pitches -- fastball, slider and changeup -- and made sure he threw them for strikes.
"When you can throw all your pitches for strikes, that doesn't give the hitter a chance to eliminate a pitch. That was a big factor tonight," Yates said. "I did throw my curve once, but I don't throw it that much because I have trouble throwing it for strikes."
There also was another first for Yates last night. He got his first hit as a professional.
In the minors, pitchers rarely hit. Although, once the Mets converted Yates to a starting pitcher last year, he did get eight at-bats in the minors.
"It was a single between third and short on a fastball," said Yates, who was quite a hitter in high school. "It's hard not seeing pitches for six years. You lose your timing and swing, but I've been working with (N.Y. batting coach) Denny Walling on that."
Yates is already a TV star -- at least at the Poipu Beach Broiler on Kauai. That's because his father owns the place and installed a satellite dish 1 1/2 years ago.
"We got it when we opened, hoping it would happen," Gary Yates said last night.
Gary Yates and his wife were at Shea Stadium for the win along with Tyler's girlfriend, Liezel. He called the restaurant, where he said 50 people had gathered for the game. It coincided with happy hour because of the time difference -- $3.50 margaritas and $2 beers.
"Am I touching the ground or what?" Gary Yates said in the Mets clubhouse. "It's probably as big a thrill for me as it is for him."
After the game, the 26-year-old right-hander had the lineup card and two balls: the one that ended the game and the one from his first career hit, in the fourth inning.
"It's a pretty good feeling," he said. "It's probably the most fun I've had playing baseball thus far."
Tyler Yates by the numbers
Individual season statistics through yesterday's games
Record: 1-1
Innings pitched: 14.0
Hits: 16
Earned runs: 6
Home runs: 0
Walks: 5
Strikeouts: 7
ERA: 3.86
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Associated Press contributed to this report
New York Mets pitcher Tyler Yates, left, of Kauai, and San Francisco Giants pitcher Jerome Williams, of Waipahu, each started and earned victories last night for their respective teams.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Local boys get big wins
Kauai's Yates earns his
first major league victory
as Mets defeat Expos
Williams wins 2nd of season
By Al Chase
achase@starbulletin.com
The excitement was evident in Tyler Yates' voice.
The rookie right-hander for the New York Mets was ecstatic after earning his first major league victory last night. Yates pitched 5 2/3 innings in a 4-1 win at Shea Stadium, then watched three members of the bullpen hold Montreal scoreless the rest of the game.
Even more important to Yates than the personal win was that it came at a good time for the Mets.
"The biggest thing for me was stopping our three-game losing streak," Yates said. "I'm happy with the way I performed. I think this will give my teammates more confidence in me, that I can go out and win games for them."
The Kauai High School graduate and former Hawaii-Hilo pitcher said he didn't feel any extra pressure after his first big-league win. He knew if he went out and produced a quality start, the first victory would come eventually because of confidence he has in the Mets' bullpen.
Yates threw 59 strikes among his 97 pitches. He got the Expos to ground out nine times and retired seven batters on fly balls.
"I just try to go out and throw strikes on every pitch and throw a ball when I want to," he said. "I try to put a batter away as fast as I can and that doesn't always mean striking them out. I don't want them to get good wood on a pitch."
Yates had worked on some mechanical adjustments with pitching coach Rick Peterson after his previous start against Atlanta that ended up being his first major league loss.
"We worked a lot on keeping my head still (during delivery) and not overthrowing. We want to let my arm work and let the ball fly," Yates said. "We agreed on a lot of things, worked on those things, and it paid off tonight. I have to discipline myself to keep my head still. If I can do that, then I'll be successful."
Yates said he used all his pitches -- fastball, slider and changeup -- and made sure he threw them for strikes.
"When you can throw all your pitches for strikes, that doesn't give the hitter a chance to eliminate a pitch. That was a big factor tonight," Yates said. "I did throw my curve once, but I don't throw it that much because I have trouble throwing it for strikes."
There also was another first for Yates last night. He got his first hit as a professional.
In the minors, pitchers rarely hit. Although, once the Mets converted Yates to a starting pitcher last year, he did get eight at-bats in the minors.
"It was a single between third and short on a fastball," said Yates, who was quite a hitter in high school. "It's hard not seeing pitches for six years. You lose your timing and swing, but I've been working with (N.Y. batting coach) Denny Walling on that."
Yates is already a TV star -- at least at the Poipu Beach Broiler on Kauai. That's because his father owns the place and installed a satellite dish 1 1/2 years ago.
"We got it when we opened, hoping it would happen," Gary Yates said last night.
Gary Yates and his wife were at Shea Stadium for the win along with Tyler's girlfriend, Liezel. He called the restaurant, where he said 50 people had gathered for the game. It coincided with happy hour because of the time difference -- $3.50 margaritas and $2 beers.
"Am I touching the ground or what?" Gary Yates said in the Mets clubhouse. "It's probably as big a thrill for me as it is for him."
After the game, the 26-year-old right-hander had the lineup card and two balls: the one that ended the game and the one from his first career hit, in the fourth inning.
"It's a pretty good feeling," he said. "It's probably the most fun I've had playing baseball thus far."
Tyler Yates by the numbers
Individual season statistics through yesterday's games
Record: 1-1
Innings pitched: 14.0
Hits: 16
Earned runs: 6
Home runs: 0
Walks: 5
Strikeouts: 7
ERA: 3.86
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Associated Press contributed to this report
posted by DP at 9:04 AM
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