Chirinos Named IL Pitcher of the Week

Durham Bulls right-handed pitcher Yonny Chirinos was named the International League Pitcher of the Week for the period May 8-14, the league announced Monday. The 23-year-old earned two wins in as many starts over the Bulls' seven-game homestand at the DBAP.
In two starts last week, the Venezuela native went 2-0 with a 1.15 ERA, as he surrendered just two earned runs across 15 2/3 innings. On May 8 he dealt 6 2/3 frames in Durham's 9-2 win over the Columbus Clippers, then on May 13 tossed a complete game shutout on just 100 pitches in the team's 5-0 win over the Toledo Mud Hens in front of a sold-out crowd on Star Wars Night. Making just his second and third career Triple-A starts, Chirinos struck out 17 batters and walked five, surrendering a total of nine hits.
Chirinos' complete game shutout was the first of his career, and he tied a career-high with his nine punchouts. The righty became the first Durham pitcher with a complete game shutout since Justin Marks' no-hitter at Syracuse on July 16, 2016, and was the first Bulls pitcher to throw a nine-inning, complete game shutout at the DBAP since Jason Hammel did so on May 28, 2007 against Ottawa.
Originally signed in June 2012 as a minor league free agent, Chirinos has spent his entire career in the Tampa Bay organization. He began the 2017 campaign as a member of the Montgomery Biscuits, and was promoted to Durham on May 2. For the season, he is 4-0 with a 2.55 ERA in seven starts between the two levels. The Pitcher of the Week honor marks the second time in his career the righty has earned the award, after doing so in July of 2015 in the Midwest League.