Interrogation Room: Cody Scarpetta

Timber Rattlers pitcher Cody Scarpetta is next in The Interrogation Room.  The right-hander out of Rockford , Illinois was the 11^th round pick of the Brewers in 2007.  He spent most of last season with the Timber Rattlers and compiled a 4-11 record with a 3.43ERA and had 116 strikeouts in 105 innings pitched before getting a promotion to Huntsville in the Southern League.

Topics covered include his experiences with Huntsville , his offense, his baseball clinic in Rockford , and his goals for 2010.

Q. Your 2009 season ended with a promotion to Huntsville in the Southern League and a start against Jacksonville .  Just looking at the stats from that game, it shows 5IP, 5H, 3R, a walk, and a strikeout with all three of the Suns runs scoring in the bottom of the fifth inning.  How did you think you pitched in your first game above the Midwest League level?

A. I thought I pitched pretty well. It was definitely a big change in a sense where the hitters were more advanced and patient. I kind of ran out of gas in the 5^th.  I hadn't pitched in a game for a week and it was a hot, day game. I tried to stay on the same routine as what Chris Hook and I did throughout the year and go out there and make pitches. I had a great time there and hope to be there again soon.

Q.  You also went 0-for-1 at the plate in that game.  If you make the jump to Huntsville  for 2010, are you ready to swing the bat?

A. I always think I can hit but it's not like it was in high school. We take batting practice during the season so that always helps. But my focus is on the mound if I'm able to help the team at the plate then that's a definite plus.

Q. The Stars made the playoffs and lost in the first round to the Tennessee Smokies?  You didn't pitch in the series, but did you get to stick around for the playoff experience?

A. Yes I was there throughout the whole playoff experience. I was scheduled to start the 5^th game if we had won game 4 but unfortunately it didn't happen. It was a fun and intense time in playoff mode. It was a new experience that I hope can be on a playoff team again next year.

Q. You and members of your family have been running a baseball clinic in Rockford this off-season.  What exactly is involved in your clinic?

A. We have a family of pitchers starting with my dad Dan and Uncle Dennis Scarpetta, who both played pro ball. And my cousin has been drafted twice. We put a pitching clinic on in early January for both young kids and high schoolers and going through what we thought were the fundamentals of pitching. That consisted of a bullpen station; doing one-on-one work on mechanics; a pick off station teaching kids the correct way to do pickoffs and hold runners; a comebacker station where kids could have a little competition and see how many they could get in a row; and a couple other stations that dealt with the mechanics of pitching.

Q. How have people in the community responded to the clinic?

A. We had a great turn out with the clinic. We were expecting around 50 kids all together, but there were a lot of walk ups and it ended up being 81 kids. So we actually had to add another group.

Q. Looking back on the 2009 season with the Timber Rattlers are there any games or highlights that stand out for you?

A. As a team, I think a game that sticks out in my mind was the game at Miller Park . That was an awesome experience for all of us being able to be treated like a major league player for a day. The atmosphere was amazing with around 18,000 people there. A personal highlight of the year was a game at home against West Michigan. It was one of my better games of the year where I had all 3 pitches going for me that night and just knew I wasn't going to lose that one.

Q. What part of your game have you worked on the most as you get ready for the 2010 season?

A. I've been working on my workouts and conditioning; trying to put myself in the best postition to stay healthy throughout the long season.

Q. Do you have any goals for 2010?

A. My goal for this season would be to finish a level high than where I start and keep developing my pitches.

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