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Bertrand named Eastern League Pitcher of the Week

Richmond left-hander worked seven perfect innings in Saturday night’s win
April 29, 2024

RICHMOND, Va. – Richmond Flying Squirrels pitcher John Michael Bertrand has been named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for April 22-28, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday afternoon.

RICHMOND, Va. – Richmond Flying Squirrels pitcher John Michael Bertrand has been named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for April 22-28, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday afternoon.

Bertrand threw seven perfect innings on 68 pitches in his start on Saturday night against the Bowie Baysox at The Diamond, striking out four. It was the longest outing of his professional career and the longest by a Flying Squirrels pitcher since 2022.

“It’s just a testament to our staff being able to prepare us well,” Bertrand said of Saturday’s performance. “(Pitching coach) Paul (Oseguera) throughout the week, being able to see all the stuff that (associate analyst) Toni (Martin) pulls up, doing our own digging and creating an attack plan before the game. When you have games like that, things get rolling.”

In that game, the left-hander picked up his first win of the season and combined with reliever Wil Jensen for Richmond’s first shutout of the season.

In his five games (four starts) this season, Bertrand is 1-0 with a 2.03 ERA (6 ER/26.2 IP). In the Eastern League this year, he ranks second in innings pitched (26.2), sixth in ERA (2.03) and seventh in WHIP (1.05).

Bertrand was selected by the San Francisco Giants in the 10th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of the University of Notre Dame. He is in his second season pitching for the Flying Squirrels after being promoted to Double-A last July.

His perfect outing came on the same day his younger brother, JD Bertrand, was selected by the Atlanta Falcons in the fifth round of the NFL Draft.

The Flying Squirrels hit the road to begin a two-week road trip on Tuesday night. They return to The Diamond May 14-19 to face the Reading Fightin Phils. Tickets are on sale online at SquirrelsBaseball.com/Tickets, by phone at 804-359-3866 (FUNN) or in person at the Flying Squirrels ticket office.