Get to Know the 2011 Daytona Cubs Pitching Staff
RHP Frank Batista (21) was signed by the Chicago Cubs as a non-drafted free agent on January 18, 2009. He was born in Santo Domingo, D.R. and is 5'10" 175lbs. In two minor league seasons (DSL Cubs, Peoria-A), Batista is 6-7 with a 4.05 ERA in 37 games. In 2010 for Peoria, he pitched in 22 games (11 starts) and went 2-5 with a 4.46 ERA. Batista threw one complete game, earned two saves and struck out 64 batters in 72 2/3 innings.
LHP Jeff Beliveau (24) was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 18th round of the 2008 MLB Amateur Draft. In 2010, Beliveau played for both Peoria-A and Daytona-A+ and went 4-2 with a 2.66 ERA in 46 relief appearances. The 6'1", 215lbs. left-hander struck out an astonishing 97 batters in the 64 1/3 innings he pitched in 2010. In 2005 he was named Rhode Island Gatorade High School Player of the Year (Hendrickson HS). Beliveau attended Florida Atlantic University in Tallahassee.
RHP Brent Ebinger (22) was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 32nd round of the 2010 MLB Amateur Draft. He split his first year in the organization between Mesa (R) and Boise (A). Ebinger is 5'11" 205lbs. and hails from Hendersonville, TN. In 2010, he went 3-2 with a 3.12 ERA in 14 games (9 games started). In 52 innings pitched, Ebinger only allowed 46 hits and walked 6 earning a WHIP (Walks + Hits per Innings Pitched) of 1.00. He attended Lambuth (Tenn.) University and was named MVP of the A.I.I. Conference in 2010 after leading all NAIA pitchers with a 0.91 ERA.
RHP Ty'Relle Harris (24) will be joining the Daytona Cubs later in April. He was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 19th round of the 2009 MLB Amateur Draft. He was acquired from Atlanta in the Derrek Lee trade (8/18/2010). Born and raised in Compton CA, Harris stands at 6'4" and weighs 235 lbs. The Tennessee Volunteer finished the 2010 season with the Tennessee Smokies (AA) going 1-1 with a 5.40 ERA in four games.
RHP Aaron Kurcz (20) is the youngest player on the 2011 Daytona Cubs pitching staff. He was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 10th round (310th overall) of the 2010 Amateur Draft. Kurcz spent his first year in the organization with Mesa (R) and Boise (A), and appeared in 26 games while logging a 2-1 record and a 1.98 ERA in 27 1/3 innings pitched. Only surrendering 15 hits and 11 walks, Kurcz had a sub-1 WHIP and earned 9 saves. The right-hander was born in Las Vegas, NV and attended both the College of Southern Nevada and the United States Air Force Academy. He graduated from Durango High School in 2008.
RHP Jordan Latham (24) was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 29th round of the 2006 Amateur Draft. Latham spent 2010 with Peoria (A) and Boise (A) after not pitching in 2009. Working out of the bullpen, Latham recorded 12 saves in 47 appearances between the Chiefs and Hawks in 2010. The 6'2" 195lbs. Boise, ID native graduated from the College of Southern Idaho in May of 2007.
LHP Jeff Lorick (23) was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 20th round of the 2009 Amateur Draft. Born in Atlanta, GA, Lorick was acquired from the Braves in the Derrek Lee trade (8/18/2010). Lorick finished the 2010 season with the Peoria Chiefs (A) going 0-0 with a 4.82 ERA in four games. The 6'0" 205lbs. Virginia Cavalier only allowed two home runs in the 61 2/3 innings he pitched in 2010.
RHP Dae-Eun Rhee (22) returns to Daytona in 2011. The South Korea native was signed by the Chicago Cubs as a non-drafted free agent on 8/15/2007. The 6'2" 200lbs. Rhee was named the fourth-best Chicago Cubs prospect by Baseball America in 2009. In 2010, Rhee played for the Daytona Cubs (A+), starting 27 games finishing 8-6 with a 3.50 ERA.
RHP Kevin Rhoderick (22) was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the ninth round of the 2010 MLB Amateur Draft, and will make his professional debut in 2011. Rhoderick stands at 5'11" tall and weighs 185lbs. Born in Walnut Creek, CA, he attended Oregon State University. His 25 career saves for the Beavers rank second in school history. Rhoderick earned All-Pac 10 Honorable Mention honors in 2010.
LHP Zach Rosscup (22) was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 28th round of the 2009 MLB Amateur Draft. Rosscup was acquired by the Chicago Cubs from Tampa Bay on 1/8/11 in the trade for Matt Garza. He spent 2010 split between the Gulf Coast League Rays (R) and the Hudson Valley Renegades (A). The 6'2" 205 lbs. right hander was born in Clackamas, OR and attended Chemeketa Community College in Salem, OR.
RHP Ryan Searle (21) returns in 2011 for his third season in Daytona. Searle was signed by the Cubs as a non-drafted free agent on 1/28/07, and spent 2010 split between Daytona (A+) and Peoria (A). Searle finished the season with Peoria with a record of 7-8 and a 4.38 ERA. While with the Daytona Cubs in 2009, Searle was named to the Florida State League mid-season All-Star team. The 6'0" 235lbs. hurler was born in Brisbane Australia.
RHP Nicholas Struck (21) is the third (alphabetically) Oregon native on the 2011 Daytona Cubs pitching staff. Struck was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 39th round of the 2009 MLB Amateur Draft. In his first professional season, Struck split time with the Peoria Chiefs (A) and the Daytona Cubs (A+). At 5'11" 195 lbs, Struck finished the 2010 season at 1-2 with a 5.14 ERA for Daytona. On April 30th, Struck pitched the seventh no-hitter in Peoria franchise history (a rain shortened 5.0 inning game). While with Peoria, Struck recorded the fifth-lowest batting average against (.225) in the Midwest League. He was a "Saint" at Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, OR.
RHP Brett Wallach (22) was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the third round of the 2009 MLB Amateur Draft. He was acquired by the Chicago Cubs on 7/31/10 with INF Blake DeWitt and Kyle Smit in a trade for P Ted Lilly and INF Ryan Theriot. Wallach began the 2010 season ranked as the Dodgers 20th-best prospect by Baseball America. Wallach, spent his final 7 games with the Peoria Chiefs (A) going 0-4 with a 5.76 ERA. The lanky 6'5" 185lbs. right-hander attended Orange Coast College in California. Wallach is the son of former Dodger Tim Wallach and his brother Matt is a catcher in the Dodgers system.
RHP Rob Whitenack (22) was born in Queens, NY and resides in Massapequa on Long Island. At 6'5" tall, Whitenack attended SUNY Old Westbury and became the first ever player drafted from the school when he was taken in the 8th round by the Cubs in the 2009 MLB Amateur Draft. Whitenack holds the single-season strikeout record at SUNY Old Westbury with 79 in 67 1/3 innings of work. In 2010, Whitenack split time between Peoria (A) and Daytona (A+) where he went a combined 11-8 in 28 games.