Houston Astros send Anthony Bass to pitch rehab with Quad Cities
For a second consecutive season, the Houston Astros are sending a major league pitcher for a rehab assignment in the Quad Cities. Right-hander Anthony Bass is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment with the River Bandits at Modern Woodmen Park Sunday.
Bass's rehab appearance is the first by a major leaguer for the River Bandits since Astros right-hander Josh Fields pitched a pair of two-inning scoreless outings May 10 and May 13 at Modern Woodmen Park during the 2013 season.
"Bringing major league rehabs to the Quad Cities has been a long time goal of the Bandits, and we are delighted to be getting our second MLB rehab in the past 14 months," said team owner Dave Heller. "Quad Cities fans deserve to be seeing major league talent in our beautiful ballpark, and we will continue to work to bring more major league players to this great community."
Bass, 26, is 1-0 with two saves and a 4.50 ERA in 15 appearances, totaling 18 innings, for Houston this season. When he was placed on the disabled list May 14 (backdated to May 11) with a right intercostal strain, Bass led the Astros with four holds, and he had allowed just a .239 opponent's batting average. Bass has made 90 career Major League appearances with San Diego (2011-13) and Houston (2014). He was acquired by the Astros from the Padres along with cash considerations for a player to be named later (left-hander Patrick Schuster) on Dec. 11, 2013.
Bass was born in Dearborn, Mich., and grew up in Trenton, Mich. He attended Wayne State University from 2006 to 2008, and San Diego drafted him in the fifth round of the June 2008 draft. He pitched in the Midwest League for the Fort Wayne TinCaps in 2009, when he was a mid-season All-Star and two-time league Pitcher of the Week before being called up to Class-A Advanced Lake Elsinore July 17 of that season. He made his major league debut June 13, 2011, with San Diego. In three seasons with the Padres, Bass was 4-8 with one save and a 4.08 ERA in 75 games, including 18 starts. He also struck out 135 batters in 187 1/3 total innings.
UP NEXT: The first 1,500 fans to Modern Woodmen Park when the gates open at 4:30 p.m. Saturday will receive the River Bandits' first-ever Bobble Truck presented by the Iowa 80 Truckstop. First pitch is at 6 p.m. on Gander Mountain Girl Scout Night and a Fan Appreciation Saturday presented by 101.3 KISS-FM. Tickets are available at www.riverbandits.com. To order any of the River Bandits 2014 ticket plans - with new lower prices - call the River Bandits box office at 563-324-3000. Season ticket and mini-plan packages start at just seven games and begin at less than $40. Call a River Bandits account representative today to choose your seats and get the details of our various mini-plan packages.
ABOUT THE BANDITS: Having just been named Ballpark Digest's winner of Best Ballpark Improvement in America under $1 million, the River Bandits ownership recently made one of the biggest improvements to Modern Woodmen Park since the ballpark was first built back in 1931! A new Ferris wheel, standing 105 feet over the playing field, opened May 24, and Space Camp opened June 20. Soon to come is another new ride, this one called a "Drop and Twist." In 2013, the team unveiled a new 220-foot long dual zip line, a rock climbing wall, and a number of new bounce houses. Last season, the team's major league affiliate, the Houston Astros, saw all six of its affiliates reach the playoffs - the first time in a decade any MLB team can claim such success. The River Bandits were one of three affiliates to reach the championship round and one of two to win their league championship.