FL Evansville Otters

Otters Shake Up Pitching Staff

Published on July 10, 2008 under Frontier League (FL)
Evansville Otters News Release


July 10, 2008, Evansville, Ind. - A series of moves has drastically altered the look of the pitching staff for the Evansville Otters who have four games left until the All-Star break on Monday.

Second-year pitcher and All-Star closer for Evansville's Jon Lewis was traded along with a player to be named later, to the Gary Southshore Railcats for three pitchers, two of them with local ties. Former University of Evansville Purple Aces' Kai Tuomi and Matt Brinkman, along with a member of the 2007 Frontier League Champion Windy City Thunderbolts, Billy Phillips, were added to the roster today.

In Lewis, the Otters lose a young arm that anchored the bullpen, saving nine games and posting a 1.42 ERA while holding hitters to a .167 batting average against. Evansville however, gets help for their starting rotation in Kai Tuomi and Billy Phillips, and ads another strong arm in the bullpen.

Kai Tuomi is the winningest left-handed pitcher in Purple Aces history, ranking fourth all-time with 24 wins. Tuomi was named all-MVC and all-Midwest Region as a senior after going 10-4 with a 2.76 ERA. While with Gary this season, Tuomi posted a 2-2 record in 12 starts with a 5.40 ERA with 35 strikeouts and 15 walks in 60 innings.

Matt Brinkman is one of the top relief pitchers in UE history, raking fourth all-time with 15 saves, 10 of those coming his senior season when he posted a 4-2 record out of the pen, with a 2.22 ERA on his way to being named second team all-Missouri Valley Conference in 2007.

Billy Phillips helped the Thunderbolts win the Frontier League Championship last season, posting a 8-5 record in 19 starts, with a 3.09 ERA and 80 strikeouts to just 33 walks. Both Tuomi and Brinkman will not join the team immediately due to a scheduling conflict.

The Evansville Otters had to make room on their roster, which resulted in outfielder Mike Sullivan and pitcher Kyle Pawelczyk being released. Ben Foster has also been traded, to Windy City for a player to be named later. Pawelczyk had been with the Otters on and off since the 2005 season, when he played with Ben Foster in his debut season with Evansville.

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