The White Sox are going to see if Dave Cochrane can pitch, even though he still wants to hit.
Cochrane always bragged to Don Rowe, his pitching coach at Triple-A Hawaii, about how hard he could throw. One day he went to the mound and, wearing a rubber jacket, unleashed an 86-mile-an-hour fastball. He has since been timed at 88. Cochrane has appeared in four games for Hawaii as a pitcher and will eventually work his way into the starting rotation.
”It`s against his wishes,” said Sox General Manager Larry Himes. ”He wants to hit. He`s leading the club in homers and RBIs. But he`s got all the things a pitching coach looks for. He has rhythm, coordination and a good arm. He`s got power stuff.”
Himes still can`t figure out why Ron Karkovice has struggled so badly. He`s hitting .065. ”Out of all the players you like to make projections on in the spring, he`s been the biggest disappointment,” Himes said. ”I`m not being derogatory. He can`t be feeling good with what`s happened to him. He was hitting the ball in spring training. What happened to him from the end of spring training to today, I have no idea.”
The Sox open a three-game series with California Friday. Jose DeLeon (5-6)
goes against Jerry Reuss (1-0). Reuss threw a shutout against Kansas City Sunday in his first American League start.
WMAQ sports producer Cheryl Ray will do the middle three innings on radio for Monday`s game against Oakland. She will be filling in for Del Crandall, who will be playing in an old-timers game in Washington.
