Lorin Returns to Form with Marauders

In the age of trade deadline deals and teams renting soon-to-be free agents for a pennant drive, minor league baseball players have to believe that they are displaying their skills for more than their parent organization.

At the end of every July, those contenders looking to entice a big-name player away from another team will group together prospects in hopes of sweetening the pot. The uncertainty felt in major league clubhouses trickles down to minor league teams all across North America.

Nearly two years ago, Brett Lorin and his Clinton (Iowa) LumberKings teammates were in Lansing, Mich., for a series against the host Lugnuts of the Midwest League when a call came from the Seattle Mariners front office. The LumberKings were told to shelf the 6-foot-7 Lorin and fellow right-handed pitcher Aaron Pribanic for a few days.

“They couldn’t tell me why, but I kind of figured that I was being brought into talks or discussions with teams because it was around the deadline,” Lorin said. “Aaron Pribanic and I were on the same team. We were traded together. We found out on the day of the deadline, so I had to fly home, move out of my apartment in Clinton and fly to Hagerstown, Maryland to meet up with the West Virginia Power (of the South Atlantic League).”

Lorin, Pribanic, Jeff Clement and Nathan Adcock were the four Seattle prospects dealt to the Pittsburgh Pirates for major leaguers Jack Wilson and Ian Snell. Pribanic is currently in Double-A with the Altoona Curve, Clement has not played in a major-league game since last August, and Adcock is currently pitching for the Kansas City Royals after they saw what he did with the Florida State League’s Bradenton Marauders in 2010 and plucked him in the Rule V Draft.

As for Lorin, he appears to have made a full recovery from a hip injury that limited him to a combined 15 appearances with the Gulf Coast League Pirates and West Virginia last year. The former University of Arizona and Long Beach State University player, who was one of five Marauders selected to represent the team in the FSL All-Star Game, currently is 4-5 with a 2.87 ERA.

“I had a good year in ’09 when I got traded, but I feel the best this year as far as refining my pitches and once again trying to be a complete pitcher,” Lorin said.

In his last appearance, Lorin retired the first 13 batters he faced in a 6-2 victory over the visiting Lakeland Tigers in the first game of a July 9 doubleheader. The only hits he gave up in the seven-inning complete game were solo home runs to Wade Gaynor and Daniel Fields.

It was his first complete game since limiting Burlington and West Michigan to four hits each in a pair of seven-inning games during the 2009 season, when he was named a Midwest League Midseason All-Star.

“I just pounded the zone early (against Lakeland) and forced them to make contact,” Lorin said. “I got a lot of groundballs and just let the defense really work for me. I was trying to keep my pitch count down by getting quick outs, especially because we scored early and had a 6-0 lead. I wanted to keep it going and not let them get any momentum.”

Of the 17 appearance that he has made for the Marauders this season, 12 have been starts. Only teammate Nathan Baker and current Altoona pitcher Kyle McPherson have made more starts for the team this year than Lorin, while Baker, Jason Erickson and Jhonathan Ramos are the only Marauder pitchers with more appearances than Lorin.

“I think I could be a starter down here, but I may turn more into a reliever down the road,” Lorin said. “I’ve shown that I can do both. I have that versatility as a starter and out of the pen, but I just have to throw whenever I get the ball. I guess whatever keeps him pitching.”