New team equals new psyche for Hillcats pitcher Nate Adcock

Hillcats pitching coach Wally Whitehurst has coached in the California League, so he knows just how brutal High Desert’s stadium in Adelanto, Calif., can be on a young pitcher’s psyche.

“It’s the same dimensions as (City Stadium), with a lower fence and a 30-mph wind that blows out,” Whitehurst said Sunday after Lynchburg beat Frederick, 5-2, to win its third straight game, a first in the season’s second half. “You see scores out there in the 30s. You see 30-20. It can wear on you, especially as a young pitcher.”

Nate Adcock, who joined the Hillcats on Saturday, knows that all too well. Adcock, who was part of the five-player haul Pittsburgh got in return for shortstop Jack Wilson and pitcher Ian Snell, was part of one of the most ridiculous games in all of minor league baseball this season.

He was the losing pitcher June 28 when Lake Elsinore beat High Desert 33-18, a game in which the teams combined for 58 hits and 10 home runs.

That disastrous turn — seven hits, eight earned runs in 2/3 inning — was sandwiched in between two fantastic starts. In the start before, Adcock allowed two runs in eight scoreless innings. He rebounded from the Lake Elsinore game, pitching six no-hit innings his next time out.

“A change of environment was probably best for me,” said Adcock, whom Baseball America rated the No. 24 prospect in Seattle’s system before the season.

He piggybacked Sunday off Ronald Uviedo’s start, going three innings and picking up the victory.

He allowed four hits, struck out three and allowed only one run — a Brandon Waring solo home run in the fourth.

“I hung a curveball on a 1-2 count,” Adcock said. “I deserved to get it hit that far.”

Adcock rebounded, pounding low in the zone with an inside fastball. Adcock hadn’t pitched since July 27 and hadn’t started since July 19, so he was just happy to get back into some sort of rhythm.

“There are some things he got a little quick on, but they’re correctable,” Whitehurst said. “We just wanted to get him out there and get his feet wet. I thought he threw the ball well.”

Uviedo’s start was a bit concerning, though. The lone Hillcats player on Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster, Uviedo continually elevated pitches, leading to lots of foul balls and long counts. He didn’t get hit hard, but he needed 65 pitches to get through three innings. He allowed two hits, a walk and struck out two.

“I didn’t feel comfortable sending him back out there for another (inning),” Whitehurst said. “We’re going to try to lessen his workload here a little bit. Hopefully his arm will bounce back a little bit better. He’s just got to keep the ball down. But to his credit, he pitched out of some things and didn’t give up any runs.”

The Hillcats took control of the game with a two-out rally in the fifth inning. Chase d’Arnaud hit an RBI single, and Josh Harrison followed with a two-run triple. Jordy Mercer’s RBI single to center gave Lynchburg a 5-1 lead.

NOTES: The Pirates released LHP Chi-Hung Cheng Sunday. Cheng went 7-3 with a 4.16 ERA and started 16 games for the Hillcats this season. … The Pirates traded RHP Harvey Garcia, who had been on Lynchburg’s roster, to the Dodgers over the weekend for a player to be named later and cash considerations. … The Hillcats won the season series with Frederick 14-5.