Fields activated
Will pitch opener in Great Falls Tuesday
He's back.
Columbia Falls native and Chicago White Sox prospect Josh Fields has been activated and assigned to the Great Falls White Sox of the Pioneer League and will pitch on opening night - Tuesday.
"It's for real," Fields said. "It's good to be back."
Fields was pitching for Chicago's Class AAA affiliate - the Charlotte Knights - in 2005 and was their top man out of the bullpen with 68 2/3 innings pitched and a 2.75 ERA before tearing the labrum in his throwing shoulder. The labrum is a ring of fibrous cartilage that aids in shoulder stability. It is a common injury among pitchers.
He was assigned to rehab with Great Falls last season, but was healthy enough for only the final fraction of the season. He finished with six appearances, totaling 6 2/3 innings pitched with six strikeouts and four hits allowed. His 1.35 ERA and 1.05 WHIP were the lowest on the team.
He spent spring training with the White Sox and ended up staying in Tucson for an extended spring training until about a week ago.
Now he's ready for a 30-day rehab stint.
"I finally just broke up the scar tissure," Fields said. "It got all busted up. It takes time. I'm ready now."
When the 30 days are up (July 19), the White Sox will reassign him.
"I'm not on a daily schedule anymore," Fields said. "I will probably be pitching a lot out of the bullpen. I'll be a regular out of the bullpen. I'm sure I'll be pitching a lot - almost every night."
He throws four different pitches: cut fastball, slider, changeup and two-seam fastball. He said he is throwing in the upper 80s (mph) but had gotten into the low 90s before getting hurt.
The 6-foot-1, 180-pound, 27-year-old was an all-conference quarterback and free safety for the Columbia Falls High School football team. The 1998 C-Falls grad played American Legion baseball for the Glacier Twins and earned state tournament MVP honors his senior year.
Fields has been in professional baseball since 2001 and has pitched for every White Sox affiliate. He spent 2001 with the Bristol (Va.) Sox of the rookie Appalachian League, which is similar to Montana's Pioneer League, as a 23rd-round draft choice out of Mesa Community College in Arizona. He advanced and started 2002 at low Class A and a month into the season was promoted to high Class A, where he spent a season and a half. He started the 2004 season with the Class AA Birmingham Barons, who Michael Jordan played for after retiring from the NBA in the mid-1990s.
He was in his fifth season of professional baseball and pitching very well - and was potentially a late-season call-up for the eventual World Series champions - at the AAA level when he suffered the injury.
Fields is in the final season of his original six-year contract.