Confusing headline, right? Well, that’s basically the impression I and anyone who has spoken with former Revs pitcher Matt DeSalvo recently got.

Why should anyone care about DeSalvo’s status, you might ask? Well, for anyone who got to see the right-hander play in York in 2010 and 2011, the answer to that question is easy.

The former big leaguer had a rubber arm on the mound, at least for a season-and-a-half. In 2010, DeSalvo went 5-2 with a 4.67 ERA in seven starts and five relief appearances. A few times that season he opted to make a relief appearance in a game instead of throwing a bullpen session on the side between starts.

Then in 2011, he went 6-3 with a 3.89 ERA in 18 starts and five relief appearances, tossing 106.1 innings. What’s crazy is that he totaled nearly all of those innings in the first half of the season before arm injuries plagued the second half of the season. He had tossed a Atlantic League-leading 96.2 innings and compiled a 6-3 record and 3.82 ERA in the first half of the season to earn a spot in the 2011 Atlantic League All-Star game.

So, DeSalvo could prove to be a big upgrade to any pitching staff, if healthy (more on this later). And it’s exactly why Mason kept the door open to DeSalvo all of last season when he pitched in Taiwan. Mason was hoping to get DeSalvo back in York near the end of the 2012 season, but DeSalvo’s team over in Taiwan ended up making the playoffs. When chatting by phone late last Friday night, DeSalvo said he led the league in Taiwan in strikeouts, was one away from the league lead in wins and a couple points off the league lead in ERA. But the experience wasn’t exactly an enjoyable one, according to DeSalvo, who I chatted with by phone last Friday night.

“They were throwing me 130 pitches in a start,” DeSalvo said of his time pitching in Taiwan. “I didn’t know how many pitches I was throwing because the communication wasn’t really smooth because the interpreter didn’t speak english. It’d be the seventh inning and I’d be at 95 pitches and I’d say ‘Hey, I don’t want to throw more than 110 pitches. The next inning I’d go out there and get around 105 pitches and no one would be warming up to go in the game. So, because there’s a lot of communication issues, you’re forced into situations to throw.

“One week I almost threw 270 pitches in a week. I ended up getting elbow inflammation because at the end of season my arm was messed up. They ended going to the playoffs but couldn’t use me because they overused me.”

That’s why DeSalvo said he turned down the offer to return to the team in Taiwan this year.

“At the end of day I want to be able to play catch with my kids,” he said. “I don’t have kids yet, but if I went back to Taiwan I wouldn’t be able to throw.”

But it didn’t deter DeSalvo from trying out for the Hanshin Tigers in Okinawa, Japan in early February.

“They wanted me throwing 93 or 94 (miles an hour). I was only throwing 91 because it was the first week of spring training and I wasn’t in mid-season form,” he said. “So I didn’t get the contract.”

Now, DeSalvo says he is retired.

“I had other options as far as work so I decided so I decided on retirement,” he said.

As for the next steps in his career?

“I have no clue really. The main thing is I’m gonna teach and coach.”

DeSalvo said he is certified in Ohio and Pennsylvania to teach biology, chemistry and environmental science at the high school level. While giving baseball lessons on the side, he is currently looking for a high school job but he does have a teaching gig lined up at Butler County Community College in Butler, Pennsylvania, which begins sometime in August. But the months between now and then is anyone’s guess as to what DeSalvo, who splits his time living between Ohio and Pennsylvania, will do.

And DeSalvo left the door open when asked what he would do if the right situation would come along for him to play again this season.

“I kind of would like to come back and play in the summer time just to walk away on my own terms,” he said. “I didn’t get to say goodbye to the game. I know that sounds weird and emotional coming from a baseball player. I would like to play a little bit. It depends on how my summer goes with teaching jobs. If I don’t get a teaching job I’d like to come and play in May through August. But it wouldn’t be fair to the team if I have a teaching job lined up that I have to leave for.”

This all sounds like DeSalvo, according to Mason and former Revs’ pitcher Mike DeMark, who is currently in extended spring training with the Oakland Athletics.

“You know how Matt is. One month he’ll tell you he’s retired and the next month he’s pitching in Puerto Rico,” said DeMark, who converted from an outfielder to a pitcher by learning from DeSalvo when the two were teammates at Marietta College.

Mason agrees.

“The last time I talked to Matt he said he was gonna retire but he thought he might go to Taiwan,” Mason said after Tuesday’s practice. “I didn’t know what that meant. And then I talked to DeMark when DeMark got released (by the Arizona Diamonbacks last month). He called me and talked to me for awhile. He said he talked to DeSalvo and DeSalvo said ‘I’m retired. But maybe we should go pitch for Mace.’ And DeMark said ‘Well, I thought you just said you’re retired.’ DeSalvo said ‘Yeah, but if nothing comes up maybe we could pitch in York.’ I don’t know. As of right now, Brett Favre, Jr is retired for the eighth time.”

But if DeSalvo were interested in returning, Mason said he’d listen.

“I’m not gonna say if I don’t have an interest,” Mason said. “If he wants to come and pitch…I talked to him last year all the time and he said the amount of money he needed and I told him he could get that for the whole year. He wanted that per month. I never rule him out. If he called me and said ‘I want to come and pitch’ we would have to consider that.”

Plus, DeSalvo said he is going to be visiting York County at some point this summer to participate in adult league softball tournaments.

“There’s a big tournament in August and one in July,” DeSalvo said. “People don’t know this but the one year I played in York I played in a softball tournament on the side, but I just didn’t tell anybody.”

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Every now and then a name will pop up in my mind or in conversation around this time of year regarding a former Revs’ player and his potential of coming back to York. Given the success left-handed starter Chris Waters had for the Revs in 2012, I figured he’d be a lock to come back in 2013.

So it surprised me a couple weeks ago when I broached the subject with Revs’ manager Mark Mason, who informed me Waters had found a player-coach deal with a pro team in Hawaii. Now that I’ve found time to get around to this, Revs’ baseball operations manager Andrew Ball recently provided me a phone number for Waters, which I called Wednesday to get to the bottom of what is going with the former big league starter.

Before we get to that, he’s a refresher on what Waters did last season:

Waters joined the Revs in mid-June shortly after the club released Jesus Sanchez. The former Baltimore Orioles starter came to York 15 months removed from Tommy John surgery to his throwing elbow. But the southpaw didn’t suffer the injury in typical fashion. Rather, it was caused in 2010 when Waters was at-bat while playing in a game for Nashville against Albuquerque, the Class AAA affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. An Albuquerque pitcher drilled Waters in his throwing arm with a pitch. Anyway, Waters had a pretty good year considering his health factors. The 32-year-old posted a 6-7 ERA and 4.38 ERA over 18 starts, striking out 59 and walking 29 in 90.1 innings of work. Among his 2012 highlights, Waters threw a complete-game one-hitter at Sugar Land on Sept. 18, marking the first time he accomplished the feat since 2008 as a member of the Baltimore Orioles. Overall, it was 10th complete game of his now 12-year pro career. He was one of three York pitchers to throw a complete-game nine inning shutout in 2012.

Given his success and his health factors, I figured the 32-year-old Waters would have a good shot at getting picked up in 2013 should he come back to York and post solid numbers again while showing he’s healthy.

Unfortunately for the baseball vet and his family, some factors outside of the game caused him to contemplate retirement.

Paralyzed: It was the day before Waters’ Aug. 28 start when he learned his younger brother, a husband and father to two young kids ages eight and seven months, was involved in a serious motorcycle accident.

“He was an electrician in Florida,” Waters said. “He was on the way home from Universal Studios, where he was working on a ride. He got in a wreck around 3 a.m.”

The accident left Waters’ brother, who will turn 27 later this month, paralyzed from the chest down.

“To be honest after last season I basically hung ‘em up. I was retiring after this past year. My brother getting in the wreck and breaking his neck…the mental side of it being away from my family. That put family in a different perspective for me.”

Waters said his brother is doing as well he can recovering in a hospital in Tampa, Florida.

“He’s in a wheelchair,” Waters said. “He’s paralyzed from the chest down. He’s working hard to gain ground.”

Opportunity: Waters is living in South Carolina with his wife and their two-year-old son this off-season. The couple is expecting is their second child in July. It’ll be Waters’ fourth child – he also had two kids with his ex-wife.

He’s spent the off-season working towards a business degree online through the University of Phoenix while staying in baseball shape at The Dugout, an indoor baseball and softball facility in Myrtle Beach. It’s there he met Jeff Brooks, a former Arizona Diamondbacks’ and San Diego Padres’ prospect who played high school ball across the Susquehanna River in Lancaster County for the Solanco Mules. Brooks last played in 2006 as a member of North Shore (Can-Am League) and is taking over the managerial reigns this season for Na Koa Ikaika, which plays its home games on the island of Maui in Hawaii.

In search of a pitching coach, Brooks kept pushing Waters to help him out and come to Hawaii, a place Waters has never been.

“He (Brooks) is one of the guys who gives lessons down here (at The Dugout). He was the hitting coach last year (for Maui) and asked to be the manager for them this year. He asked me for two months straight to be his pitching coach. We got to talking and were able to work out a deal where I could coach and also continue pitching.”

According to Waters, Maui is a lot like the Atlantic League in that it puts together a new roster of pro players each season. However, the schedule is a bit different to say the least. Maui  plays teams on the Hawaiian islands, in addition to trips to San Francisco, Japan and South Korea. It’s those latter trips that made the deal more appealing for Waters.

“Before I had Tommy John surgery, I was talking with a team in Japan and they were talking big numbers (for a contract) and then I got hurt,” Waters said.

So, there’s a chance Waters could end up pitching against some teams in Japan. And if he does well, it could lead to a gig with a team there. Plus, the Maui deal offers other benefits for Waters. He said he’ll be able to make a lot more money than he would in the Atlantic League. And he’ll be able to test being a coach, something he’s had thoughts of doing after his playing days.

“I figured I’d give it a shot this year and see what happens,” Waters said. “My ultimate goal is to be a scout or a police officer. That’s the two things I can do if I’m done with ball.”

Return to York?: Waters said he’ll be leaving South Carolina for Maui at the end of April. The season starts around the end of May.

“But the season ends at end of August,” Waters said. “I told Mason if they had an opening around that time then I could potentially come back. I really enjoyed it last year. But as far as financially, it wasn’t quite feasible to come back (this season).”

J.Rich update: Waters said he still keeps in touch with former Revs’ pitcher Jason Richardson. The players were high school teammates and later teammates again in the Atlanta Braves’ organization. Richardson had a locker next to Waters’ in York last season while Richardson rehabbed from Tommy John surgery. If you remember, Richardson was putting up arguably his best numbers of his career in 2011, going 4-0 with a 3.33 ERA in 19 relief appearances, before the season was cut short due to injury problems, which led to TJ surgery.

Anyway, Waters said Richardson is still hoping to sign on with a team somewhere this season.

“I told him we don’t have much money (in Maui) to offer, but I would love to have him,” he said.

 

DeSalvo update: Revs’ manager Mark Mason said Wednesday evening that he thinks former Revs’ starter Matt DeSalvo has signed to play in Taiwan again this season. Last season, York was hoping to add the right-hander in September to bolster its starting rotation going into the post-season. But DeSalvo couldn’t give a clear timeline as to when he could become available since his team in the Chinese Professional Baseball League made the playoffs. York eventually had to proceed without him.

DeSalvo helped York capture back-to-back Atlantic League titles in 2010 and 2011 – his first ever championships won as a pro. In 2010, he came to York in mid-August after pitching for Class AAA New Orleans (Marlins). The former big leaguer went on to post a 5-2 record and 4.67 ERA in seven starts and five relief appearances for the Revs. He followed that up in 2011 with a 6-3 record and 3.89 ERA in 18 starts and five relief appearances.

Loudon Hounds update: The Loudon (Va.) County Planning Commission approved plans for a soccer and baseball stadium at a meeting Tuesday night. Should the stadium ever come to fruition, it would be home to the Loudon Hounds, which is aiming to become a member of the Atlantic League. While it’s good news for the Hounds, it sounds like the stadium still has some hoops to jump through before getting a plan finalized. For more more details on it, click here.

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The York Revolution acquired a solid reliever Tuesday. But perhaps the bigger news is that pitcher Matt DeSalvo is out of the picture for the Revs in 2012.

It’s been no secret that York was hoping to bring back the hard-throwing right-hander to help the team down the stretch. The Revs had been leaving the final roster spot open in recent weeks basically in hopes that DeSalvo would fill it sometime in September. But York has been waiting for DeSalvo to get done playing in Taiwan in the Chinese Professional Baseball League.

However, the Pennsylvania native hasn’t been able to give a clear timeline to his availability each time he chatted with Revs’ pitching coach Mark Mason or baseball operations manager Andrew Ball in recent weeks.

“There’s a limit until Sept. 17 where we can add only two players from other leagues. We brought in David Espinosa last week and the second player is Mike Benacka,” Ball said. “He (DeSalvo) wasn’t going to know by the 17th, which is when we needed to have him.”

Ball said players can only be eligible for York’s playoff roster by Sept. 17 if that player has been involved in a transaction with the club this season by that date. For example, a Revs’ player who was picked up by an affiliated club earlier this year could come back to York after Sept. 17, but only because he was previously on York’s roster before that point. Thus, DeSalvo won’t be pitching for the Revs in 2012.

“It won’t be this year unfortunately,” Ball said. ” To be eligible for our playoff roster someone has to be with us by the 17th.”

DeSalvo helped York capture back-to-back Atlantic League titles each of the last two years – his first ever championships won as a pro. In 2010, he came to York in mid-August after pitching for Class AAA New Orleans (Marlins). The former big leaguer went on to post a 5-2 record and 4.67 ERA in seven starts and five relief appearances for the Revs. He followed that up in 2011 with a 6-3 record and 3.89 ERA in 18 starts and five relief appearances.

Rotation: DeSalvo would have been a major upgrade to York’s starting rotation. But that still doesn’t mean the Revs don’t have enough quality starting pitching to compete for a third-straight league title this fall. York will rely on the current group of LHP Ryan Feierabend (7-5, 3.03 ERA), RHP Corey Thurman (12-3, 4.16), LHP Chris Cody (10-13, 4.30), LHP Chris Waters (5-6, 4.78), and LHP Derrick Gordon (3-3, 4.01 in 10 starts for York).

Benacka: The Revs acquired reliever Mike Benacka from the Laredo Lemurs (American Association) in exchange for a player to be named later.

“Mason and I both talked to Mike in the pre-season. We wanted to bring him in for spring training but it was probably a better fit for him to go to Laredo and be the closer there instead of coming here,” Ball said. “He would have been stuck behind (Ricardo) Gomez, R.J. (Rodriguez) and (Adam) Thomas.”

Benacka succeeded as Laredo’s closer this year, posting a 2-2 record, 2.39 ERA and 12 saves in 43 appearances. The 6-foot-2 right-hander struck out 92 and walked 35 in 52.2 innings of work.

He played college ball at Lindenwood (MO) University before joining the independent Frontier League’s River City ball club in 2007. He would be picked up the next year after starting off the season with River City by going 3-0 with a 0.35 ERA in 22 appearances. The Oakland Athletics picked him up that year and assigned him to High Class A Stockton.

Benacka, 30, reached Class AAA Sacramento in 2009 and would accumulate 54 games there through 2011, posting a career 6-4 record and 3.84 ERA there.

Tuesday’s results: Benacka made his Revs debut Tuesday night in the series opener at Camden. Pitching for the first time in nine days, the righty issued a walk, strikeout, walk, strikeout and got former Rev Chris Walker to ground to second for the final out. The Revs won by a final score of 11-1 behind solid performances from Brandon Haveman (4-for-6, two runs scored), David Espinosa (2-for-4, home run, three RBIs, three runs scored), Joe Thurston (2-for-6, three-run home run, three RBIs, one run scored) and Chris Nowak (3-for-6, RBI, run scored). Espinosa, starting in place of second baseman Andres Perez, recorded his first homer in a Revs’ uniform.

After giving up five runs on nine hits in five innings of work to Sugar Land in his last start Sept. 6, starting pitcher Corey Thurman (13-3) bounced back by holding Camden to one run on five hits in six innings to improve his ERA to 4.05. With the victory, Thurman tied the club mark he set last year with 13 wins. One more win this season would be the most of his pro career in a season.

The Revs’ magic number to clinch a playoff spot is now at five games. York holds an eight-game lead in the wildcard over Somerset while still sitting four back of Lancaster. The Revs also moved to a season-high 12 games over .500 at 70-58.

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It turned from a rumor to a known fact after months of speculation. Revs’ manager Andy Etchebarren made it clear he was interested in eventually bringing back starting pitcher Lorenzo Barcelo to help the club down the stretch as York looked to qualify for the playoffs.

Only problem was, the Revs had to wait until Barcelo was done competing for Veracruz in the Mexican League playoffs. Then he went on to pitch so well in the playoffs that he caught of the eye of some big league scouts. In particular, the Los Angeles Dodgers picked up the 6-foot-4 right-hander Sept. 2 and assigned him to the Class AAA Albuquerque Isotopes.

Lorenzo went 6-5 with a 3.56 ERA in 16 starts for Puebla before joining Veracruz and going 1-0 with a 2.52 ERA in four starts.

Last year, the Dominican Republic native joined York late in the season after pitching the Mexican League. In six regular season starts for the Revs last year, he had a 3.96 ERA.

So, with Barcelo off the market, it appears York will have stick with its current rotation of Ryan Feierabend, Corey Thurman, Chris Cody, Chris Waters and Derrick Gordon.

That is, at least until right-hander Matt DeSalvo becomes available after he finishes up playing in Taiwan in the Chinese Professional Baseball League.

Etch’ had said last week that he likes his current rotation, saying that he’ll stick with the group that got the team to this point in the year.

Majewski: Etch’ also ruled out the possibility of bringing back former Revs’ slugger Val Majewski. Last year Majewski started off the year putting up good numbers for York before the Texas Rangers picked him up and assigned him to Class AAA Round Rock, where he went on to bat .333 in 35 games. But the Revs brought Majewski back to York for the playoffs. He ended up signing back with the Rangers this season and spent most of the year playing at Class AA Frisco.

Etch’ said Majewski assumed a player-coach role for Frisco this season. He batted .221 in limited action (69 games) for Frisco.

Etch’ said he’s not planning on trying to get Majewski back this year like he did in 2011.

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Everything seemed to be turning around for the York Revolution. Outfielders Bobby Kielty and Brandon Haveman came on board on May 24. The Revs’ offense finally came to life.Yorkwon 11 of 14 games, capped with a season-best four-game winning streak.

Then things went south. While the Revs’ bats have continued to stay warm,York’s pitching has been highly questionable over the last week or so. In particular, it has been the York starters who have struggled as the Revs have lost four of its last five games (through Monday night).

And it doesn’t sound like there’s going to be any quick solutions coming any time soon.

After the Cincinnati Reds picked up Revs’ lefty Ryan Feierabend on June 5, the Revs have been trying to repair the rotation. Feierabend leftYorkwith a 3-24 ERA in seven starts, ranking eighth in the Atlantic League in ERA.

The Revs were left with a rotation of solid starters in right-handers Corey Thurman and Shawn Hill and lefty Chris Cody, along with question marks in righty Omar Javier and lefty Jesus Sanchez.

Well, following a poor start from Sanchez on Monday night, the Revs cut the cord on the veteran pitcher by releasing him mid-game. Sanchez was pulled in the first inning Monday without recording an out, credited for six runs on three hits and three walks. He departed York with a 6.49 ERA in six starts and four relief appearances.

Revolution pitching coach Mark Mason said Monday night that lefty Yunior Novoa will take the place of Sanchez in the rotation for now. But really the Revs only have three quality starters that they can rely on at this point (Cody, Hill and Thurman).

Looking for help: The Revs’ front office recently chatted with starters Jake Stevens and Matt DeSalvo about possibly coming toYork, but the duo turned down the offers.

DeSalvo was one of the best starters in the Atlantic League in the first half of the 2011 season before arm injuries plagued him the rest of the year. He finished the season with a 6-3 record and 3.89 ERA over 18 starts and five relief appearances, tossing a total of 106 1/3 innings.

The former major leaguer recently returned from pitching in Taiwan. But it sounds like his visit to the states is only temporary, as he’ll likely go back overseas to finish out the season. There’s still a possibility he could join York when the season wraps up in Taiwan in August.

Stevens, meanwhile, has basically retired from the pro game. The Revs had signed the lefty starter over the off-season but he was picked up by Mexican League club Saltillo before Revs’ spring training began. However, he made just two starts for Saltillo before being cut (he was replaced by righty Kris Regas, who left York to pitch for Saltillo only to be cut a few weeks later and return to the Revs).

Last season, the left-hander split time between Class AA New Britain (Twins) and Class AAA Rochester (Twins), going a combined 2-5 with a 5.33 ERA in 45 games (three starts).

Chatting with Stevens by phone on Tuesday, he said he’s opted to end his pro career – unless an affiliated deal pops up – so he can focus on obtaining a bachelor’s degree in either accounting or mathematics education. He’s currently working in insurance sales while living with his wife and son inFlorida.

“I played for nine years,” Stevens said. “I talk to my wife about it all the time. I was single and didn’t have a family, I could hang on a little bit longer (playing baseball). But every time you go back and hang on, it pushes your life back another year. It’s best for our family if we move forward.”

Hope: There’s still hope things could get better, though. The Revs’ front office is busy working on a deal to bring in a starter. Plus, Revs’ baseball operations manager Andrew Ball pointed out Tuesday that more quality pitchers could be out on the open market soon considering Major League Baseball’s recent amateur draft. As more rookies sign on, clubs will need to make room for them to play in the minors, possibly leaving veteran pitchers looking for work.

Through Monday night, the Revs (20-23) are 6 ½ games back of the Lancaster Barnstormers (27-17) for first place in the Atlantic League Freedom Division.Yorkhas 27 games remaining in the first half to catch up toLancaster. Seven of those games are against the Barnstormers, whoYorkis 2-1 against so far this season. Though time is running out for York to turn things around before the All-Star break, not at all hope is lost.

And even if York can’t win the first-half Freedom Division title, there’s still the possibility of winning it in the second half, just as the Revs did in 2011 en route to capturing a second consecutive Atlantic League title.

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With the performance left-hander Jesus Sanchez showed out on the mound on Thursday at Sovereign Bank Stadium, he may have secured a spot on the roster.

Sanchez first pitched in camp on Sunday, tossing pitches off the game mound to stand-in batters, who weren’t swinging. By all accounts, he didn’t look impressive in that outing. But his efforts on Thursday against the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs were a different story. Sanchez held the Crabs scoreless in three innings of work, allowing three hits and striking out four. He threw a total of 43 pitches. It’s a good sign for a veteran pitcher who had a down year in 2011 after a superb season in 2010.

“Last year for Sanchez was, I think, he came into camp. There was a lot distractions for him. His son signed a big contract. He was pitching in Taiwan but (only) once a week,” Revs’ pitching coach Mark Mason said. “I don’t how much work he was really doing. So, when he came here he wasn’t in the best of shape and it showed. And then he went back home to (his native Dominican Republic) to help his kid sign (a minor league) contract and then they get hit with a hurricane. We didn’t here back from him.

“I give Etch’ a lot of credit for giving (Sanchez) another opportunity. He came back, he’s in much better shape. He’s in about the shape he was in in 2010. I thought he threw the ball well today. Around 86 mph, sometimes 87. He kept the ball down. He had command with three pitches. He’s not dumb. He knows the score. Guys look around the room and they know what they got to do to stay. And he’s showed up and I give him credit for that, too. If he would have went out there and he would have had a horrible day today, then maybe decisions becoming a little more clear. But he manned up and he made decisions tough for us and that’s what he’s supposed to do.”

RHP Shaun Garceau and LHP Ian Thomas pitched on back-to-back days for the first time this spring and didn’t look sharp. Garceau surrendered a run on three hits and Thomas gave upa two-run homer to Travis Garcia. But Mason and Revs’ manager Andy Etchebarren aren’t concerned.

“(Thomas) threw a change-up to the best change-up hitter in the league,” Etchebarren said. ” So, what’s he do? He pulls an R.J. and throws it and gives up a homer.”

LHP Kris Regas, RHP Adam Thomas and RHP R.J. Rodriguez all looked solid. Regas struck out two in one inning of work. Thomas struck out one in an inning. Rodriguez also struck out a batter but gave up a homer.

Chris Nowak and Salvador Paniagua each homered for York.  Nowak is now 3-for-12 in spring training, with all three hits being homers. York lost Thursday by a final score of 4-2.

Douglas: Check out a feature story on Revs’ outfielder Stephen Douglas, which will be featured in Friday’s York Dispatch (for the online story click here). Some interesting tidbits that weren’t able to make the story: Douglas was convinced to come play for York by Revs’ slugger Chris Nowak. The pair played together in the Mexican League with the Puebla Parrots, which wasn’t a great experience for either of them…Douglas, who played for the Barnstormers last year, said he checked with Lancaster manager Butch Hobson first about coming to York. Hobson said his roster was full with outfielders, but there was still room on York’s roster…Douglas trained with former Revs’ outfielder Chris Walker (who’s back in Camden) during the off-season…Douglas’s wife, Rebecca, had their first child, a baby boy named Brantley, on Feb. 13…Douglas had an offer to play in Japan this year but turned it down to be closer to his family stateside.

Friday’s plans: The Revs will depart York at 8:30 a.m. on Friday for a 1 p.m. exhibition at Southern Maryland. RHP Omar Javier and LHP Yunior Novoa will receive most of the work Mason said. RHP Stephen Penney, LHP James Houser and RHP Santo Luis will also see some action. York will return home on Saturday for Fan Fest, where they’ll face an all-star team of local players. RHP Corey Thurman will get the start in that contest.

Pitching/Roster cuts?: Mason said he’s very pleased with what he’s seen from all of York’s pitchers thus far. In a total of 25 innings, Revs’ pitchers have tossed 327 pitches, an average of 13.1 innings per inning. There has been only one walk and one hit-by-pitch.

York currently has 15 pitchers and 12 position players on the roster (27 total). Atlantic League squads can start the season with 27 players on the roster, which has to be paired down to 25 by the end of May. It’s likely the Revs will go with three catchers to start the season (catcher Alex Lentz is a spring training invite), but Mason said the team might not have to make any cuts to pitchers being that Dumas Garcia has yet to arrive in camp.

“If we made decisions, we would have to make it Monday at the latest because we have to go to Sugar Land on Tuesday. My anticipation is all 14 of these (pitchers) go to Texas. That would be my bet.”

Arrivals: Etchebarren said he expects infielders Liu Rodriguez and Ramon Castro to arrive in York on Friday and possibly play on Saturday. Infielder Danny Gonzalez should arrive by Saturday, Etchebarren said.

DeSalvo/Barcelo update: It sounds unlikely that right-hander Matt DeSalvo will play for York anytime soon, according to Mason. DeSalvo is currently playing overseas in Taiwan. The club he’s playing for has the option of extending his contract on May 1.

“He’s not gonna know until May 1 because that’s when his option’s up. If he goes from Taiwan to Italy and then here,” Mason said. “And Lorenzo Barcelo (currently playing in Mexican League) still wants to come at the end of the year. Those guys are done at the end of August and want to come. They don’t care about the money they want to come win a championship.”

Quotebook: Panigua had a couple attempts to chase down a pop fly behind the dugout on Thursday, but failed to make it to the ball each time. Etchebarren had this to say:

“He told me after that one by the dugout, ‘I want to steal a couple bases this year.’ I told him if he can’t catch that ball he ain’t stealing any bases.”

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