After the most amazing turnout for a matchup ever for Monday’s pair- 299 votes?!?- we have a new matchup:

  • Justin Malone pitched for Front Royal in both 2010 and 2011 (we’ll focus on 2011). He was just about unhittable in ’11, going 5-1, 2.23, with a 0.880 WHIP, 2.0 BB/9, and 13.4 K/9 in 44 1/3 innings pitched. Even though this season was less than 10 years ago, it was a different era, as Malone did not have enough innings (even with 44!) to qualify for ATVL’s top starter list. My, how things have changed. Malone pitched for Georgia State for all four years of his eligibility, going 13-5, 4.34, with a 1.34 WHIP, 2.2 BB/9, and 7.2 K/9 in 220 career innings. He did not go on to pitch in pro ball.
  • Like Malone, Ben Dum played in the Valley League for two seasons- 2016 and 2017. (We’ll focus on 2016.) Coming from VCU after his freshman year, Dum went 4-0, 1.42 in 2016, with a 0.868 WHIP, 1.4 BB/9, and 7.6 K/9 in 38 innings. He was ATVL’s 2nd best starter that season, and then the 4th best the following year. In four seasons at VCU, Dum went a total of 10-11, 3.00, with a 1.06 WHIP, 2.1 BB/9, and 7.0 K/9 in 177 1/3 innings. After he went undrafted, he signed with the Southern Illinois Miners in the independent Frontier League. After 19 appearances there, the Minnesota Twins signed him and sent him to Elizabethton in the Appalachian League, where he went 4-2, 3.21 in eight games, with a 1.00 WHIP, 0.0 BB/9, and 12.9 K/9 in 14 innings. He walked none and struck out 20…. and was just released by the Twins. Time will tell where Dum ends up!

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And by the way, if you want to read a ton about either the 2015 or 2019 VBL season, be sure to check out this post on the 2019 Valley League Annual.

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  • Dum