D-backs hitting coach Short honored by Elgin Sports Hall of Fame

Posted July 24, 2021 1:00 pm

Mike McGraw

Ron Lange and Mark Sharf from the Elgin Sports Hall of Fame are planning a presentation to Diamondbacks co-hitting coach Rick Short, a Larkin High School grad, before Sunday's game at Wrigley Field.

Short was promoted from hitting coach at Triple A Reno to the big leagues on June 10 when Arizona fired its two hitting coaches due to the team's poor performance.

Originally a 34th round draft pick of Baltimore out of Western Illinois, Short made a long climb through the minors until finally making his major-league debut in 2005 at age 32 for the Washington Nationals. He hit 2 home runs in 11 games for the Nats.

Short spent 2001 as a minor-leaguer for the Cubs. He finished his playing career with four years in Japan, then started with the Diamondbacks as an area scout in 2010.

As a hitting coach, Short has moved up the ladder from rookie league Missoula, to the Kane County Cougars in 2018, and Double A Jackson (Miss.) in 2019-20.

D-backs release Young:

Former Carmel High School pitcher Alex Young was designated for assignment by Arizona on Wednesday. The Diamondbacks made the move to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Young's future is unclear, but it's possible he could return to Triple A Reno after clearing waivers.

Young, 27, joined the Arizona rotation as a rookie in 2019, going 7-5 with a 3.56 ERA. He split time between the rotation and bullpen in 2020, then was mostly a reliever this year.

Originally a second-round draft pick out of TCU in 2015, Young got off to a decent start this year, posting a 3.45 ERA in his first 26 appearances before a series of rough outings in June. He last pitched for the Diamondbacks on July 10.

Home run streak ends:

When Javy Baez drilled a 3-run homer in the first inning on Friday, it ended a streak of 75 straight home runs by the Cubs that were either solo or 2-run shots. The Cubs' last 3-run homer was by Matt Duffy on May 15 in Detroit.

The most recent grand slam hit by a Cubs player was Kris Bryant in Atlanta on April 26.

Twitter: @McGrawDHSports

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