Future may hold ring for Bisenius
Posted: Wednesday, October 22, 2008
As baseball's 104th World Series gets under way tonight in St. Petersburg, Fla., plenty of things come to mind.
First, of course, I might marvel at St. Petersburg joining the staggering list of World Series venues since the fall classic made its last visit to Wrigley Field in 1945.
I could shake my head over how an 11-year-old franchise known as the Devil Rays until just this season is favored to win a world championship the Cubs last claimed all of 100 years ago.
Throughout America, no doubt, the pundits are having their fun with a matchup that probably won't be getting much love in the Nielsen Ratings -- Tampa Bay's newly renamed Rays versus the Philadelphia Phillies.
Sioux City's angle is just a little different, though.
You see, if he doesn't already have some kind of National League championship jewelry heading his way, Sioux City native Joe Bisenius, a star on Bishop Heelan's 2001 Class 3A state championship team, could be in line for a World Series ring.
"I don't want to say it's 100 percent, but being up there for a little time I think I would be eligible for a ring,'' said Bisenius, a 26-year-old relief pitcher. "It's definitely something I would cherish.''
The righthander has been listed on the Phillies' 40-man roster since early April of last season, when he opened the schedule in a big-league uniform.
Pitching twice in relief during the 2007 campaign's opening week, he logged two shutout innings before he was shipped to Class AAA Ottawa with a spotless 0.00 ERA. And, even though shoulder problems sidelined him for nearly two months of the International League season, he picked up a modest bonus check, a partial share, when last year's Phillies reached the National League Divisional Series.
His career major league ERA remains perfect after being called up for another week midway through this season without making another appearance.
Professional sports franchises don't get carried away with the compliments. Coaches or front office personnel rarely pass along compliments for a job well done.
The only way Bisenius knows he matters to the Phillies is the 40-man roster, which continued to include him even though he spent most of this summer at either Class AAA Lehigh Valley of Allentown, Pa., or Class AA Reading, Pa. The team Web site still shows a depth chart on which he's the big club's No. 6 relief pitcher, two spots ahead of Scott Eyre, a member of the post-season roster.
After pitching in the Arizona Fall League the last two years, he plans to remain in Omaha for this off-season, devoting his attention to working out and keeping his arm fresh.
"Probably the one thing that has kept me on the 40-man roster is my velocity,'' said Bisenius, who regularly hits the mid-90s on the radar gun.
A nifty curveball has also held him in good stead. And, the former 12th-round draft pick out of Oklahoma City University (2004) has been making a little headway with a sinking fastball.
"Keeping me on that major league roster is a really good sign,'' said Bisenius, who is spending the off-season in Omaha, where his fiance, Lindsay Burnham, a former University of Sioux Falls volleyball player from York, Neb., is employed.
The Phillies can keep him on the 40-man roster for no longer than three years before he must either move up to the bigs or be placed on waivers, where any other team could claim him.
"It's a good organization and if I get up there it would be great,'' he said. "But if I got traded to a team like the Royals or the Pirates that are still building, it wouldn't matter to me. I just want to be in the big leagues.''
Bisenius and Burnham, by the way, are pointing toward sometime next fall for their wedding. Lindsay was a graduate student at Wayne State when she met Joe and she has worked in the corporate offices for Tan World since the company relocated to Omaha from Sioux City's Hillcrest Center.
First, of course, I might marvel at St. Petersburg joining the staggering list of World Series venues since the fall classic made its last visit to Wrigley Field in 1945.
I could shake my head over how an 11-year-old franchise known as the Devil Rays until just this season is favored to win a world championship the Cubs last claimed all of 100 years ago.
Throughout America, no doubt, the pundits are having their fun with a matchup that probably won't be getting much love in the Nielsen Ratings -- Tampa Bay's newly renamed Rays versus the Philadelphia Phillies.
Sioux City's angle is just a little different, though.
You see, if he doesn't already have some kind of National League championship jewelry heading his way, Sioux City native Joe Bisenius, a star on Bishop Heelan's 2001 Class 3A state championship team, could be in line for a World Series ring.
"I don't want to say it's 100 percent, but being up there for a little time I think I would be eligible for a ring,'' said Bisenius, a 26-year-old relief pitcher. "It's definitely something I would cherish.''
The righthander has been listed on the Phillies' 40-man roster since early April of last season, when he opened the schedule in a big-league uniform.
Pitching twice in relief during the 2007 campaign's opening week, he logged two shutout innings before he was shipped to Class AAA Ottawa with a spotless 0.00 ERA. And, even though shoulder problems sidelined him for nearly two months of the International League season, he picked up a modest bonus check, a partial share, when last year's Phillies reached the National League Divisional Series.
His career major league ERA remains perfect after being called up for another week midway through this season without making another appearance.
Professional sports franchises don't get carried away with the compliments. Coaches or front office personnel rarely pass along compliments for a job well done.
The only way Bisenius knows he matters to the Phillies is the 40-man roster, which continued to include him even though he spent most of this summer at either Class AAA Lehigh Valley of Allentown, Pa., or Class AA Reading, Pa. The team Web site still shows a depth chart on which he's the big club's No. 6 relief pitcher, two spots ahead of Scott Eyre, a member of the post-season roster.
After pitching in the Arizona Fall League the last two years, he plans to remain in Omaha for this off-season, devoting his attention to working out and keeping his arm fresh.
"Probably the one thing that has kept me on the 40-man roster is my velocity,'' said Bisenius, who regularly hits the mid-90s on the radar gun.
A nifty curveball has also held him in good stead. And, the former 12th-round draft pick out of Oklahoma City University (2004) has been making a little headway with a sinking fastball.
"Keeping me on that major league roster is a really good sign,'' said Bisenius, who is spending the off-season in Omaha, where his fiance, Lindsay Burnham, a former University of Sioux Falls volleyball player from York, Neb., is employed.
The Phillies can keep him on the 40-man roster for no longer than three years before he must either move up to the bigs or be placed on waivers, where any other team could claim him.
"It's a good organization and if I get up there it would be great,'' he said. "But if I got traded to a team like the Royals or the Pirates that are still building, it wouldn't matter to me. I just want to be in the big leagues.''
Bisenius and Burnham, by the way, are pointing toward sometime next fall for their wedding. Lindsay was a graduate student at Wayne State when she met Joe and she has worked in the corporate offices for Tan World since the company relocated to Omaha from Sioux City's Hillcrest Center.
Story Comments
Read More and Post Comments 0 comment(s)
Please note: The following are comments from readers. In no way do they represent the views of The Sioux City Journal or Lee Enterprises. We will not edit or alter your comments, but we do reserve the right to not post or to remove comments that violate our code of conduct. No comment may contain potentially libelous statements; obscene, explicit or racist language; personal attacks, insults or threats. Terms of Service
