By Seth Orensky
First baseman Nick Salotti and pitcher Ryan Bicondoa have been named the Tornadoes Player and Pitcher of The Week for the week of June 18-24. Salotti was the key catalyst in two of the Tornadoes three wins this week, while Bicondoa had his best appearance of the season and arguably the strongest start of any Tornadoes pitcher this season.
Nick Salotti hit .333 (8-of-24) on the week with three home runs and 10 RBI, while also crossing the plate four times. The veteran had the game-winning, walk-off single in Saturday’s thrilling 12-11 victory in addition to a two-run double earlier in the game. He also played a pivotal role in Tuesday’s 10-3 win, as he went 2-for-5 with four RBI, including a three-run home run that put the game out of Les Capitales reach.
The impressive stretch pushed Salotti towards the top of most Tornadoes offensive categories. In his fourth year with the Tornadoes, Salotti leads the team with 26 RBI, is second with eight home runs, third in hits with 35 and he’s third in slugging percentage at .504.
Nick Salotti Interview (6/23/12)
In just his second start off the disabled list, Ryan Bicondoa gave Tornadoes fans a pleasant surprise on Friday night. The wily right-hander earned his first victory of the season by going eight strong innings and striking out a team-high 12 batters. Bicondoa allowed just three hits and both the runs he allowed were unearned. Overall Bicondoa faced just six batters over the minimum in his eight innings of work, as he helped the Tornadoes capture a 3-2 win over Newark.
