Local Amateur Pitcher Hits Amazing Endurance Numbers

July 3, 2012

Wes Vork-NSO

Anthony Bush surpassed both 500 innings pitched and 300 strikeouts in his amateur baseball career on the same day when he threw a shutout in the Duluth Padres’ 5-0 win over the Spooner Engineers in the Hibbing Hull Rust Invitational Tournament on June 23. He reached another milestone earlier this season when he recorded his 20th career win in the Padres 5-2 victory against the Ashland Merchants on May 13.

Bush, 36, is in his 15th season of amateur baseball. He is in the midst of what could end up being a career year to date. Through July 1, he is 4-0 with a 1.02 ERA in 44 innings pitched over seven starts and has 35 strikeouts compared to 10 walks allowed.

Bush is a 1994 Proctor graduate and has been an assistant coach for the Rails for the past nine seasons. He pitched for Bemidji State and Wisconsin-Superior and was named the UWS Most Inspirational Player in 1999 and tied for the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference lead in saves in 2000.

Although he began his amateur career in 1996 and played in nine seasons for the Bayside Vipers of Superior, he only played four full seasons for Bayside due to varying issues such as injuries, conflicting work schedules, and terminal illnesses in his family.

He was a part of the group that re-established the Proctor Padres in 2007, but was sidelined with an elbow injury for most of that summer. “That season marked three years in a row where I lost time to an injury. If it wasn’t my shoulder or elbow, it was my ankle. I was wondering if I should even bother with it anymore,” Bush stated.

The Padres were short on pitchers for the second game of a doubleheader on the last day of the 2007 season so he tried warming up between games. “There wasn’t any pain, and I felt like I could at least give it a try. I pitched well, but got tired in the last inning and blew a big lead. I wasn’t happy with losing or that I was left out there too long, but it felt great to pitch again. It was a real turning-point. Whatever problems I used to have with my arm have all gone away since that day,” he said.

He has compiled 330.2 innings pitched and 210 strikeouts in 57 games since 2008. “If I was a pro player, looking at the stats you’d be thinking performance enhancement all the way. But by taking one look at me, you know that’s not the case,” he joked.

He is low-key regarding the statistical milestones, telling Northland Sports Online. “I think it’s interesting only because it’s Duluth and maybe I’m a bit of a rare breed here. If I were a 36-year-old amateur hockey player, we probably wouldn’t be discussing anything. I’d be a dime a dozen. It’s all about perspective, though. Chris Vendela is only two years younger than me and it’s laughable to compare anything I’ve done to what he’s accomplished. Don Miller and Gary Fritch are in their 50s and still going strong. All you have to do is travel to other parts of Minnesota and Wisconsin and there’s baseball being played by all ages.”

He credits what he has learned as a pitching coach for saving his own career. “The various mechanical changes I made once I finally learned how to throw a ball properly have made all the difference. I tell the high school guys if I can do it, just think what you guys who are actually athletic can do,” he said.

The high school guys must be listening and learning because
Rails pitcher Ben Nelson was selected as the
northlandsportsonline.com 2012 player of the year. Nelson and fellow Proctor hurler Jake Lewis were selected as 2012 Duluth News Tribune co-players of the year.

The Rails have seen a remarkable turn-around since Bush began coaching in 2004, but he is quick to credit the players and coaches around him. “I’m a cog in the machine,” he said. “I’m going to do my job to the best of my abilities, but we don’t go anywhere unless everyone does their part.” In his first season, Proctor posted its first winning record in 11 years and won a playoff game for the first time in nine years. In 2007, the Rails qualified for the Section 7AA final four for the first time since 1986. Following another final four appearance in 2010, Proctor won the section championship for the first time in 35 years in 2011 and repeated as section champs this year, winning third place at the state tournament.

“I credit Roh (Tim Rohweder, Proctor’s head coach from 2000-2009) for allowing me the freedom to feel my way around and make mistakes. John Wooden said doers make mistakes. I’ve made plenty, but have learned so much about coaching, playing, and life in the process. I felt I had the pitching aspect in good shape when Woj (Kyle Wojtysiak) took over. Since then, it’s been a combination of talented and motivated players and a coaching staff to match. What Woj brought with him coming off of his playing days at St. Scholastica cannot be measured. We’re all so competitive, the coaches and the players. We have high expectations for ourselves and those around us. It’s a great environment, and I’m thankful to be a part of it.”

Bush set a goal for himself after the 2008 season to be an effective pitcher in the local amateur ranks until age 40. “If I make it, I make it,” he said. “Whatever happens down the road, I know one thing: I’ll be pitching somewhere.”

Wes Vork can be reached at wes@northlandsportsonline.com