MiLB Pitcher of the Day: Nate Dohm

The Cardinal Chronicle
Minor League Pitcher of the Day: Nate Dohm
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur

Nate Dohm gave Peoria exactly what it needed Thursday night.

The Chiefs did not turn it into a win.

Dohm still did his job.

Dohm is The Cardinal Chronicle’s Minor League Pitcher of the Day after throwing three scoreless innings in Peoria’s 3-1 loss to the Dayton Dragons in game one of Thursday’s doubleheader at Dozer Park.

The game started poorly for Peoria. Dayton scored three runs in the first inning, putting the Chiefs in an early hole before the offense had a chance to settle in.

Jalin Flores answered with a solo home run in the bottom of the first, cutting the deficit to 3-1, but Peoria needed someone on the mound to stop the game from getting away.

Dohm did that.

He came out of the bullpen and gave the Chiefs three scoreless innings, keeping Dayton right where it was and giving Peoria time to search for the swing that could change the game.

That swing never came.

But Dohm gave them the chance.

That is the kind of relief outing that can get overlooked when the final score goes the wrong way. It was not a save situation. It was not a clean ninth inning with the crowd on its feet. It was a leverage moment of a different kind — a game already leaning the wrong direction, with the club needing stability.

Dohm provided it.

Three scoreless innings from the bullpen matters, especially in a doubleheader. It saves the rest of the relief corps. It gives the offense room to breathe. It keeps a manageable deficit from turning into something larger.

Peoria could not cash in offensively, and Dayton eventually finished off the 3-1 win. The Dragons then carried that momentum into game two, turning the night into a rough doubleheader sweep for the Chiefs.

But Dohm’s outing should not get buried under the team result.

On a night when Peoria had very little go right, Dohm was one of the few clean notes. He attacked the strike zone, limited damage, and gave the Chiefs the kind of length out of the bullpen that managers always appreciate.

Memphis’ pitching staff also deserves mention after holding Nashville scoreless over the final seven innings in a 7-3 win. Springfield’s bullpen held on late in an 8-6 win at Wichita.

But Dohm had the cleanest individual pitching line of the night.

Three innings.

No runs.

A game kept within reach.

That earns the honor.

Old School Take

A good bullpen outing is not always about protecting a lead.

Sometimes it is about stopping the bleeding.

Nate Dohm did that Thursday night.

Peoria fell behind early, but Dohm gave the Chiefs three scoreless innings and kept the game alive. The offense did not finish the job, but the pitching line still matters.

Three scoreless innings.

Stability when the club needed it.

That is why Nate Dohm is The Cardinal Chronicle Minor League Pitcher of the Day.

The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports & MiLB Today
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Photo Credit: Nate Dohm, Peoria Chiefs | Ball State University Athletics