It was a Thursday night game in August 2020, and through six innings, four scattered singles and one walk were all the Orioles had mustered against Boston’s best starter, Nathan Eovaldi. The stand-in left fielder for the night, Pat Valaika, came to the plate with his team down 3-0 in the seventh. The righty greeted him with 97 mph high and on the outside corner. Valaika fouled it off. A second fastball sailed in at 96, high and wide of the plate. 1-1. Going to his cutter, Eovaldi missed inside at 90 mph. Ball two.
So just who is Pat Valaika, anyway?
