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Indy Indians Preview: Steven Jackson and Anthony Claggett

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Jackson was called up to the Pirates on June 1st, and over the next 6 weeks he made 17 appearances, earning a 3.44 ERA and a 2-1 record. �He’d been summoned to Pittsburgh when reliever Donnie Veal went onto the Disabled List, and when Veal was ready to return, Jackson was returned to Indianapolis. �He made another 7 appearances in relief for the Indians over the next 3 weeks, giving up 8 earned runs on 17 hits and 3 walks, with 9 strikeouts, over 11 innings of work. �On August 2nd, Jackson was brought back to Pittsburgh, and made another 3 appearances from the bullpen. �Two were good — 2.1 scoreless innings — and one was troublesome — 5 runs (4 earned) on 6 hits and 3 walks over 2 innings. �Jackson was sent back to Indianapolis on August 7th, but after just one appearance (one inning, one run, 2 hits), he was yet again promoted to the Pirates, and he finished out the season there. �In the last 6 weeks of the season, Jackson pitched very well. �In 20.1 innings, he gave up just 4 earned runs with an ERA less than 1.00. �He struck out 8 batters and walked 7 over that time, but mostly he just got outs and watched his ERA slowly slip downward. �The righty finished the season with a 2-3 record and a 3.14 ERA for the Pirates, with 15 earned runs, and 38 hits over 43 innings of work. �He allowed 22 walks and struck out 21.

When the Pirates needed space on the 40-man roster in January, Jackson was designated for assignment, with the hope that he would not be taken off waivers by another team. �He did clear waivers, and was outrighted to AAA Indianapolis. �The 28-year-old was invited to major league camp for spring training with the chance of winning a bullpen spot with the Pirates. �He made 8 appearances in Grapefruit League games, some good and some not-so-much. �He had four scoreless appearances (2.2 innings), and one inning inning when he did not give up any runs but did allow 2 hits and 2 walks. �In two outings, he gave up one hit and one earned run in each of two innings. �His most difficult appearance was his first, on March 3rd, when he gave up 3 runs (2 earned) on 3 hits. �Jackson was reassigned to the minor league camp on March 30th, and will be starting 2010 with the Indians. �He has a good chance of being called up to Pittsburgh again during the season.

Anthony Claggett is a 25-year-old right-hander, who bats from both sides of the plate. �He was initially drafted by the Tigers in the 11th round of the 2005 draft. �The Tigers traded him to the Yankees in November 2006, and he pitched in relief in their organization for the 2007 and 2008 seasons, and then made his major league debut with the Yankees on April 18, 2009. �That was a horrible game for New York, as starter Chien-Ming Wang and Claggett combined to give up 14 runs on 13 hits in the second inning. �Claggett was returned to�AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he made 5 starts and 34 relief appearances to earn a 7-7 record, 4 saves, and a 3.07 ERA. �In 82 innings, Claggett gave up 28 earned runs on 78 hits and 32 walks, with 43 strikeouts. �That was a significant drop in his strikeout numbers from the previous season with AA Trenton (55 K in 58.2 innings). �He made another appearance for the major league Yankees on August 6th, when he gave up 2 runs on 2 hits and 2 walks in one inning of relief. �The Yankees put Claggett on waivers in late September, and the Pirates snatched him up to help out in their troubled bullpen. �Clagget made one appearance for the Pirates, allowing 2 hits (one a home run) in one inning. �Claggett was again designated for assignment to free up space on the 40-man roster, and like Jackson, he cleared waivers and was assigned to Indianapolis. �Claggett was also given a chance to make the Pirates’ bullpen in spring training. �He made 7 Grapefruit League appearances and in 6 of them (6.2 innings) did not allow an earned run. �On March 23rd, he gave up 3 runs on 5 hits in 2 innings. �Claggett was reassigned to minor league camp with Jackson on March 30th, and he will join Jackson in the Indy Indians’ bullpen to begin 2010. �Claggett also has the chance of making it to Pittsburgh during the season with a strong AAA performance.

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