Gorzelanny encouraged by strong outing

By MIKE HENRY
mhenry@bradenton.com

TAMPA -- With the regular season four days away, Tom Gorzelanny couldn't have been more encouraged by his outing against the Yankees today at newly-named George M. Steinbrenner Field.
The left-hander surrendered two hits -- a first-inning home run by Derek Jeter and a single by Alex Rodriguez -- in six innings of work in the Pirates' 5-2 victory. He struck out two and walked two while throwing 74 pitches, 41 for strikes.
A 14-game winner last season, Gorzelanny expects to take the mound brimming with confidence in his first start Wednesday against the Braves in Atlanta.
"It's good to go out like this, being the last start of the spring," Gorzelanny said. "I was able to throw my pitches where I wanted. I felt pretty good about it, and it came out to be a decent outing.
"You've always got to be confident about the season, no matter what. You prepare during spring training to have that edge and confidence, and we all do," Gorzelanny added.
Manager John Russell enjoyed what he saw of Gorzelanny from the dugout. "His pitch count was low, he was efficient in the strike zone and he had some life to his pitches. That was kind of what we were looking for.
"He can change speeds, move the ball around and keeps it down. He's got a lot of weapons and loves to compete, too, which is a good combination," Russell said.