Former Tusculum College pitcher Bobby Darling made his professional debut Wednesday night with the Rockford River Hawks of the Frontier League as his squad posted a 7-4 win at the Florence Freedom.
Darling becomes the third former Tusculum pitcher to see his first professional action this summer. Eric Butler is pitching with the Yakima Bears of the Arizona Diamondbacks' organization in the Northwest League. Former TC All-America pitcher Brent Gabel is playing for the Washington Wild Things of the Frontier League. Rockford and Washington are slated to play each other on Tuesday (Aug. 8) when Darling makes his first home appearance for the River Hawks.
Darling, a 6-6, 230-pound right-hander from Midlothian, Va. tossed one inning in relief in his first outing since being signed by the River Hawks. The Rockford River Hawks are located in Loves Park, Ill.
In 2006, Darling posted a 6-3 record with a 4.82 earned run average, including a pair of complete game outings. He tossed 52.1 innings where he struck out 29 in his dozen appearances, including 10 starts. Darling batted .267, including .348 in 2004, where he tallied a home run and five runs batted in.
During his prep career, Darling was an All-District selection at Monacan High School. He also shined off the diamond at Tusculum, where he was a member of the Athletic Director's Honor Roll.
The Pioneers went 40-14-1 last season, ended the year ranked No. 25 in the country and won their second straight South Atlantic Conference Championship.