Goss: Will third team be charm for Hollingsworth?

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Brian Stroud (from left), Ethan Hollingsworth and Dave Cassetto. | Larry Kane~For Sun-Times Media

Updated: March 6, 2012 8:03AM

Ethan Hollingsworth dreamed of pitching in Coors Field.

The 2005 Plainfield South graduate was selected out of Western Michigan University by the Colorado Rockies in the fourth round of the 2008 draft. He spent the first 21/2 years of his pro career in the Rockies organization and steadily was moving up the ladder.

Suddenly, his baseball life turned upside down.

“I was with three teams in seven months,” Hollingsworth said, recalling the roller coaster that was 2011.

On Jan. 24, 2011, the right-hander was traded to Oakland for pitcher Clayton Mortensen. Then on Sept. 27, Athletics general manager Billy Beane struck again, trading him to the Kansas City Royals for first baseman Kila Ka’aihue.

“The first trade was a shock,” Hollingsworth said. “Then I was surprised again. But that’s how the game works.”

A trade can be dissected in two ways. Either a player was dealt because his former team no longer wanted him, or he was traded because he was in demand and brought value in return.

In Hollingsworth’s case, there is reason to believe the latter.

For starters, Mortensen briefly had pitched in the majors and was an above-average prospect before Hollingsworth was traded for him. Recently, Mortensen was sent from Colorado to Boston for veteran big- league shortstop Marco Scutaro, who will be the Rockies’ everyday second baseman.

Then consider that not long ago Ka’aihue was among the many bright prospects in the Royals organization. He already had spent time in the big leagues. So again, Hollingsworth brought value to the team trading him.

But what is needed to punctuate the story with a happy ending is the 24-year-old Hollingsworth getting an opportunity to pitch in the majors with the Royals in the not-too-distant future, whether starting or relieving.

“That’s the ultimate goal, getting to the big leagues,” said Hollingsworth, a guest celebrity at the recent Wish Upon A Star Benefit Softball Game in the Snow at St. Joseph Park. “I was not invited to the big-league camp for the spring, and I wasn’t put on the 40-man roster. Guys on the 40-man are the first ones to come up unless some guy not on the 40-man does something out of this world. So that’s kind of a bummer.

“But overall, it seems good. I had a meeting with the assistant GM. He said they want me to be a starter, hopefully in Triple A to begin the season. We’ll see how it goes. I might wind up in the pen if they think I’m more effective there. It’s their decision. As a pitcher, all you can do is throw when you’re given the ball.”

Hollingsworth, whose repertoire includes a fastball, curve, slider and changeup, said he is “learning a real sinker now. It moves a lot.” Perhaps that pitch will help kick down the door to the big leagues.

If he starts this season in Triple A, it will be at Omaha. If in Double A, it will be at Northwest Arkansas.

Last year, he was a mid-season All-Star in the Texas League but missed the All-Star Game because of an injury that was misdiagnosed. In 2010, he was a midseason All-Star in the A Advanced California League and did pitch in the game.

“Last year I was on the disabled list for a month and a half,” Hollingsworth said. “It was diagnosed as a hip flexor and wound up being a hernia. I had surgery for it in November and am fine now. I’ve been working out regularly.”

He spent most of last season at Double-A Midland, posting a 6-5 record and 3.61 ERA in 16 starts and one relief appearance covering 942/3 innings. He finished his tenure with Oakland at Triple-A Sacramento, where he made two starts and was 1-0 with 5.06 ERA in 102/3 innings.

“After the season, I was at the Arizona Fall League all ready to pitch for Oakland when I got traded to Kansas City,” Hollingsworth said. “Each team can send seven players to the Fall League and the Royals already had seven. So I stayed down there and threw in the Advanced Instructional League for 21/2 weeks.

“From what I have been able to tell, the Royals’ staff seems to care about their players. And I can say that from the standpoint of someone who has been with three teams.”

While Hollingsworth hopes to be at Triple A to begin this season, he noted a bit of irony if he pitches in Double A.

“It’s funny,” he said. “There are three Double-A leagues, and if I’m in Double A this year, I will have been with three different teams in the same league, the Texas League. I’ll be pitching against all my friends if that happens.”

Considering Hollingsworth’s recent history, you can’t blame him for thinking anything is possible.