Ambidextrous pitcher’s pro debut brings game to standstill - Switch-hurler, developed by dad, plays cat-and-mouse with switch-hitter

Baseball has thousands of rules developed over its history to solve most any dilemma, but when a switch-hitter came to the plate to face a switch-pitcher in a minor league contest last night, the game came to a standstill.In his professional debut, Pat Venditte of the Staten Island Yankees – a natural right-hander whose father taught him to pitch with either arm – played cat-and-mouse in the ninth inning with the Brooklyn Cyclones’ Ralph Henriquez as each player tried to gain an advantage, holding up the game for seven minutes.

With a custom-made glove, Venditte switched hands each time Henriquez switched sides of the plate, seeking an edge based on the conventional baseball wisdom that left-handed batters fare better against right-handed pitchers and vice versa…