Cards' Gomber named Fall League Pitcher of the Week

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Austin Gomber, the Cardinals' No. 19 prospect, has been named the Arizona Fall Leaue's Pitcher of the Week. Gomber allowed two runs (one earned) over a pair of starts last week, striking out ten batters in the process.
"I just found out, so it's pretty exciting and pretty cool. Obviously there are a lot of really good players in the league, so to be recognized by the league is an honor," Gomber said.
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The Glendale Desert Dogs hurler leads the league in innings pitched (17) and has a 2.12 ERA with 19 strikeouts and a 3-0 record. Gomber was selected in the fourth round of the 2014 Draft.
In his last start against the Salt River Rafters, Gomber pitched five innings, allowing two hits and one unearned run.
"Guys make great plays and guys make errors. For me, I just have to get back on the mound and continue to do my job," Gomber said. "You can't really let it [giving up unearned runs] affect you. You just got to stay focused on the task."
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The 6-foot-5, 235-pound Florida native spent last season across two levels. He played in 14 games with the Class A Advanced Palm Beach Cardinals, going 6-8 with a 2.93 ERA. Gomber also played for the Double-A Springfield Cardinals and won one game while tossing 19 1/3 innings.
"You're going to have you ups and downs, but just staying positive and just trying to have the best experience we can," Gomber said.
While pitching at different levels of the Minor Leagues, he faced some of his current teammates.
"There are a lot of guys on our team that I have played against throughout the Minor Leagues, so we've competed against each other before, but I think that it is good that we meet each other and learn they types of guys they are on and off the field," Gomber said.
"On the field it doesn't really matter. You can be competing against your best friends but you're locked in on what you are trying to do."
Gomber has approximately three starts left with the Desert Dogs.
"I'm just continuing to build. I am just going to continue to work on what I came here to work on and take it into the offseason," Gomber said. "And hopefully carry the momentum to Spring Training and into next season."
Wearing the Cardinals jersey is the goal for Gomber, and he's getting a taste of what it is like in the Fall League.
"They're more comfortable than the uniforms we wear in the Minor Leagues, but it's awesome," Gomber said. "This is a pretty cool experience for us, being Minor Leaguers, getting to wear the big league uniforms. Especially wearing this [Cardinals] jersey. This jersey has a lot of history in it and I know that. Hopefully it's something I get to do for a long time.''