Ryan Bollinger's passport has got some stamps on it from his last four years of baseball.
The newest Thunder starter, who got the win Sunday to conclude the four-game sweep of Harrisburg, came down to Trenton from Triple A Scranton Wilkes-Barre, where he pitched twice.
Prior to this season, the 27-year-old has seen action on three continents. Bollinger spent part of 2015, and all of 2016-17 with the Trois-Rivieres Aigles of the Canadian-American Association. He also spent part of 2014 with St. Paul and Winnepeg.
In 2017, Bollinger took his talents to Munich, Germany, to play for Munich-Haar of the Bundesliga. He then went to Australia, where he helped lead the Brisbane Bandits to the Australian Baseball League regular season and playoff championship with a 5-1 record.
But now, the 6-6 lefty is back in the states, and making a big impression. He took a no-hitter into the sixth inning Sunday, and ended up with the victory, as the Thunder won 4-0.
So how did Bollinger find himself back in America, after his adventures around the globe?
"I really don't know," Bollinger said. "I was playing overseas, and I just got lucky that somebody saw me. I got a contract offer, and here I am. There was always that thought (that he would come back), but I was just going over there to enjoy baseball again, and have a good time playing."
Bollinger had a chance to find the fun in the game of baseball, which can sometimes become much like a job.
"I learned more about baseball, honestly, just having a good time playing again, and not being under all that pressure," Bollinger said. "I just learned some different things about how to attack hitters, and to make things go your way.
While he was in Munich, he did not get to any Bayern Munich matches, but he definitely enjoyed his time in both Munich and Brisbane. But did Bollinger have a favorite, and how did the level of play compare to the play here?
"I did not get to any (Bayern Munich) games," Bollinger said. "I am still not a soccer fan. They were both great places, so it is really tough to pick between the two. I would say it was 50/50.
"It is really hard to compare it to here, just because we don't play the same amount of games over there. It is good baseball, but you can't really compare it."
NOTES:
Reading is in town for the first of two visits in May, and a total of three this season (10 total games in Trenton). The Thunder play Reading twice on the road, for a total of five games.
The Fightin Phils are struggling to start the 2018 campaign at 10-16, seven games behind Trenton coming into the series.
Reading's hitters have been good so far, with four regulars batting over .300: Jan Hernandez (.344), Cord Sandberg (.314), Malquin Canelo (.303), and Damek Tomsha (.301), with both Brandon Bednar (.294) and Zach Green (.292( flirting with the mark. The team is second in the Eastern League with a .258 average.
Trenton is 11th out of 12 teams with a .222 average, with only Harrisburg (.219), which the Thunder just swept and took six out of seven in the last two home series, trailing.
Where the Fightin Phils have struggled (and where Trenton excels) is on the mound.
Reading is second last in team ERA at 4.27, leading only Portland (4.73).
The Thunder lead the EL in wins (18), shutouts (4) hits allowed (176), home runs allowed (11) runs allowed (87), and strikeouts (265), and are second in ERA (2.67) to Akron (2.30).
Trenton pitchers lead the lead in walks (131), which needs to improve. They have walked 27 more batters than the next highest team, Hartford.
Contact Sean Miller at seanmillertrentontimes@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @TheProdigalSean