Your 2010 Nashville Sounds -- Latest: Top 10 Moments

[TooLiveBrew]

I thought the exact same thing, sveumrules. That's just inconceivably frustrating. I mean, does Doug Melvin just not have memory of last season?

[logan82]

Maybe Ash was the only one who thought they did Gamel a disservice by putting him on the bench last year. Gamel and McGehee are both 3B only. I have no idea why we would want a nonstarter with so little versatility.

 

Gamel is about 14 days short of a full year of service time as of today.

[pete]

McGehee isn't 3B only. Gamel is accumulating service time because of when he was injured.

 

By the way, fan was an abbreviation for fanatic in the 19th century.

[MarquesJohnson2000]

Capuano promoted to Nashville.

[TheCrew07]

Capuano promoted to Nashville.

Already noted here, it's tough to beat Mass Hass to anything, he's the man.

[logan82]

McGehee isn't 3B only. Gamel is accumulating service time because of when he was injured.

You are right, McGehee can also play 1B. I know Gamel is accumulating service time while on the DL. I have no problem with that. I however have a huge problem with him spending 67 days on the MLB roster in the middle of last season while getting sporadic playing time.

 

 

By the way, fan was an abbreviation for fanatic in the 19th century

 

and it still is.

[pete]

He played a fair amount of 2b too. I believe he's the emergency catcher. He got 148 plate appearances in '09. There seem to be people who think he should be locked in as a starter the way Yost would do it, but that doesn't mean he played sporadically, plus he would be blocked by Hall.

 

No, fan is no longer an abbreviation for fanatic. That's its etymology, not its definition.

[TooLiveBrew]

McGehee can't handle 2B. He's not mobile enough. Because he played there in the minors means little to nothing about his ability to handle it in MLB.

 

 

No, fan is no longer an abbreviation for fanatic. That's its etymology, not its definition.

 

What's with you & harping on people's signatures?

[battlekow]

Baseball America's Matt Eddy notes that Trent Oeltjen and Joe Koshansky are among the AAA leaders in isolated power over the last couple weeks.

[Mass Haas]

Sounds site:

 

Getting To Know Pitcher Tim Dillard

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Elbow injury threw Sounds pitcher a curve

By Bryan Mullen, THE TENNESSEAN

 

Chris Capuano is scheduled to pitch tonight for the Nashville Sounds.

 

"Pitch, not throw," Sounds manager Don Money would like to clarify. "Those are completely, 100 percent two different things."

 

Translation: Capuano is a thinking man's player. He has Major League talent and the brain of a scholar. Combine the two and it's no wonder he has been a success most times he steps on the mound.

 

Thing is, the only limitations the 31-year-old lefty has had is actually stepping on the mound. Sandwiched around a 2006 National League All-Star appearance and an 18-win season with Milwaukee in 2005 were two Tommy John surgeries.

 

Now Capuano is trying to stay out of the operating room while trying to get back to the bigs.

 

"I'm still in the getting healthy process," said Capuano, who holds a degree in economics from Duke. "(My) last start, it was just another rung in the ladder to get my arm and my body in shape to be a starting pitcher. Waking up the next day, having my body feel good and having my arm bounce back, that is the thing I'm most happy about right now."

 

His first start with Nashville made him smile, too. After going 2-0 with Brevard County (Class A) earlier this season, he was added to the Sounds roster on May 11. Two days later, he faced Tacoma, threw eight innings of shutout ball, allowed only three hits and two walks and stuck out five. Capuano was on an 85-pitch count but needed only 84 to blank Tacoma.

 

"There weren't a lot of hard hit balls," Money said. "His control and command of his pitches were precise."

 

Well before that start, and even before his breakout season in 2005 with the Brewers, Capuano had to endure his first Tommy John surgery. It took place in 2002 when he was in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. Amazingly, he returned to pitch only 10 months later after some grueling rehab.

 

"I got called to the big leagues for the first time a year to the day that I actually hurt myself," he said.

 

He played in nine games that year before being involved in a trade with Milwaukee. In 2004, he went 6-8 with the Brewers, setting up the best year of his pro career. Capuano went 18-12 in 2005 and became a sensation for Brewers fans.

 

"It just goes to show you, if you stay healthy and you get out there every fifth day, you give yourself an opportunity for good things to happen to you," Capuano said. "2005 just so happened to be a year when I happened to rack up a lot of wins. It was a good year to establish myself."

 

In 2006 he became an All-Star. Although he went 11-12 that year, his innings pitched, ERA, hits allowed and strikeouts were nearly identical.

 

His production slipped in 2007, and then it was revealed during spring training in 2008 that he needed Tommy John surgery again.

 

"What made this last time more difficult is I had this time table in my head about how long it would take to return, but it actually took twice as long," Capuano said.

 

He had recently gotten married to his college sweetheart, Sarah, and Capuano said it helped him get through the tough times.

 

"We actually got a lot of time to spend together," Capuano said. "We were at our home in Arizona where we live and I was rehabbing. Having her there for the support helped me get through that."

 

Now, nearly two years later, Capuano is back on track to return to Milwaukee. A quality start today against Portland will only help. And he has his manager rooting him on as well.

 

"When you win 18 games in the majors, you're doing something right," Money said. "And I give him all the credit in the world for battling back twice."

[Mass Haas]

I've got nothing to add...

 

Sounds Game + Patios STEVE HARUCH, From "the Nashville Scene" Special Issue -- Summer Guide

 

If you're a serious baseball fan, you know the major-league careers Greer Stadium has launched in the last few years — Prince Fielder (youngest MLB player to hit 50 home runs in a season), Ryan Braun (2007 National League Rookie of the Year), Corey Hart (sunglasses at night), and so on. But on a summer afternoon, you need only be a red-blooded American who enjoys the breeze in your hair, the aroma of hot dogs and malted beverages, and the profound crack that pierces the air when a cylinder of flame-tempered hardwood meets a sphere of white leather held together by 108 red stitches.

 

Baseball is best enjoyed alfresco, and perhaps the only thing better than watching a game from a few rows behind the on-deck circle is to get on a deck yourself. A beer, a beignet, one of each — Nashville, in addition to being the top floor in one of baseball's best minor league systems, is home to a wide variety of outdoor drinking options (though Greer might be the only one that includes a hot tub). Open-air choices range from the New Orleans-inspired Wild Bill's Beignets and Bikes downtown, to Jackson's in Hillsboro Village, to Village Pub and Beer Garden on the East side. Your prospects look good.

 

Photos by Eric England

(l to r) Infielder Erick Almonte, right fielder Brendan Katin, outfielder Trent Oeltjen and second baseman Eric Farris of the first-place Nashville Sounds, hanging out on the roof-top patio at Wild Bill’s Beignets & Bikes.

 

Swimsuits provided by Hue (huenashville.com). (l to r) “Taffeta Rainbow” board short in popsicle (drawstring waist, classic rainbow detailing on back): $92 “Taffeta Rainbow” in midnight (elastic waist, classic rainbow detailing on back): $92 Vintage mid-length board short in blue plaid: $30 Sundek memory plaid board short in cotton candy(rainbow detailing on back): $100 Photographed at Wild Bill’s Beignets & Bikes (104 Fifth Ave. S.)

 

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[Mass Haas]

Sounds Site:

 

Getting To Know Chris Waters

 

Do you think the equipment guys ever confuse Chris' gear with that of a fellow lefty starter with the same initials, Chase Wright? Just wondering...

[Mass Haas]

Getting to Know Outfielder Trent Oeltjen

[battlekow]

Tim Dillard impersonates Harry Caray.

[battlekow]

Getting to know Mike Jones

[Mass Haas]

Newcomer outfielder Josh Anderson not wowing us over with creativity in the latest "Getting to Know You" segment from the Sounds...

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Mat Gamel's goal is to leave Sounds permanently

Third baseman wants to be everyday big-leaguer

By Bryan Mullen, THE TENNESSEAN

 

Mat Gamel, the hard-hitting Sounds third baseman, looks at the world a little differently than most.

 

"He's a person who asks a lot of questions, and some of the questions are awkward," Sounds Manager Don Money said. "He'll say, 'How's my swing?' Keep in mind he just hit a ball 500 feet. So he asks me how to hit it 550."

 

Money shakes his head.

 

Gamel, 24, is a potential star for an organization that has invested in him. He was Nashville's best player last season, when he also received a 61-game test with the Milwaukee Brewers and performed well. He is a hot prospect. One of his baseball cards is selling for $399.99 on eBay.

 

Still …

 

"People are going to think I'm crazy for saying this," Gamel said last week. "But it got to the point that I wanted to go back down to Triple-A (Nashville). I wanted to go back, get better and be an everyday guy in the big leagues."

 

By his rationale, it made sense.

 

"Ultimately, it's everyone's dream to play in the major leagues," Gamel said. "But I didn't want to sit the bench in the major leagues. That is my motivation, to make myself better so I can be an everyday player up there."

 

Gamel was a fourth-round selection by the Brewers in the 2005 draft. A left-handed power hitter, he rose quickly through the system and got his first call up to Milwaukee in 2008. He played two games, had two at-bats, smacked a double and struck out.

 

He broke out in 2009.

 

The Brewers called him up again after the 6-foot, 200-pounder dominated in Nashville, and this time he stuck. Gamel played in 61 games, batted .242 with five home runs and 20 RBIs. Jerseys were sold.

 

"You're thrown to the wolves a little bit," Gamel said. "In the minor leagues, they prepare you for every situational part of the game, but there's no preparation for the emotional part. It was tough getting over the shock of, 'I'm finally here.' It was tough for me."

 

Money saw it before Gamel got called up. Money played 16 years in the majors, with Philadelphia and Milwaukee, and has managed dozens of minor leaguers who made the jump.

 

"A lot of guys get there and say, 'I'm here, I'm a big leaguer,' but they don't know how to stay there," Money said. "I think he's spent enough time up there to know what he has to do to stay there."

 

After last season, despite leading the Sounds with 18 errors, Gamel was on course to do just that. Then life happened — at the worst possible time.

 

"It was a freak accident," he said.

 

During spring training this year, Gamel fielded a ball from his third base position and threw to first. He felt a twinge. He didn't say anything to the trainers.

 

"You can't make the team on the (disabled list) or in the training room," Gamel said. "So I tried to go out and keep playing."

 

The next game …

 

"It was a backhand play down the line," Gamel said. "I came up and threw, and at that point, I knew there was no way. … The trainers saw my reaction and said, 'No, you're done.' "

 

He had torn the lateral muscle in his throwing arm. No surgery was needed, just rest and rehab.

 

Gamel was off to a rehab assignment in Single-A, in Brevard County, Fla., with 50th-round draft picks. No more catered meals on team charter flights.

 

He started slowly this season, in Single-A ball, then was at Double-A Huntsville last month. He played eight games there, hitting .393 with a home run, two doubles and five RBIs.

 

Last Thursday he came up to Nashville, one step away from Milwaukee. In nine games with the Sounds through Saturday, he was hitting .242 with five doubles, one home run, five RBIs and four errors.

 

Gamel doesn't know when he will be called up again, but when it comes, he said his approach would be different than the last time.

 

"I learned it's the same game," Gamel said. "They're smart pitchers up there. They exploit your weakness and keep doing it until you prove you can hit it. But I got there for a reason. You don't need to get there and hit the panic button."

 

Mat Gamel is currently with the Sounds while trying to get back to the majors. (JAE S. LEE / FILE / THE TENNESSEAN)

 

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[TooLiveBrew]

I could not be any more enamored with Mat Gamel. This kid is going to be very, very good.

[TheCrew07]

Ultimately, it's everyone's dream to play in the major leagues," Gamel said. "But I didn't want to sit the bench in the major leagues. That is my motivation, to make myself better so I can be an everyday player up there."

Well Mat if it makes you feel any better I thought it was dumb you were on the MLB bench as well.

[trwi7]

Ultimately, it's everyone's dream to play in the major leagues," Gamel said. "But I didn't want to sit the bench in the major leagues. That is my motivation, to make myself better so I can be an everyday player up there."

Well Mat if it makes you feel any better I thought it was dumb you were on the MLB bench as well.

 

I think most of us did.

[DHonks]

Yep, being stuck on the bench behind Billy "I once was good" Hall and Craig "I shouldn't play more than three times a week cause my knee if torn" Counsell. It was illogical, especially when Mat would have a good game or two, then sit for 4 days.

[dadofandrew]

He sat behind McGehee and Lopez most of his time up there.

[DHonks]

Al, McGehee was the 2nd baseman until Lopez was acquired. Gamel was behind Counsell and Hall.

[trwi7]

He sat behind McGehee and Lopez most of his time up there.

You are absolutely 100% wrong.

 

When Gamel came up he started 23 times in 58 games.

 

Hall started 22 times.

 

McGehee started 31 times

 

Counsell started 37 times.

 

Hall and Gamel played 3rd base exclusively, Counsell played 2nd base 37 of the 38 starts and McGehee played 2nd base 12 of the 31 starts.

 

Lopez wasn't even on the team until July 20th and the move to make room for Lopez was to send Gamel back to Nashville. Gamel then got called back up September 8th, a 25 game stretch where he collected a grand total of 15 at bats and one start while not getting on the field for 12 of those 25 games.

 

His situation was completely botched and it was evident from the beginning when Macha said he was put in a "zim-zam." And the facts speak clearly about it as well as the top organizational prospect started just one more game than the awful Bill Hall.