Your 2010 Nashville Sounds -- Latest: Top 10 Moments

[pete]

Yes, but Gamel was given most of the starts when he came up - something like 21 of 30 after a week. I don't think many if any managers would have made him the permanent 3rd baseman, except perhaps Ned Yost. Any manager who did would probably be roasted for doing it as well.

[trwi7]

Yes, but Gamel was given most of the starts when he came up - something like 21 of 30 after a week.

What? No he wasn't.

[pete]

You can pick the starting point and ending point wherever you want. Here is one selection. I don't think it really matters. When people are including DL time as part of Macha's "failure" or ignoring his last two STs or assuming that installing him as a permanent starter for X number of years as the only viable strategy for a young player, no manager will ever be "smart."

[trwi7]

Nobody is including DL time. He was up for 58 games, he started 23 of those games at third base and also 6 at DH, though being a DH didn't really help him. So he started only 50% of the time in his first callup. He was then called up again on September 8th and collected 15 at bats in 25 games, which made the callup then pretty pointless.

 

So Gamel was up for 83 games last year, over half the season and got 128 at bats. I'm sorry, that's complete mismanagement of a rookie and one of the top prospects in the organization. Macha and Melvin are both to blame for that.

[TooLiveBrew]

Any manager who did would probably be roasted for doing it as well

Yeah, playing your top hitting prospect, and one of the top hitting prospects in the game (at the time) -- that's crazy talk!

[Mass Haas]

Getting to know Adam Stern

 

He suffers from Coulrophobia, that can be devastating.

[Mass Haas]

Detailed and well-done ten-minute ESPN "Aussies Abroad" video feature on outfielder Trent Oeltjen -- nice. Thanks to the Sounds site for linking to it.

[Mass Haas]

The BrewCrewDaily blog spoke with reliever Brandon Kintzler -- good stuff...

[Mass Haas]

Kintzler thriving back in MiLB fold

By Benjamin Hill / Special to MLB.com

Brandon Kintzler is a long way from Manitoba.

After being cast aside by the San Diego Padres organization in 2006, Kintzler went on to pitch in the wilds of the independent leagues. He suited up for the Winnipeg Goldeyes in 2007 and 2008, and he toed the rubber for the St. Paul Saints last season before getting a chance to return to the affiliated fold.

The hard-throwing right-hander is now a fast-rising star in the Milwaukee Brewers system, having put up some of the gaudiest numbers to have been seen in the Minor Leagues this season. Kintzler began the 2010 campaign as the closer for the Double-A Huntsville Stars, allowing just one run over 22 1/3 innings pitched and notching 10 saves in as many opportunities. He struck out 23 batters over this time and walked just one, a free pass that he passionately disputes nearly a month after the fact ("It should have been a strike!" he said, after being reminded of this rare blemish on his record).

Kintzler's dominance in Huntsville led to a recent callup to Triple-A Nashville, placing him just one step away from the Major Leagues. All of this just goes to show that the road to success can have many detours, especially in the wholly unpredictable world of professional baseball.

 

Welcome to Winnipeg

Kintzler was never a prospect. He pitched for Pasadena City College in 2003 and that year was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 40th round. He didn't sign, opting instead to transfer to the paradoxically named Dixie State College of Utah. He was selected in the 40th round once again in 2004, but this time the team was the San Diego Padres, and this time he signed.

"I just didn't want to be in school anymore," he explained.

Kintzler went on to pitch for three San Diego farm clubs over the 2004 and 2005 campaigns, culminating in 19 appearances with Class A Fort Wayne in 2005. Throughout these collegiate and professional years filled with travel, the lone constant was a nagging shoulder pain.

"Basically, all I wanted was a chance to get healthy," said Kintzler. "I kept telling [the Padres] that I didn't want shots, I wanted surgery. But they got impatient with me and let me go."

Kintzler was released by the Padres in Spring Training of 2006 but eventually did get shoulder surgery. While rehabbing, he got an unexpected phone call from the Winnipeg Goldeyes of the independent Northern League.

"I was like 'Winnipeg? Where's that?'" recalled the Las Vegas native. "They just told me to get a passport and then get on the plane. My arm was still aching, because it was just six months after surgery. It wasn't until the weather started to get warm that I felt OK, but when I got there it was freezing."

Kintzler won the Northern League's Rookie of the Year Award in 2007, and followed that up with a solid but unspectacular 2008 campaign spent largely as a starter. Through it all, Kintzler was impressed with the level of competition.

"A lot of guys get to independent ball and think they're going to dominate, but little do they know," he said. "There are a lot of guys there who have played in the big leagues, and who have played in Triple-A, and they're out there doing anything they can to get their jobs back. I'd say that the Northern League is a Double- or even Triple-A caliber of baseball."

It was also a surprisingly supportive and somewhat surreal baseball environment.

"A lot of the people [in Winnipeg] aren't real baseball fans -- they'll cheer for the guy on the other team if he hits a really long home run," he said. "But they show up no matter what the weather -- six or seven thousand a night -- and really make you feel like a celebrity. I got real comfortable; sometimes, in order to get motivated, I had to stop and remind myself what league I was in."

The biggest problem with Winnipeg, from the eyes of those seeking a return to affiliated baseball, is its remote location. Kintzler says that only two scouts visited throughout his entire stint with the club, and as a result he asked for and was granted a trade. His new employer was the St. Paul Saints of the American Association.

"I had heard that they were like the Yankees of independent ball," said Kintzler of the Saints. "They play to a packed house and have a strong track record of getting guys picked up [by Major League organizations]."

Kintzler excelled for the Saints, largely in a starting role, and started the 2009 American Association All-Star Game in Grand Prairie, Texas. The next day, the Milwaukee Brewers offered him a contract.

"I thought to myself, 'I should have requested a trade a long time ago!'" said Kintzler. "I was throwing 94 [mph in the All-Star Game], something I hadn't been able to do since college. The Brewers told me they'd be sending me to Double-A, when I had never pitched above low-A ball. Hey, I'll take it."

The Saints, meanwhile, lost one of their best players.

"That's one thing about us here in St. Paul: we do everything we can to get players signed," said Saints manager George Tsamis. "I could never look a player in the eye if a [Major League] team had called about him, and we didn't provide that opportunity. Last year we missed the playoffs by just one game, so losing Brandon Kintzler was a huge blow to us. But to go from St. Paul to the Major Leagues, that's what it's all about, that's why we're all here."

Just One More Step

Clearly, Kintzler has been doing well since returning to affiliated baseball. He was placed in a starting role upon arriving in Huntsville last July, but this year he has worked exclusively out of the bullpen. While in Huntsville, Kintzler was tutored by Stars pitching coach John Curtis, a man whom he referred to repeatedly as a strong and stabilizing influence.

Curtis, however, deflected Kintzler's praise.

"There wasn't anything I did that put him on this trajectory. Brandon did it all on his own," said Curtis. "When someone is demonstrating that kind of ability, you just get out of the way and let him play. Why mess with it? If I passed on anything to him, it's just the lesson that 'What's done is done.' The favorite expression between the two of us was 'Today is a new day.'"

And Curtis, though he may have been "out of the way," was able to watch Kintzler's dominating run as the Stars' closer from a prime dugout location.

"What all pitchers need if they're going to have any kind of success is stuff and command, and Brandon has both in spades," said Curtis. "He showed a Major League quality fastball every time out, it had a sink to it, and he could command both sides of the plate. His slider drew a lot of swings because it looked like a fastball coming out of his hand.I think [brewers Minor League pitching coordinator] Lee Tunnell said it best. 'This is a guy who's going to beat you in the strike zone.'"

Kintzler allowed two runs and -- the horror! -- walked a batter in his Triple-A debut with Nashville on June 8. Since then, he has enjoyed three scoreless appearances while playing within the impressive facilities and renowned cities of the Pacific Coast League.

"There are more fans, and the stadiums are bigger and better run," he said. "It's a reminder that you're almost there, and it motivates you to keep going, to really want to make that final step."

This motivation is compounded by the knowledge of how far he's come in such a short amount of time.

"It's crazy to think that just one year ago I was in St. Paul, going on 16-hour bus rides, and to compare that with where I am now," said Kintzler. "I just need to stay healthy, stay humble and not get ahead of myself."

Brandon Kintzler posted a 0.40 ERA over 20 Double-A appearances. (Tony Farlow/MiLB.com)

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/images/2010/06/18/8oc6EzpF.jpg

[HiAndTight]

Nobody is including DL time. He was up for 58 games, he started 23 of those games at third base and also 6 at DH, though being a DH didn't really help him. So he started only 50% of the time in his first callup. He was then called up again on September 8th and collected 15 at bats in 25 games, which made the callup then pretty pointless.

 

So Gamel was up for 83 games last year, over half the season and got 128 at bats. I'm sorry, that's complete mismanagement of a rookie and one of the top prospects in the organization. Macha and Melvin are both to blame for that.

I don't see any viable argument for how the Brewers handled Gamel last year. It simply does not exist.

 

for the record, him getting recalled on the 8th was a no-brainer. You kinda owe it to him at that point, but for him not to start every day at that point is mind boggling. What exactly were we playing for last year? 80 wins?

 

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

be very, very good.

 

You and me both brother. I was a fan of Gamel just from the few clips(hadn't seen him in person) and from the scouting reports. Once I saw him in Milwaukee, I was incredibly, incredibly impressed.

 

I think Gamel's going to be a very similar player to Joey Votto, except I think he can handle 3rd base.

 

I understand we don't have the top rated farm system, but I'll keep beating the drums. I think we've got a couple impact player(Gamel, Lawrie, Lucroy), a couple who profile as very sound, well rounded players like Cain, Gindle, Schafer and company, and we've got plenty of arms to fill up our Pen.

 

If we can just get ONE more elite starting pitcher to go with Gallardo atop the rotation I think we're in good shape.

[Mass Haas]

Getting to Know Series -- RHP Chris Smith

[Mass Haas]

Tom H. touched on this in the JS blog today, here's the full report from the Sounds' site:

 

Luis Cruz Named To All-Star Team

Shortstop To Represent Sounds, Pacific Coast League At Triple-A All-Star Game On July 14 In Lehigh Valley

[Mass Haas]

This blog post indicates that the Brewers will likely have interest in Oklahoma City as a new AAA home come this fall.

[battlekow]

Katin blasting in obscurity

David Dorsey/Fort Myers News-Press

 

Brendan Katin has slugged 105 home runs and counting.

 

There is just one problem. The homers have all been belted in the minor leagues.

 

"It means absolutely nothing to me," Katin said of his home run total, which is more than David Ortiz and Joe Mauer hit - combined - in the minors. "It just means that I've been playing in the minor leagues too long."

 

Katin, 27 and a 2001 Fort Myers High School graduate, joined the Milwaukee Brewers organization as a 23rd round draft pick out of the University of Miami in 2005. Katin previously played for Lake Sumter Community College.

 

After steadily rising through the Class A levels, Katin played for two seasons in a row at Double A. He has been stuck with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds for the past three seasons.

 

"In this game, you have to make adjustments to the pitcher," Nashville manager Don Money said. "He has to make the adjustment to the pitchers.

 

"If they find a weak point, they'll exploit it. And they'll do that more in the big leagues than here.

 

"And that's why these guys are here. They can't command the slider or the curveball as well as they can in the big leagues."

 

But Katin has had little trouble hitting the longball.

 

Katin entered Monday's game with a .280 average, a team-high 12 home runs, 36 RBI and one stolen base. He missed six weeks earlier this season after undergoing surgery to repair his ailing right knee.

 

Last year, when the Brewers needed help at Katin's primary position of right field, he could have been called up but for another problem: a slump.

 

"Corey Hart went down with appendicitis," Katin said of Milwaukee's starting right fielder. "It just so happens that I was playing terrible. It was a two-month slump.

 

"I ended up hitting four home runs in my last three games, so I went out on top that year. It salvaged the season for me."

 

Katin makes slightly more than the minimum Triple-A salary of $2,500 a month. He will become a free agent following the 2011 season. If he has not broken into the big leagues by then, he has an idea that might further his career.

 

"I wouldn't be surprised if sometime I ended up over in Japan," said Katin, who is single. "They love their power hitters over there."

 

Since 2006, Katin never has hit fewer than 17 homers each season. He slugged 24 in 2007 and again in '09 despite that two-month slump.

 

"I think he's had a big year so far," said Mary Katin, a Fort Myers resident and Brendan's mom. "He has made great plays in the outfield. He has a very good arm. My feeling is if they don't bring him up there this year, they should trade him. But they would never listen to me."

 

Mary and Michael Katin have eight grown children, four boys and four girls, ages 23 to 35.

 

The children grew into quite a mix of careers: an accountant, an engineer, a state department employee, a veterinarians technician, an environmentalist and a recent masters' degree graduate in biotechnology.

 

And one professional baseball player.

 

Katin is not on Milwaukee's 40-man roster. Money has no idea when or if that might change — or if Katin will get an opportunity to finally hit a home run in the majors.

 

"Who knows what's going to happen up there?" Money said. "We'll see what happens. He can hit the ball out of anywhere in the ballpark."

 

http://cmsimg.news-press.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20100706&Category=SPORTS&ArtNo=7060359&Ref=AR&Profile=1010&MaxW=550&MaxH=650&title=0

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Nashville Sounds hit gold in Canada

Olympian Adam Stern leads group of 5

By Bryan Mullen, THE TENNESSEAN

 

Adam Stern was 11 years old and living in Ontario when he began playing baseball. Some of his friends saw this as sacrilege.

 

Baseball? In hockey-crazed Canada? He might as well have punched Wayne Gretzky in the face.

 

"Everyone asked why I didn't play hockey," said Stern, 30, an outfielder with the Nashville Sounds. "Everything revolves around hockey up there, and I just took a liking to baseball. If I wanted to go out in the backyard with my dad, it was to play catch. It wasn't shooting the puck around."

 

Stern should feel right at home playing in the Milwaukee Brewers organization. The Sounds opened the season with five Canadian players on the spring training roster, and that was no coincidence. The Brewers are one of a handful of Major League Baseball organizations that have hit Canada hard for years.

 

The main reason is Gord Ash, who serves as the Brewers' vice president and assistant general manager. He was born in Toronto, was the highly-successful general manager for the Toronto Blue Jays from 1995-2001 and was the assistant GM when the team won the World Series title in 1992.

 

"Baseball has been played in Canada for a long time, but it wasn't played at an elite level," Ash said. "The coaching wasn't that good, and it was more recreational. It was what hockey players played to separate the seasons."

 

Once the Montreal Expos and Blue Jays began making an impact, things slowly began to change. In the late 1980s and 1990s, a few stars began trickling into the big leagues from Canada, most notably outfielder Larry Walker.

 

Other teams began to take notice. During the past 10 to 20 years, teams like the Mariners and Twins began to target Canadian players, and Ash began to see serious interest in players he once only knew about.

 

"We still have one of the larger groups of Canadian players, and in the last three or four years, we've had the most (Canadian) players drafted in the amateur draft," Ash said. "But it is now getting to be a crowded market place."

 

Teams that have targeted Canadian players are seeing good results. Players such as Minnesota's Justin Morneau, Cincinnati's Joey Votto and Colorado's Jeff Francis have become familiar major-league names.

 

"When the coaching improved in Canada, some of the athletes that maybe specialized in hockey then spent more time playing baseball," Ash said. "As a result, you had some better players. I can't say it's very deep. There's not an abundance of players, but the ones who are there are very focused on the game."

 

The country's biggest win in several years came in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. During that event, Team Canada beat Team USA.

"It was a huge stepping stone for Canada baseball as far as putting us on the map and letting people know we're not just hockey players up there," said Stern, who played for Team Canada. "There's some really good talent, and a lot of guys coming through the system. Last year there were 17 or 18 in the big leagues."

The other four Canadian Sounds were pitchers John Axford and Jim Henderson, and infielders Taylor Green and Brett Lawrie.

Stern said younger players in Canada have it much better than when he started. When he was 11, he played for a small team in a loosely run organization, competing in about 20 games. A few years later he played for a travel team. Then, at age 18, he and his family drove two hours to Toronto to play for a more widely known team.

"That was to give me the exposure," Stern said. "That was when I got serious."

Stern played for Nebraska and was drafted by the Braves in the third round of the 2001 draft.

Still, it is admittedly difficult to get hockey out of a Canadians' blood. Ash was an investor for a group that purchased the Milwaukee Admirals in 2005. The Admirals are the top-level affiliate of the Nashville Predators. And Stern still likes to check out a Predators game, if time permits.

"We wanted to get to the Predators playoffs games, but the timing was bad," Stern said. "We were on the road when they were home. It's the bond all the Canadian players have."

 

Sounds outfielder Adam Stern played for Canada during the 2008 Olympics. The Sounds opened the season with five Canadian players on their spring training roster. Photo by SANFORD MYERS / THE TENNESSEAN

 

http://cmsimg.tennessean.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=DN&Date=20100707&Category=SPORTS0401&ArtNo=7070367&Ref=AR&Profile=2073&MaxW=550&MaxH=650&title=0

[pete]

Nobody is including DL time. He was up for 58 games, he started 23 of those games at third base and also 6 at DH, though being a DH didn't really help him. So he started only 50% of the time in his first callup.

 

Yes, his DL time is routinely cited in the total service time argument that is absolute proof that his handling was done in a completely inept fashion. You just ignored what I said about how he came up and started and reverted back to a total time argument. You and toolive can want him to get the Rickie Weeks treatment and be plugged in for years regardless of performance, but its not a slam dunk strategy. He could just hit now. That would solve a lot.

[Mass Haas]

"Getting to Know" series -- catcher Ben Johnson (everyone thought Zach Braddock was the most intense teammate, it seems)

[battlekow]

Mike McClendon named to All-Star team

Nashville Sounds

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Nashville right-hander Mike McClendon has been named to the Pacific Coast League All-Star team and will join teammate Luis Cruz to represent the Sounds on the 30-man squad that takes on the International League stars in the 2010 Triple-A All-Star Game on Wednesday, July 14 at Coca-Cola Park in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

 

The 25-year-old McClendon - who was selected as a reserve for the contest by the PCL office - is 3-2 with a 2.87 ERA (12er/37.2ip) and 26 strikeouts in 16 games (three starts) for the Sounds.

 

McClendon has been especially dominant in relief this season, going 3-0 with a 0.81 ERA (2er/22.1ip) and 17 strikeouts in 13 outings. He is also holding opposing Triple-A hitters to a .215 average (17-for79) out of the bullpen.

 

The All-Star nod is the second mid-season honor of McClendon's four-year pro career. His most recent appearance came in the 2007 South Atlantic League All-Star Game.

 

The 2010 Triple-A All-Star Game will be broadcast live on television on MLB Network as well as on the radio on 104.5 FM "The Zone" at 6:05 p.m. CDT.

[battlekow]

Jordan Schelling on MLB.com:

MILWAUKEE -- If anyone said they saw this coming from John Axford,

they'd be lying.

 

Since being called up on May 15, Axford has emerged as the Brewers'

closer, something no one would have expected in Spring Training with the

all-time saves leader, Trevor Hoffman, on the roster.

 

 

Happily, anyone regularly reading the forum here could indeed say they saw this coming from Axford. I think colby has been touting him since 2008, in fact.

[pete]

Macha touted him last year.

[Mass Haas]

Here's your info as two Sounds take part in the 2010 AAA All-Star Game in Allentown, Pennsylvania, matching the best of the Pacific Coast League and the International League --

 

Date / Time: Wednesday, July 14th, Game Time is 6:00 PM Central

 

Coverage:

 

On TV -- MLB Network

Online video -- MiLB.TV

Online Audio

 

Sounds' Participants: Representing the PCL, RHP Mike McClendon and SS Luis Cruz

Box Score / Game Log / Gameday: LINK

 

Post-game "Link Report"-style coverage will be within this thread.

 

MiLB.com preview

[battlekow]

Luis Cruz was 0-2 and Mike McClendon tossed a scoreless inning of relief in the All-Star Game.

[Mass Haas]

Sounds Site:

 

Getting To Know Pitcher Brandon Kintzler

[CheezWizHed]

Sounds Site:

 

Getting To Know Pitcher Brandon Kintzler

His favorite MLB team is the Red Sox and he wants to be Derek Jeter for a day? I sense some serious conflicts in this young man! http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Mass Haas]

Getting To Know Infielder Erick Almonte