2011 Coaching Thread -- Latest: Mike Guerrero to manage Sounds; Money now a special instructor

[Mass Haas]

Sounds' pitching coach tips his cap to defense

Bosio's no-hitter showed value of preparation

by Greg Sullivan, The Tennessean

 

It’s not hard to realize why Nashville Sounds pitching coach Chris Bosio appreciates good defensive positioning.

He is best known for a no-hitter at Seattle’s Kingdome in 1993 to lead his Mariners past the Boston Red Sox. It was, perhaps, one of the greater testaments to advance scouting, considering he posted only four strikeouts in the 7-0 win.

“The turf was about as hard as this parking lot,” said Bosio, who took over as the Sounds pitching coach after Rich Gale resigned in June.

Bosio was pitching coach here in 2009 before finishing that season as the pitching coach in Milwaukee. Bosio spent the past two seasons as an advance scout and as a pro scout for the Brewers organization.

While Bosio said he will return to advance scouting after this season, he said he hopes he can pass along some of his passion for strategy and preparation while he’s here.

“Our preparation for that game (in 1993) helped us get a no-hitter,” Bosio said. “We had guys in positions to make plays, to take away balls down the line and in the gaps. For pitchers, we’re nothing without those players that are behind us. That’s something that we’re trying to bring here since these players are so close to the big leagues.”

Bosio said his preparation as a player led a mutual friend to tell now-Brewers assistant general manager Gord Ash about his studious nature and potential as a coach and scout.

Likewise, Bosio said he already has noticed two current Sounds pitchers who could have a bright future in the scouting profession if they choose.

“Sam Narron and Mark DiFelice prepare themselves very, very well,” he said. “Usually the guys that are the most prepared and make the best adjustments will be the best scouts because they know what to look for and how to read.”

Sounds players, too, appreciate the insight of Bosio, who played with the Brewers and Mariners from 1986-96.

“You always want a fresh set of eyes,” said longtime Sounds pitcher Tim Dillard, who is currently pitching in the Milwaukee bullpen.

“He told me the other day that I could work on my change-ups a little bit and I hadn’t even thought of that. You need somebody that can tell you things like that.”

Bosio also can tell the Sounds about perseverance.

In the weeks leading up to the no-hitter, his grandfather had just died, his house in California had been robbed and his dog was run over by a car but survived.

He was winless in his first three starts as a Mariner and he had the flu, but finally on April 22 something went right against the hot-hitting Red Sox, although not at first.

“I walked the first two guys of the game,” Bosio said. “Sammy Ellis, our pitching coach, came out and said, ‘Hey, what’s going on out here?’ I said, ‘Hey, you’re the flipping pitching coach, why don’t you tell me.’ ”

“He goes, ‘Well if that’s the case, why don’t you get a ground ball, strike somebody out and let’s get out of the inning.’

“So first pitch we get a double play ball and turn two and then I strike out Andre Dawson on three cutters and next thing I know I woke up out of a coma being sick in the eighth inning of a no-hitter.”

Former Brewers teammate Ernie Riles’ chopper over a leaping Bosio with two outs in the ninth nearly spoiled the outing.

“I remember looking up and going, ‘Grandpa, you got that one?’ And I remember Omar Vizquel’s hat flying off, he barehanded the ball and threw it over to first base for the no-hitter.”

http://cmsimg.tennessean.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=DN&Date=20110808&Category=SPORTS04&ArtNo=308080042&Ref=AR&MaxW=640&Border=0

 

Sounds pitching coach Chris Bosio, right, gives credit to his defense for helping him throw a no-hitter for the Seattle Mariners in 1993. / Photo by JAE S. LEE / THE TENNESSEAN

[Mass Haas]

Telling a player he's promoted ... or notJim Oskola, PostCrescent.com

 

Timber Rattlers manager Matt Erickson has much more to do than just manage games and schedule practices for the group of players who want to play for the parent club in a couple of years.

 

Erickson also gets to tell players when they're being promoted to Brevard County (the Brewers High A farm club) or, in some cases, being sent down to Helena of the Pioneer League.

 

What does he tell them?

 

"It's different for each individual," Erickson said. "There's all different reasons for moving up and moving down. We try to, as an organization, do what's best for the individual player. Everyone wants to be promoted. That's a good feeling for everybody but sometimes the best thing for the player is go backwards and work some things out so they can get better, get here and extend their careers.

 

"To sit here and say it's the same for each individual is kind of crazy. It's always a different deal."

 

Obviously, it's a lot more fun to tell a guy he's being promoted than telling him he's being sent down.

 

"I've had that opportunity a few times this year," Erickson said. "(Chris) Dennis went back. Austin Ross and Tyler Thornburg were very deserving of their promotions. Eric Marzec was a fun one because he went to Nashville for about a week. He got about three opportunities there and did a really good job. Now he's in Brevard and that's really what it's all about - player development. You're trying to create value for each player and move them up the chain."

[Mass Haas]

Appleton native Matt Erickson enjoyed first year at helm of Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in his hometown

by Tim Froberg, Appleton Post-Crescent

 

GRAND CHUTE — Matt Erickson's summer of 2011 was one of both education and exhilaration.

As a rookie manager, the 36-year-old Erickson learned how to meet the challenges of running a minor league baseball team.

What made the experience even more unique and rewarding was that Erickson got to manage his first team in what is essentially his hometown.

"It's been just a great experience," said Erickson Tuesday night at the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers' home finale. "It seems like it just flew by. I've been in professional baseball 15 years and this is the fastest season I can remember. But it's been a lot of fun. Hopefully, they will let me do it again next year."

The former Appleton West three-sport athlete has proved to be a fast learner and a highly competent manager. Although Wisconsin failed to make the playoffs, the Timber Rattlers will finish with the franchise's highest win total since Steve Steinmann's team went 76-63 in 2005.

With five games remaining following Tuesday night's 6-3 loss to Cedar Rapids, Wisconsin (66-68) has eight more wins than last year. The Rattlers haven't set the minor league baseball world on fire, but they have played respectable ball — despite a modest talent level and promotions which stripped the team of its top two pitchers, Austin Ross and Tyler Thornburg, and slugger Chris Dennis.

"I think we got better as the season went along," said Erickson. "What I'm the most proud of is the consistency level of our team. Whether we were winning or losing, we played the game the right way and with great effort."

Erickson admits there was a learning curve to his first season as a manager after serving as the Rattlers' hitting coach the previous two seasons.

"In the dugout earlier in the season, the game was going pretty fast for me," he said. "I was trying to figure out what I liked and didn't like. As I got more experience, the game seemed to slow down. It never got overwhelming. There were things I got better at over the course of the year. Hopefully, I can take that experience into next year and be better at my job."

Learning how to handle the pitching staff might have been the biggest managing challenge for Erickson, an infielder in professional baseball for 11 seasons.

"Just figuring out the roles of the pitching staff was different," he said. "As a hitting coach and position player, I had never really been a part of that before. I relied heavily on Chris Hook (the Rattlers' pitching coach) and got a lot more comfortable about that as the season went along.

"That's one thing that really helped me. I have an excellent coaching staff with guys who are really passionate about their job and who I believe in."

Getting a chance to manage professionally in what is practically his back yard was an added bonus.

"It's been awesome," said Erickson. "This is a great area for baseball. We received tremendous support from the community and from Rob (Zerjav, the team president) and his staff. They go out of their way to make sure that we have whatever we need on the developmental side. And it's been really nice being able to bring my son here for games."

Outfielder-first baseman Jason Rogers enjoyed playing for Erickson and said the first-year manager established a positive working environment.

"He's fun to play for," said Rogers. "He's young, just like us. And he keeps it loose. He's a player's coach, but he knows his stuff, stays on us and doesn't let us get complacent."

Although he won't know his 2012 assignment until later in the year, Erickson hopes to continue his career as a manager. After the close of the Rattlers' season, Erickson will manage a co-op team of Milwaukee Brewers and Seattle Mariners players in the Arizona advanced instructional league for a four-week period starting in mid-September.

"The pinnacle of our game is down there at Milwaukee and I would love to be a part of that some day," he said. "But right now, I'm very happy with the balance in my life. It's a unique situation in pro ball to be able to manage in your hometown. I'm very appreciative of it."

[greeg35]

Money out Guererro in according to brewcrewball tweet. Money reassigned to a non-managerial role. I'm glad Mr. Pessimism won't be there anymore.

[Mass Haas]

Haudricourt with a summary of the moves

[brewmann04]

Wow wonder what Made the Brewers move Don Money?

[filthyfrog]

I wouldn't be surprised if it was his hypercritical comments about Gamel and Gindl. I thought it was awfully unprofessional to criticize his players' characters in the media the way he did.

[brewmann04]

I thought so to but he was being Honest and that what i expect from a manager who trying to make the Players better major Leaguers.

[MJLiverock]

Money is still involved with player development they didn't just fire him or anything, I think people are reading way too much into his comments about a couple of players whom it seems can't be criticized.

[craigharmann]

I'm thinking the Money comments either led to the reassignment or he already had been told or decided to be reassigned and chose to speak openly.

[CheezWizHed]

I'm pretty sure that:

1) Money makes summary statements about players to the media at the end of every year. Seems like we had this discussion last year about the same thing.

2) His comments had little to do with this reassignment. Not even sure I'd call this a demotion.

3) His comments weren't hypercritical. They seemed pretty honest.

[gregmag]

My thing with Money's comments was that it all came down to whether they were consistent with the Brewers' player development plan. We can judge that plan favorably or unfavorably, but Money has a subordinate role in it, and he should fulfill his role in accordance with the organization's wishes. So if he had good reason to believe that going off on Gamel and Gindl in the press was consistent with the organization's wishes, then fine for him. But if not, he should suffer consequences. If this is a demotion -- and as others have said, I'm not sure whether it is or not -- it may indicate, in part, that the front office wasn't happy with his comments.

 

Again, I'm not judging the comments on their own terms at all. I think they were very critical comments, and my initial reaction was that they were pretty harsh. But as some people here suggested: (a) Money knows what he's talking about, and these were very specific criticisms; and (b) maybe berating these guys in the media was what they needed to snap their heads into place. I really don't know. All I know is that the comments were significant, and the front office is in charge of significant player development decisions and strategies.

[JohnBriggs12]

Money turns 65 next year. He was one of the oldest, if not the oldest managers in all the minor leagues. He's served the Brewers well. I'd be surprised if this wasn't more his preference.

[Mass Haas]

Chris Bosio will be the Sounds' AAA pitching coach in 2012.

[recte44]

Finalize minor league staffs (pending Bosio possibly to Cubs):

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/134675798.html