Your 2011 Nashville Sounds

[Mass Haas]

Here's a link to the feature article in the George Kottaras thread on the Major League Forum that discusses George's time in Nashville.

[Mass Haas]

Stu Paul updated his blog back on the 14th.

[Mass Haas]

Two Nashville Sounds say thrilling trip awaits Vanderbilt in Omaha

Sounds players vividly recall CWS experience

by Austen Gregerson | The Tennessean

 

The two current Nashville Sounds who have played in the College World Series say Vanderbilt players should enjoy the view that few ever get to experience.

 

Outfielders Brendan Katin (Miami) and Jordan Brown (Arizona) made it in 2004.

 

“Even though we didn’t win it all that year it was one of the greatest things I’ve ever been a part of,” Katin said.

 

The CWS has been played in Omaha for more than 60 years, and Vanderbilt will open a new stadium, TD Ameritrade Park, when it plays North Carolina on Saturday. For most it will be the largest crowd they ever play in front of.

 

“I remember getting off the bus having this tightness all over my body, and it didn’t really go away until my second at-bat,” Brown said. “There are about 30,000 people there, and there are pre- and post-game interviews, which you’re not used to. With college baseball you played on national television maybe once a year, so that was the first time you knew all of your boys were watching, and it’s actually for a title.”

 

As a Miami Hurricane, Katin said he got used to being unwelcomed wherever he went.

 

“It’s crazy because you have each team’s diehard fans in the stadium, and Miami got dominated by all the LSU fans there when we played them,” Katin said. “If there were 30,000 in the stadium, at least 20,000 were rooting for LSU. Everybody hated us, it was mayhem.”

 

While Arizona and Miami didn’t play each other that year, Brown had some familiarity with the Miami squad. Some of Brown’s teammates had grown up with Hurricane star shortstop Ryan Braun, now an All-Star left fielder for the Milwaukee Brewers.

 

“We all had a dinner together before we started playing,” Brown said. “I remember thinking after meeting (Braun) that he was pretty cocky, but really he wasn’t. I was probably just jealous.”

 

SOUNDS NOTES

 

All-Star coach: Sounds pitching coach Rich Gale was selected as the Pacific Coast League's pitching coach in the 2011 Triple-A All-Star game. Gale has spent the past two years with the Sounds after being on the coaching staff for the Albuquerque Isotopes in 2007 and 2008.

 

"I'm happy to be picked as a coach for the game, although they may have just picked my name out of a hat," Gale said. “It'll be nice to see some of the other guys' pitching staffs and see what I can bring back here for scouting reports when we play them later."

 

Jordan Brown while playing for Arizona Wildcats. Now he is with Nashville Sounds. ARIZONA ATHLETICS

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[battlekow]

“We all had a dinner together before we started playing,” Brown said. “I remember thinking after meeting (Braun) that he was pretty cocky, but really he wasn’t. I was probably just jealous.”

Ha!

[Mass Haas]

Sounds pitcher feels hit's effect two months later

by Austin Gwin, The Tennessean

 

It's been nearly two months since Sounds pitcher Josh Butler was hit in the head by a line drive off the bat of former Sound Vinny Rottino.

Even though Butler missed just one start, things still aren't quite back to normal.

"As soon as I throw a pitch that a hitter can hit up the middle, I kind of flinch, kind of duck out of the way," Butler said.

Butler has a 4-4 record with a 5.89 ERA after this past Saturday's start at Memphis.

Butler and the Sounds were trailing New Orleans 3-1 on April 19 when Rottino, who played in Nashville from 2005-08, led off the fourth.

"It was a two-seamer right down the middle at the knees," Butler said. "Rottino hit a line drive back at me. Luckily I got a little bit of my glove on it before it nicked me in the temple."

Butler was hit by the come-backer and immediately went down. He looked around for the ball, but Rottino had made it safely to first. Only after the play ended did Butler realize he had been struck in the head.

"I felt OK; I never got knocked out," Butler said. "I wasn't seeing stars or anything like that. I was just hoping that it was nothing serious."

The result was a mild concussion and only one missed start. Line drives hit back to the pitcher, like the one by Rottino, are common in baseball. In most cases, the pitcher is able to duck or deflect the ball with his glove. Butler has had his share of pitches hit back at him.

"I've gotten hit with tons of come-backers through the years," Butler said. "I think I have a magnet on me for it, but nothing ever in the face."

One of Butler's Sounds teammates wasn't quite so lucky back in 2003. Sam Narron was in his first full season with the Texas Rangers' organization, playing for the Stockton Ports.

"I threw a changeup ... and (the batter) laced it back to me," Narron said. "I saw it about halfway and then lost it. It hit me in my upper jaw and crushed that bone."

Narron missed six weeks. He said he was fortunate not to be seriously injured.

"I didn't lose any sight. I didn't die," Narron said. "As a pitcher you have to put it out of your mind. It happens; it's part of the game."

 

Sounds pitcher Josh Butler was hit by a line drive during a game nearly two months ago. / Samuel M. Simpkins / Tennessean File Photo

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[Mass Haas]

Change has been good for Gamel

BRAD MILNER / Walton County (FL) Sun

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The love affair between Mat Gamel and third base ended in baseball’s equivalent of divorce court. Then along came a pretty spot across the diamond and it was love at first sight.

Gamel, 25, is currently at the Triple-A Nashville Sounds, the team he has been involved with for the majority of the last three seasons. The Jacksonville native and former Chipola College star is biding his time at the highest level in the Milwaukee Brewers’ minor-league organization. A potential move at the big league level could prove fruitful for Gamel or he may find himself playing in the majors in a different uniform.

No matter the team, he will likely be playing at first base, where he has been slotted in the Sounds’ lineup for each of his 66 games this season. He started his career as the Brewers’ third baseman of the future, but the relationship didn’t work out.

Gamel committed 172 errors in 558 games at third base in the minors. He appeared in 61 games with the Brewers in 2009, with 27 of those at third base. He made seven errors in 61 chances for a fielding percentage of .885.

“The problems there weren’t as much mental as it was footwork issues that I had,” Gamel said on Thursday. “I like it better over there (at first); it’s a lot less stressful.”

Rather than dump its former top prospect to another team, the Brewers felt a new position would suit Gamel better. First base also happens to be where Prince Fielder currently plays for the Brewers. He will be a free agent after this season and is expected to fetch a lot of money to expand his wallet.

Major League Baseball insiders believe the Brewers are likely to part ways with Fielder rather than give more than what a richer club can and will offer. That leaves Gamel as the one swooping in on Fielder’s position next season. At least that is the prevailing theory.

“That kinda thing just shows me that they like me and want to keep me around,” Gamel said. “But in the same breath, a lot of it is out of my hands. All I can control is what I do on the field.”

Gamel also claimed he wasn’t peeking at news reports regarding Fielder’s future with the club. He’s more concerned with continuing to play well for the Sounds and showing the Brewers they have a quality player that can help the team win.

“I can’t worry about Prince and what will happen to Prince,” Gamel said. “I can’t worry about those kinds of things.”

The 6-foot, 215-pound Gamel has proved to be a steady force not only in the field this season, with a career-high .987 fielding percentage in more than 550 tries, but also at the plate. He is batting .312 and has an OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) of .923 in 263 at-bats this season at Nashville, with 14 home runs and 47 RBI. He also has remained relatively healthy, though he suffered two injuries last season. The first kept him out for the early part of 2010 with a torn back muscle and his call-up with the Brewers lasted 12 games before a toe injury ended the year.

He still managed 96 games and 359 minor-league at-bats in 2010 despite the injury. It was his fewest appearances since his first year in 2005, when he signed as a fourth-round draft choice and played 58 games on the Rookie Level. He hasn’t appeared in fewer than 120 games at any other minor-league level since.

His time in Nashville has encompassed more than 200 games and he’s made three stops in the majors, also briefly appearing in 2008. But playing in Nashville can only satisfy a player for so long. They get itchy for something new, like a love grown stale.

“No one wants to be stuck in the minor leagues, but it is what it is,” Gamel said. “I’d like to be playing for the Brewers, but at this point I’m out of options, it’s not anything I can control.”

Gamel knows that things change quickly in baseball. Proof of that came in 2005 when he transferred to Chipola after a rough year at Daytona State College. He learned new opportunities are abundant if you open your eyes to see them.

“I’m very fortunate to have been able to play at Chipola,” Gamel said. “A family friend helped me get over to Chipola and that was the best move that ever happened to me.”

He hopes that turns out to be the first of two great moves in his career. The second, of course, could be the switch to first base, which has so far erased the lingering memories of his rocky relationship at third base.

And Gamel knows that there aren’t only pairs of eyes from his own team looking down on him. There will undoubtedly be suitors for his services, especially if Fielder returns to Milwaukee and the Brewers and Gamel decide to eventually split up.

“Who’s to say that I won’t get traded?” Gamel asked. “If I’m not in the big leagues next year maybe someone else will pick me up. Again, that’s not anything I can control.”

[TooLiveBrew]

“The problems there weren’t as much mental as it was footwork issues that I had,” Gamel said on Thursday. “I like it better over there (at first); it’s a lot less stressful.”

...

“That kinda thing just shows me that they like me and want to keep me around,” Gamel said. “But in the same breath, a lot of it is out of my hands. All I can control is what I do on the field.”

 

I'm going to try & remember this post the next time Gamel's supposedly bad attitude is brought up. Really good read, Milner got some good quotes out of Mat.

[greeg35]

sounds like he is finally learning the PR game

[Mass Haas]

Latest in the "Getting to Know" series -- "Thunder" Dan Meadows -- nice!

[Mass Haas]

Sounds pitcher counts on experience in Japan to help him get to Major Leagues

By Jerome Boettcher, Nashville City Paper

 

Forget a pitch count. Frankie De La Cruz just let it fly.

 

The right-hander didn’t worry about his arm. In Japan, he really couldn’t.

 

If he focused too much on the number of pitches he tossed, he would get left behind.

 

“You can learn how to pitch there,” he said. “I threw 197 pitches one time in the bullpen. You have to throw at least 50 pitches every day in Japan. I think my arm gets ready, a better angle with the ball. I like it because the more baseballs you throw, the more you learn.”

 

After one season — and 1,000 pitches, at least — of minor league ball in Tokyo, De La Cruz has settled into the Nashville Sounds’ starting rotation.

 

It hasn’t been the smoothest of transitions — he is just 2-4 with a 4.08 ERA in 14 starts. But the signs of improvement are there for the ninth-year veteran from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

 

In the second game of a doubleheader against Omaha on Wednesday night, De La Cruz pitched 6.1 innings of the Sounds’ seven-inning 5-4 victory. He allowed four runs (two earned), on seven hits with just one walk and two strikeouts.

 

It was a big win for the Sounds (35-42), who picked up just their second victory in 10 tries against Omaha this season.

 

De La Cruz didn’t allow a run until the fifth inning as he extended a personal scoreless streak to 11 innings. He threw seven innings of shutout ball in a no-decision against Memphis last week.

 

Prior to Wednesday’s game, he had received just 29 runs of support from his teammates. But 13 of those came in one outing, thus he received only 16 runs of support (1.33 per game) in his 12 other starts.

 

Yet, De La Cruz doesn’t blame his teammates for his-below-average record.

 

“I was really struggling in the beginning with my head because I was thinking too much,” De La Cruz said. “Now I am trying to let it go and try to focus on my game and pitch. You learn day-by-day. What I am trying to do now is get people out.”

 

De La Cruz began his career in 2001 at the age of 17 when he signed as a non-drafted free agent with the Detroit Tigers. He spent the next six seasons floating around the minor leagues, jumping into a starting role in 2005.

 

He made his Major League debut in 2007, pitching in six games — all in relief — for the Tigers. But a 6.75 ERA resulted in being sent back down to the minors.

 

Later that offseason, he was one of five players traded to the Florida Marlins in exchange for Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera. De La Cruz pitched well in Triple-A Albuquerque, with a 13-8 record and a 4.34 ERA. But he again sputtered in a shot in the big leagues, giving up 18 earned runs in nine innings pitched for the Marlins.

 

He was traded to the Padres and actually began the 2009 season on the opening day roster. But he lasted just three games and 3.1 innings pitched, giving up just two earned runs and two hits while walking six. He was sent down to Triple-A Portland, spent the rest of the season there and all but four of his 48 appearances came out of the bullpen.

 

“I was there for no reason,” De La Cruz said. “So when they sent me to the minor leagues, I called my agent and said, ‘Look, man, I want to go to someone else. Oh, let’s go to Japan.’”

 

De La Cruz sputtered in his first nine games with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, so he was demoted to their minor league affiliate. He got into a groove there, striking out 42 batters and walking 21 in 53.2 innings in 39 relief appearances. His ERA was the lowest of his career — 2.52 — and it caught the attention of the Milwaukee Brewers, who signed him in January.

 

“I learned a lot about baseball in Japan,” De La Cruz said. “I think I got the best angle with my arm right now ... and I also have my velocity back.”

 

The 5-foot-10, 213-pound De La Cruz throws his fastball in the 95 to 97 miles per hour range and mixes in a changeup and slider. But control has been an issue. In his first 12 starts of the year, he walked 37 batters for more than three a game. In his last two starts, he has just two walks.

 

“With his kind of stuff, he shouldn’t be 2-4. He’s got better stuff than that,” Sounds manager Don Money said. “Earlier in the year, he was throwing five, six walks a game. Usually that eats up your pitch count kind of quick. ... Hopefully he is on track. His last two outings have been very good.”

 

If De La Cruz can string together some consistent starts, maybe he’ll get his fourth crack at the big leagues with his fourth different team. But the 27-year-old is not obsessing and trying to do too much.

 

He is just letting the ball fly, hopeful he’ll land back in the Majors eventually.

 

“I like to be here. I’d like to be in big leagues better but I like to be here because this is a job,” De La Cruz said. “I see a lot of players without a job because they don’t want to play minor league. This is a job so I really like it here. If something happens, then it happens. But right now, in my head, I pitch here first and see what’s going on.”

[Mass Haas]

Great graphic from the Sounds staff...

 

DiFelice, Narron Named To PCL All-Star Team

Pitchers To Represent Sounds, Pacific Coast League At Triple-A All-Star Game On July 13 In Salt Lake City

Nashville Sounds

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Nashville pitchers Mark DiFelice and Sam Narron have been named to the Pacific Coast League All-Star team and will represent the Sounds on the 30-man squad that takes on the International League stars in the 2011 Triple-A All-Star Game on Wednesday, July 13 at SpringMobile Park in Salt Lake City, Utah.

 

Both players were selected as reserves for the contest by the PCL office.

 

The 34-year-old DiFelice has posted a 2-1 record, team-leading six saves, and a 2.17 ERA (7 ER / 29.0 IP) in 17 games (three starts) for the Sounds. He has struck out 31 batters in his 29.0 innings while issuing only six walks and holding PCL hitters to a .227 batting average.

 

DiFelice, a member of the Milwaukee's 40-man roster, also spent eight days in the big leagues in mid-June, when he posted a 12.00 ERA (4 ER / 3.0 IP) in three relief outings for the Brewers.

 

The All-Star nod is the sixth mid-season honor of DiFelice's 13-year pro career. His most recent appearance came in the 2007 Southern League All-Star Game, when he was the North Division starting pitcher and earned the win after working a scoreless inning. The Nashville right-hander previously appeared in the 2006 Atlantic League All-Star Game, the 2001 Southern League All-Star Game, the 1999 Carolina League All-Star Game, and the 1998 Northwest League All-Star Game.

 

The 29-year-old Narron currently ranks second among Pacific Coast League hurlers with a 3.70 ERA. On the year, the lanky left-hander is 4-3 with a 3.70 ERA (36 ER / 87.2 IP) in 15 games (13 starts) for Nashville. Narron has authored five quality starts as well as the Sounds' lone complete game of 2011.

 

It is the second mid-season All-Star selection of Narron's 10-year professional career. He previously participated in the 2004 Texas League All-Star Game.

 

One former Sound was named as an additional participant for the PCL team in the 2011 Triple-A All-Star Game. Left-hander Dana Eveland, who went 6-5 with a 2.74 ERA in 20 appearances for Nashville in 2006, will be a member of the PCL roster as one of two Albuquerque Isotopes players in the game.

 

The 2011 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 8:00 p.m. CT.

 

The complete Pacific Coast League All-Star roster is available by clicking here. The International League All-Star roster will be released on Thursday.

 

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[Mass Haas]

Getting to Know series -- LHP Daniel Herrera

Something The Fans Don't Know About Me: I don't speak Spanish

[Mass Haas]

Sounds pitcher hopes second stop in Nashville is his last

Hand works back from Double-A

by Austen Gregerson | The Tennessean

Pitcher Donovan Hand hopes his second chance with the Sounds will help him reach the major leagues.

 

The 6-foot-4 right-hander made 21 relief appearances to close the 2010 season in Nashville, but he started the 2011 season in Double-A Huntsville. After nine relief appearances there, he was called up to Nashville in May. Since then, he is 1-4 with a 3.81 ERA in 19 relief appearances, entering Monday night’s game.

 

“I’ve been living the dream I’ve had since I was 5 years old, and now it’s all becoming real,” said Hand, 25. “You’re a phone call away from going up to the majors at any time, and seeing some of the guys I came up with get called up gives me hope.

 

“It’s the weirdest thing because from high school to college you’re team-oriented, and I’m not saying we’re not team-oriented here, but if you do good personally it’s a good day. It is a little weird, but you root and cheer for each other because the better they do, the better you do, and you have to keep up.”

 

Since being drafted by the Brewers in the 14th round of the 2007 draft, the former Jacksonville State pitcher has progressed through the farm system.

 

Sounds Manager Don Money said Hand didn’t have a direct role in starting the season back in Huntsville. When roster spots are limited and a veteran’s talents need to be evaluated quickly, a prospect tends to take the hit.

 

“In (Hand’s) case, it was just a numbers game,” Money said. “When Milwaukee added pitchers to their bullpen through free agency it forced other guys down here, so there just wasn’t any space for him in the beginning of the year.”

 

This time, he’s made good on his opportunity. “As bad as it is to say, something bad has got to happen up (in Milwaukee) for me to get the call,” Hand said. “Either an injury or someone pitching really badly has to happen, but you also have to be pitching really well at the time it happens.”

 

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[Mass Haas]

From the Nashville Media Notes:

 

GREEN HONORED AS BREWERS PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Infielder Taylor Green was recently named the Milwaukee Brewers’ Minor League Player of the Month for June, during which the 24-year-old tied for 3rd in the PCL with a .398 average (37-for-93).

[TooLiveBrew]

Could that be what the random high-fives in the dugout a few nights back were for?

[Mass Haas]

Bats don't get a break from MLB

MLB works to cut down number of shattered bats

by Austin Gwin,| The Tennessean

Broken bats have always been a part of baseball, but in 2008 the numbers were growing to alarming rates.

From July to September that year there were 2,232 bats broken in major-league games, and more than one-third of those broke into multiple pieces, according to Northwestern University.

Major League Baseball joined with the U.S. Forest Service to work on the problem in the interest of player and fan safety. Since then, the number of shattered bats, called multiple-piece failures, has been cut in half in the majors and minors.

“You don’t see a lot of the bats breaking like you used to,” Nashville Sounds Manager Don Money said. “I think something had to be done, and they had to correct it because someone was going to get hurt.”

A big reason for the steep decline is in the grains of the wood. Before 2009, the grains in each bat might not have been straight, but now each bat is inspected to make sure it is suitable to use and is even marked by an ink dot to signify it has been checked.

This inspection hasn’t come at a steeper price for the Sounds or for the players who purchase their own bats.

“Those dots mean it has been approved,” Money said. “We don’t use a bat unless it has that dot on it.”

Each bat is different, but players primarily use maple or ash. Maple is a strongerwood, harder to break and has few grains, which is why Sounds third baseman Taylor Green always uses a maple bat.

“I’ve used maple for years,” Green said. “I break bats often, but with maple they just splinter and don’t break and go flying. I just like how the ball flies off of a maple bat.”

Green said bats with wider grains are less likely to break while bats with tight grains flake or chip easily. Outfielder Brett Carroll like his grains wide as well, but he prefers his bat to be made of white ash.

“With ash, the more you hit it on the sweet spot, the harder it gets,” Carroll said. “I just like sound of the ball hitting off the ash.”

Sounds assistant clubhouse manager Thomas Miller said that most Sounds have bat contracts with various manufacturers but the team always has an assortment of “pro stock” bats on hand. It is just a basic bat that the Sounds order in bulk that is mostly used by pitchers.

Sometimes a position player mired in a slump will grab one on his way to the plate.

“It’s kind of a running joke that if you are going through a tough stretch hitting-wise, you grab a ‘pro stock,’ ” Carroll said. “I have seen the difference of the quality they are making now, and I have no problem picking up a ‘pro stock’ and swinging it.”

 

Sounds players keep bats of different types of wood in the dugout. / Photo by Sanford Myers, The Tennessean

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[Mass Haas]

PCL notes: Farris raising his stock

Nashville infielder works to improve his defensive versatility

By Chris Jackson / Special to MLB.com

 

Life as a blocked prospect is never easy. Take Eric Farris, a second baseman in the Milwaukee Brewers' system who is stuck behind an All-Star obstacle in Rickie Weeks.

Farris could easily give into frustration as Triple-A Nashville seems to be as far as he will get with the Brewers. Yet every day, Farris keeps battling, keeps hoping he will get a chance, either with Milwaukee or on another team as the July 31 trade deadline creeps closer.

"All I can control is what I do on the field," Farris said. "[Weeks] is a great player, and I love watching him play. There's a lot of stuff in his game that I can take and learn from. It's nothing that bothers me. It's just something that's out of my control, and all I can do is what I can where I'm at."

Right now Farris is playing second base for the Sounds, batting .263 (90-for-342) with four home runs, 27 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. He has already surpassed his total of games played this year (85) versus last season (70), when he was sidelined by a knee injury.

"That's kind of been my main focus this year is to stay healthy," Farris said. "I want to get through the whole year and not spend any time on the DL like I have over the past couple seasons. As far as my body feels, it feels pretty good. I have my days. Things come up and bark every once in a while. But for the most part I'm healthy and I'm trying to stay that way."

In addition to trying to stay out of the trainer's room, Farris has played 17 games at shortstop this season.

"I think the plan with the organization is to move around a little bit," Farris said. "I think that I've proven I can play second base. Being able to play shortstop boosts my stock a little bit and hopefully makes my path to the big leagues a little easier."

Farris has as many errors at shortstop, five, as he does at second base.

"When I get over to shortstop especially, that's something I want to conquer," Farris said. "Right now I'm not as comfortable there as I am at second base because I haven't played there much in my career. That's something I want to keep working on."

With the Brewers in the thick of a four-team battle atop the National League Central, the trade deadline could loom large for Farris and other Minor Leaguers who could be dangled as bait to help the big league squad.

"You hear stuff, just along the wire," Farris said. "You've got to come out here and play -- that's really what it comes down to. If you're not playing well, who's going to want you anyway? So I mean, you've got to just go out there and get the job done every day and then what happens, happens."

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[battlekow]

Daily Dish: Brewers’ Caleb Gindl Hits For The Cycle

J.J. Cooper/Baseball America

Caleb Gindl's value as a prospect rests solely on the bat. As a 5-foot-9 outfielder whose more comfortable on the corners than in center field (although he can play center in a pinch), Gindl knows he'll have to hit to make the big leagues. Luckily for him, hitting has never really been a problem for the Brewers' 2007 fifth-round pick.

He doesn't really have the power projection to be the prototype corner outfielder, but wherever he's gone, he has gotten on base while pounding plenty of doubles and the occasional home run. And on Sunday, he did a little of everything.

Playing for Triple-A Nashville, Gindl went 4-for-5, finishing off a cycle by singling in the ninth inning. He slugged his 12th home run, which puts him on pace to top his career high of 17, set in 2009 for high Class A Brevard County. Gindl's batting line of .281/.353/.474 is right in line with his career numbers of .298/.375/.464 coming into the season. He may not ever be a big league regular, but the fact that he's shown he can handle center field at least adequately gives him a solid chance of being a platoon or fourth outfielder, especially since he's a lefty hitter.

[Mass Haas]

Pacific Coast League lost to the International League, 3-0, but All-Star LHP Sam Narron did his job in the 6th, with some well-positioned outfielders --

 

Pitcher Change: Sam Narron replaces Andrew Kown.

Dayan Viciedo lines out sharply to left fielder Vinny Rottino.

Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter Erik Kratz replaces Devin Mesoraco.

Erik Kratz flies out to right fielder Aaron Cunningham.

Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter Mauro Gomez replaces Matt Hague.

Mauro Gomez flies out to center fielder J. B. Shuck.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Sounds struggle in one-run games

Close losses keep Nashville trailing

by Greg Sullivan, the Tennessean

 

As the Nashville Sounds return home from the All-Star break and resume their season Thursday night with a doubleheader against Albuquerque, they do so knowing that if they are to climb back into the division race, they had better start now.

 

On paper, the Sounds were an average team in their first 90 games except in the one statistic that truly matters — wins and losses.

 

A deflating nine-game losing streak in May, which included four straight last at-bat losses, took its toll on the club. While there have been some dramatic wins along the way, too, more often than not luck cut against Nashville in the first part of the season. They’ve lost a league-high 23 one-run games.

 

“It’s been just an incredible run of one-run losses,” said Brewers Special Assistant to the GM/Baseball Operations Dan O’Brien, the former Reds GM who oversees baseball operations for the Sounds’ parent club. “You won’t see that again in 10 years. It just happens. I know we’ll be better in the second half. I’m confident in that.”

 

For a 41-49 club, though, that just crept out of last place with a 9-5 win in its last game that may sound more like wishful thinking than anything else. But while this Nashville club has had its troubles and possesses an unflattering record, it does remain within striking distance (8.5 games) of division-leading Omaha in the Pacific Coast League’s most-tightly bunched division, the American North.

 

While a winning record is certainly still within reach for the Sounds, at this point, players know that to overtake Omaha and Memphis in the standings, a long winning streak probably will be required. Of course, the unpredictable nature of Triple-A late-season rosters also could play a factor in the race one way or another as teams get set to head into the final two months of the season.

 

“I think we need to get on a roll,” outfielder Brett Carroll said. “Without a doubt we still have a chance in this. I think our first goal right now is to get back to .500.

 

“Once you creep over that line then things can start rolling and you might find yourself in a playoff race.”

 

Lineup: C-

 

While the Sounds have hit their share of home runs, their run production has been stifled somewhat by struggles in on-base percentage. The Sounds’ .343 on-base percentage ranks 14th in the 16-team PCL and the team’s .268 average ranks 13th.

 

Slugger Brendan Katin, meanwhile, is currently working through nagging knee problems at the Brewers’ Arizona training facility.

 

Mat Gamel, who was optioned back to the Sounds from Milwaukee on Sunday, leads the team with 18 homers. Carroll (15), Taylor Green (13) and outfield prospect Caleb Gindl (12) have all displayed power. Katin, second on the franchise career homer list, had 11 homers in just 109 at-bats this season.

 

“That’s a lot of pop, but I don’t know how many solos were in there,” Sounds Manager Don Money said. “If you don’t get guys on base, you’re not going to win.”

 

Defense: B

 

Team defense has been one of the bright spots for the Sounds. Their 30 outfield assists rank second in the league, and Carroll leads all PCL players with 16 outfield assists.

 

The team’s defensive versatility also has been impressive. Gamel’s off-season transition from third base to first has gone pretty smoothly, and starting infielders (Green, Edwin Maysonet and Eric Farris) have played multiple positions in the infield this season.

 

Their 59 errors (41 fielding) are mostly offset by their outfield assists.

 

Starting Pitching: B-

 

Sounds pitchers boast the third-lowest ERA in the hitter-friendly league (4.51), despite having some consistency issues from their starters.

 

At times, Frankie De La Cruz and Amaury Rivas have pitched very well, but both also have struggled on occasion.

 

The rotation’s biggest surprise has been Sam Narron (4-3, 3.83), who went from an independent league roster last season to being the Sounds’ most reliable starter so far and a member of the PCL All-Star team.

 

“I came in this year not really knowing my role,” Narron said. “To me, the great start is wonderful, but a strong finish is even more important.”

 

While Narron has flourished, the Brewers’ top prospect Mark Rogers (0-2, 13.20) struggled mightily early on and averaged only three innings per outing in his five starts before being demoted as he battled carpel tunnel. His early struggles caused the bullpen to be overtaxed early in the season.

 

Bullpen: D+

 

The bullpen has been shaky, at times, but a lot of that can be attributed to a lack of continuity.

 

“It’s a swinging door here,” said reliever Tim Dillard, who re-joined the team recently after a stint with the Brewers. “There’s always guys coming and going. You have guys that get injured. Guys get sent down and called up. You pick up guys from other teams.”

 

While it has a respectable 3.83 ERA over 321 2/3 innings, it has struggled closing out games, amassing 14 blown saves in 32 opportunities.

 

Dillard is among a handful of bullpen pitchers who have spent time on the big-league roster this season. On Saturday, he became the eighth different Sounds pitcher to pick up a save this season as the team has lacked defined reliever roles.

 

Mark DiFelice (2-1, 2.17 ERA) has been one of the bright spots in the bullpen, but he wasn’t able to pitch in the Triple-A All-Star game, he said, because of shoulder inflammation. He said prior to the break that he hopes to begin throwing again this week.

 

Coaching: B

 

The Sounds’ coaches are basically the same that coached the team to winning seasons the past two years. Pitching Coach Rich Gale left the team abruptly in June for “personal reasons,” but he was replaced by Chris Bosio, the Sounds’ 2009 pitching coach.

 

“Don’s very consistent,” O’Brien said. “(Hitting Coach) Sandy Guerrero is comparable or better than most of the hitting coaches in our league.

Our pitching situation is a little unique with us making a transition in the middle of the season, but I don’t see that being a problem.”

 

The one-run losses, Money said, had to do with execution in key situations.

 

“It’s execution. That’s almost half your season in one-run games. Pitchers have been up-and-down. Hitters haven’t done the job in certain instances. If you get three runs in the first, it doesn’t mean take the rest of the game off.

 

“Somewhere along the line you’ve gotta start getting close to that .500. Nobody’s really running away with this thing. Omaha sent a lot of their guys up to the big leagues. We played them earlier when they still had all their guys and we lost most of those games.”

 

By the numbers

14-30:[/b] Sounds road record (worst in PCL)
27-19:[/b] Sounds home record
9:[/b] Number of games of Sounds longest losing streak (May)
18:[/b] HR by 1B Mat Gamel, who hit just 14 all of last season
16:[/b] Outfield assists by Brett Carroll, leads the league
53:[/b] Team HR since June 1 (second in PCL in that span, they have hit at least one HR in 26 of their last 36 games)
41:[/b] Number of one-run games the Sounds have played in (leads the league; they’ve gone 18-23 in those games, the 23 one-run losses are also a league-high)
2:[/b] Number of wins needed for reliever Tim Dillard (34 wins) to take the franchise win record from Keith Brown (35)
10:[/b] Number of road losses (1/3 of them) that have come as walk-off losses
14:[/b] Team blown saves (eight different pitchers)
–3:[/b] Sounds run differential; despite their 41-49 record, opponents have outscored them just 441-438

[battlekow]

Former Pace star Caleb Gindl on the doorstep of the major leagues

Bob Heist/Pensacola News Journal

Since being selected in the fifth round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft, Caleb Gindl sure can tell you about how long the road is to reach Milwaukee.

Put it this way, Mapquest and a GPS unit have been necessities for one of the greatest players to ever come out of the storied Pace High program as Gindl chases a spot in the big leagues with the Brewers.

With the Panhandle as the starting point, the runner-up for Florida's Mr. Baseball in '07 has covered more than 5,800 miles during his travels through rookie league ball in Helena, Mont., Class A stops in Charleston, W.Va., and Melbourne, one season of Double-A in Huntsville, Ala., and now a home with Triple-A Nashville in Tennessee.

The ascent through the organization has actually been quite rapid for the 22-year-old outfielder. But, nonetheless, interesting.

"I've always felt like anything is possible ... so everything I've had to do is just part of what it takes," Gindl said. "It's been my dream since I was 5 years old to play Major League Baseball. Do I think it will happen? Absolutely, or I wouldn't be playing the game.

"If it's meant to be, it will happen. Hopefully, in the end, I get called up and live the dream I'm chasing."

No doubt, though, during this journey, Sunday afternoon's game against the Albuquerque Isotopes at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, N.M., was one to remember.

With a two-out single in the top of the ninth inning during a 9-5 Pacific Coast League win, Gindl completed hitting for the cycle. It was the first time — and third overall in the team's 34-year history — that rare baseball feat had been accomplished by a Sounds player since J.R. House in 2004. The first cycle in club history was by Tike Redman in 2001.

"I can't lie, I was excited," said Gindl, who tripled in the second inning, homered in the third and doubled in the eighth. "If you play this game and don't get excited about something like that, well, then there's something wrong. I've been playing baseball a long time and had been close before, but that had never happened. So, yeah, that's a moment I think I'll remember for a long time."

What Gindl also may look back on from this summer and remember fondly is his current hot streak that has the Sounds' right fielder looking like a strong candidate for a September call-up by the National League Central Division leaders when major league rosters expand.

Being looked at closely in March by the Brewers during his first spring training camp invitation, Gindl has adjusted following a slow start in Triple-A.

Over the past 10 games, the stocky 5-foot-9, 205-pounder is batting .364 (16-for-44) with six extra-base hits, including three home runs, and seven RBIs. He's hit safely in 10 of the last 13 games for Nashville.

"What's taken a while has been adjusting to Triple-A pitching," Gindl said. "In the lower levels, like Double-A, you just see throwers, guys that can bring the fastball pretty good. Here, though, it's a lot of off-speed stuff that you have to really learn to hit.

"You're not just going to see a fastball on a 3-1, 3-2 count. The guys here can throw a change-up, splitter on any count, so that was a big adjustment. But I'm feeling good about everything now."

What's interesting about Gindl is to look back on his high school career and see how sitting on the doorstep of the major leagues isn't much of a surprise.

Following Pace's 2006 Class 5A state championship season as a junior, Gindl was the News Journal's hitter of the year after batting .453 with seven homers and an area-high 43 RBIs.

As a senior in 2007, he was the PNJ pitcher of the year after compiling a 9-1 record and 0.72 ERA. Gindl hit .508 that season with four homers and 25 RBIs.

"I'm not surprised by what Caleb's doing," said Pace coach Charlie Warner. "Really, I'll be very surprised if he doesn't make it (to the big leagues). I remember he made a comment to me when he first got to pro ball that some of the older guys told him he needed to slow down a little bit. But that's just the way Caleb is — he's wide-open all the time. That's just the way he approaches everything.

"He has the tools to make it. He has the talent to make it. And I'm confident he will make it."

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[Mass Haas]

Ex-MTSU star Carroll eyes return trip to MLB

by Monte Hale, Jr., Daily News Journal (Murfreesboro, TN)

 

NASHVILLE — Brett Carroll wants to be back in the major leagues.

However, a whirlwind year has seen him find his way to the Nashville Sounds in Triple-A ball this season.

It just might turn out to be the perfect situation for the former MTSU third baseman, who spent three seasons as an outfielder with the Florida Marlins.

"Dating back to when Florida took me off their roster after last season, I became a six-year free agent," said Carroll, who climbed up the Marlins' ranks quickly after playing three seasons at MTSU from 2002-04. "There were a handful of interested teams, and one that I knew was interested in me was Kansas City."

Carroll didn't last long with the Royals, however, as he was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers. He has spent a full and prosperous season with the Sounds.

"I felt like Kansas City would be a great place to go, but they have got a great minor league system and they traded for Jeff Francoeur and Melky Cabrera," Carroll said. "The Brewers needed a right-handed outfielder. Kansas City's communication was great with me. I didn't get stuck behind anyone in Triple-A without a chance to play. I got traded to Milwaukee and I'm getting to play every day. It's definitely been a strange year. This is my eighth season in pro ball, and any time you go up and down in the big leagues you see the business side of things."

Carroll has taken care of his business this season, however, as he is batting .288 with 14 doubles, 15 home runs and 51 RBIs.

"It's definitely been encouraging," said Carroll, a 10th-round major league pick. "I've finally been healthy and I'm getting to play every day. Being the fourth outfielder in the big leagues can be discouraging because you might get only one or two at-bats a week. If you don't do well, you feel like a failure.

"So this year has been great because the desire has been there, and the ability is still there. I'm thankful for the opportunity to go out there every day and be in the lineup."

Carroll called this season a "blessing."

"I obviously want to get back to the major leagues, but this season has allowed me to work on a lot of things, and there are still things I need to work on," he said. "As a competitor and player you have high expectations.

"I'm looking forward to the next couple of months and to limit my mistakes."

The former Knoxville Bearden standout said playing in Nashville also has been advantageous.

"It's the first time in my career I've been close to home and to my family, friends and college friends," he said. "It's great to go to the ballpark about every night and see somebody you know and talk to them.

"It's really allowed me to get back into the flow of the game."

However, Carroll doesn't want to make Nashville a permanent residence.

"The only thing I can control is the attitude I have and how I play the game," said Carroll, noted as a player with tremendous work ethic. "Milwaukee is winning and their outfielders are doing well.

"It's one of those things where I enjoy coming to the field every day. I want to compete at the highest level. Anything could happen, but I would hope to at least get a September call up."

One of Carroll's former MTSU teammates, catcher Michael McKenry, recently got traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates and called up to the major leagues.

"I grew up playing against McKenry," he said. "When he came to MTSU, I got to play with him one year, which was nice because he always beat us (in high school).

"We work out in the offseason together, so I was really excited for him and the opportunity he had."

Despite a year when Carroll has been with three organizations, more big league opportunities could certainly be in his future."

 

Nashville Sounds right fielder Brett Carroll (23) has some fun with Sounds mascot Ozzie at Greer Stadium Tuesday June 28, 2011 in Nashville, Tenn. / The Tennessean

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[Mass Haas]

The latest in the fun "Getting to Know..." series -- Eric Farris.

[Mass Haas]

Sounds' slugger adjusts his gameHome runs coming easier for Gamel

by Greg Sullivan, the Tennessean

 

After hitting 14 home runs all of last season, Nashville Sounds first baseman Mat Gamel already had 18 this year before the Brewers called him up for a 12-game stint prior to the All-Star break.

 

Now back with the Sounds, Gamel said he is looking for a strong finish to the season as his team tries to make a late push in the Pacific Coast League American North division.

 

“I don’t expect to hit 18 more in the second half,” said Gamel, who hit his first home run in Monday's game since his return to the Sounds. “I just want to come out and put good swings on the ball and keep getting better.”

 

Gamel didn’t hit his first home run until April 30. Ever since, he’s been driving balls with authority.

 

“It wasn’t really something I was concerned with,” Gamel said of the slow start. “Home runs come and for me home runs come in bunches. I’ll go on a streak where I’ll hit five or six in a week and won’t hit another one in two or three weeks.”

 

There have been more good stretches than bad this season for Gamel, who led the Sounds in home runs and RBIs (62) and was second in batting average (.324) entering Monday’s 5-3, 10-inning victory at Iowa.

 

“He’s doing a good job,” Sounds Manager Don Money said. “He’s had a good year, but is he going to hit 30 home runs? I don’t know. Could he drive in 100? Yeah, if he hits over .300 all year.

 

“But when that phone rings right there and they say, ‘OK, we need so and so.’ We say, ‘OK.’ ”

 

That phone already rang three weeks ago and Gamel joined the Brewers for what he thought would be a designated hitter role against the Yankees and Twins.

 

“I stayed up there longer than I expected,” said Gamel. “I pretty much thought I’d be up there just for interleague and I’d come back so to stay there any after that was good.”

 

Gamel stayed with the Brewers for two more series and saw time at his old position, third base, and in the outfield. Now he said he will likely see time at third base and first base with the Sounds. He was 3-for-26 (.115) in Milwaukee.

 

“It’s not the minor leagues where you’re pretty much guaranteed a mistake from the pitcher every at-bat,” Gamel said. “I only struck out (four) times. I was putting the ball in play. My situational hitting could have been better, at times. But that’s part of the adjustments that you’ve got to make in the big leagues.”

 

It has been a season of transition for Gamel in Nashville. Aside from moving across the diamond to play first base for the Sounds, he has also shown increased maturity at the plate, Money said.

 

“One guy asked me my year when I hit (career-high) 25 home runs (1977, with the Brewers), ‘How’d you do it?’ ” Money said. “I just hit the pitches. I didn’t foul ’em off.

 

“I know he’s pulling his home runs more now, but I think he’s just hitting the pitches. I think he’s got the same bat speed. I think he’s got the same everything, but he’s hitting the pitches so that tells me he’s maturing.”

 

Gamel maintains that he hasn’t tweaked his approach, but is making better contact with increased strength. So some balls that would have been doubles have cleared the fence.

 

“It’s not like my home runs are those big, towering fly balls,” he said. “They’re line drives that go over the fence. I still don’t say that I’m a home run hitter.”

 

***

 

The Gamel File --

 

- Born: July 26, 1985 in Jacksonville, Fla.

- High school: Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville)

- Drafted: Fourth round, 2005 by Milwaukee.

- Minors: .305, 95 homers, 469 RBIs in 699 games (2005-11).

- Sounds: .303, 43 homers, 180 RBIs in 243 games (2008-11).

- Majors: .222, 5 homers, 23 RBIs in 85 games (2008-11).

 

Mat Gamel has 19 homers for the Sounds this season after hitting one in Monday's game. / Photo by JAE S. LEE / THE TENNESSEAN

 

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[Mass Haas]

Congratulations, FDLC! Frankie De La Cruz the PCL Pitcher of the Week. He may be a surprise 40-man roster addition this offseason in order to maintain his rights, if not earlier, as a September call-up.