Gamel-Good as Gone?

[YoungGeezy]

My guess is it will be a up and down April, it will take a bit to adjust to the advanced pitching. May we will start seeing the ball better, by June we will be producing. He is a professional hitter. In 7 years he has been a .305/.375/.500/.875 hitter. That is pretty impressive over that long of a span. He has always been a big run producer (a 99, 96, 88, 74, 67 RBI season) He has good power and he has shown that in very small sample. Throwing has always been the concern for him not the bat nor the fielding. Now he is playing first, we don't have to worry about him throwing the ball into the stands on a routine groundball.

 

He really didn't hit awful when we has 23 and got his only real chance (24 starts) 6 doubles, 5 homers, 18 BB, 20 RBI. The .242/.338/.422/.760 was not to bad for a 23 year just coming up. 54k's in 148 PA was way to high but I think if he would have been out there everyday he would have started to see the ball better.

[logan82]

Seemed like a lot of backwards K's. I agree though he will be up and down a bit to start with probably a few long adjustment periods throughout the year. He has such a nice swing.

[kramnoj]

I agree that 2 months is a reasonable timeframe, and that is very close to what Gamel was given. The Brewers played 50 games in that period, and Gamel appeared in 43 of those games and started about half of them. I don't really think having a few more PA in more game a week would have had a dramatic impact on Gamel's ability to hit during that time.

 

I am rooting for Gamel to do well, it would be great if he developed into a solid 1B for the Brewers. I do think his situation should have been handled better.

 

But I do think he was given a shot to earn the job, and he didn't show that he should have. Many players who ride the minor league buses would love to have been given the shot he had that year.

[Raw Biz]

I agree that 2 months is a reasonable timeframe, and that is very close to what Gamel was given. The Brewers played 50 games in that period, and Gamel appeared in 43 of those games and started about half of them. I don't really think having a few more PA in more game a week would have had a dramatic impact on Gamel's ability to hit during that time.

 

I am rooting for Gamel to do well, it would be great if he developed into a solid 1B for the Brewers. I do think his situation should have been handled better.

 

But I do think he was given a shot to earn the job, and he didn't show that he should have. Many players who ride the minor league buses would love to have been given the shot he had that year.

I think there's a big difference between 1 PA a game compared to 4 PA, especially for a 23 year old. Regardless, some guys will struggle when they first get called up. That's why you also take into account their minor league numbers. Guys like Gamel should be given a little bit longer of a leash because of what he's done in the minors for the past 7 years.

[reillymcshane]

Gamel put up a .760 OPS on 128 ABs in 2009. That's not that bad for the situation. He showed decent power, a strong walk rate. Don't get me wrong, the strikeouts were brutal. But I wish he was given the job now. He should be able to build on that.

 

- He's got three years of experience under his belt.

- He is older, and - hopefully - more mature.

- His initial exposure was somewhat haphazard (as we've discussed only played 1/2 time when he was called up).

- He's not having to worry about screwing up every day at 3B

 

All this should make a good situation for him.

 

I think we should roll the dice on him - give him the chance.

[JohnBriggs12]

How many PAs should be given to a player who isn't contributing?

How many did McGehee have last year? About half of that number.

Apples and oranges. McGehee had 1 3/4 years of success at the major league level. He hit from day one his rookie year. Had he gone 60 AB's in 2009 and not hit, he would have been gone.

[dadofandrew]

If Reyes is a target, they are counting on Gamel for the most part, and maybe Green. In that case, his $425K salary is far more important than his production, for projections at least.

 

Rod Barajas just signed for $4M. You're not getting Gamel's projected line of .340/.440 in this market for much less than that.

[paul253]

He hit from day one his rookie year.

 

No he didn't. In 2008 with Chicago he was 4 for 24. In April, 2009 with Milwaukee he was 2 for 8 as a bench player. In May, 2009 he was 7 for 30. It wasn't until June of 2009 that he really put it together. But before that he started the season going 9 for 38 (.236) with no HR's and 3 RBI. The difference I see between him and Gamel is that after Gamel struggled he was benched and demoted (not that he was ever really the starter). McGehee was given an every day job despite struggling off the bench for a month and a half.

[DHonks]

kramnoj, Gamel was not given a shot. One game he batted leadoff and got on base 3 or 4 times while making some great plays...his reward was he didn't play for several days while Bill Hall did. I hated Macha for many reasons, and this is one of the lesser reasons.

[kramnoj]

One game he batted leadoff and got on base 3 or 4 times while making some great plays

 

Gamel batted leadoff once in 2009. He did get two walks, but didn't get a hit. Getting on base half of the time would be great but that's not likely and it's not like he drove the ball so well that he should have been immune to sitting on the bench.

[YoungGeezy]

One game he batted leadoff and got on base 3 or 4 times while making some great plays

 

Gamel batted leadoff once in 2009. He did get two walks, but didn't get a hit. Getting on base half of the time would be great but that's not likely and it's not like he drove the ball so well that he should have been immune to sitting on the bench.

Yeah....you bring up the 35th best prospect in baseball and let him sit on the bench and not get consistant bats, that is how you develop a player. If your not playing him everyday, get him the heck back down to AAA, not hamper development.