Your 2007 Nashville Sounds - Latest: Jersey Sale

[Mass Haas]

The story's been told here before, but in case you missed it, MLB.com has the Adam Pettyjohn story:

 

milwaukee.brewers.mlb.com...p;c_id=mil

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

www.nashvillecitypaper.co...s_id=56770

 

Parra makes Triple A debut tonight

By Nate Rau, Sports Correspondent

 

Manny Parra should have been here by now. He should have come through Music City and the Pacific Coast League two years ago when Prince Fielder, Corey Hart and Rickie Weeks were parading through with Nashville Sounds jerseys on their backs.

 

But, as Parra humbly puts it, ?stuff happens.? And because it happened to Parra, tonight will be his Triple A debut when he gets the start for the Sounds against Iowa at Greer Stadium.

 

?It?s a big deal in the fact that I?m making progress,? Parra said of his Triple A debut. ?It means I?m moving up the ladder and positive things are happening.?

 

For the three seasons prior to this one, positive things were not happening to Parra. Because of electric stuff that featured four pitches, Parra had been fast-tracked up the minor league ladder. But during the 2004 season when he was in Double A with Huntsville, Parra began to experience discomfort in his left throwing shoulder. The discomfort, which has been attributed to a somewhat obscure shoulder ailment called posterior impingement, didn?t go away.

 

It cost Parra the rest of the 2004 season and the ensuing Arizona Fall League. Parra worked hard to rehab and be ready for the 2005 season, but despite taking anti-inflammatories, eventually he was shelved after two months.

 

It turns out the injury would require surgery and cost him the season. In a strange way, the injury was actually more frustrating to Parra because it wasn?t something serious that required ligament replacement or anything like that. It was just a nagging discomfort that wouldn?t go away.

 

?What can you say? You really can?t control injury problems sometimes,? Parra said. ?The shoulder problems were maybe some mechanical things and other things you just can?t explain. I don?t feel there was anybody to blame necessarily. It happens.?

 

After the surgery, the clouds parted for Parra. He worked his way back last season, going 4-3 with an ERA below 3.00 between Class A Brevard County and Huntsville.

 

With the Stars this season, Parra began fulfilling the promise he showed early in his career. He went 7-3 with a 2.68 ERA with 81 strikeouts in 80.2 innings.

 

It?s taken time for Parra to regain the electric stuff he had before the injury concerns, but slowly his four pitches are coming back one-by-one.

 

And if there?s a positive to be taken away from the ordeal, Sounds manager Frank Kremblas said Parra is more mature as a result of dealing with the injury.

 

?They were talking about [him being on a fast track] because of his stuff,? Kremblas said. ?He always had good stuff. Of course, he?s always had health issues. I think the biggest thing is his maturity level is way higher than it used to be.?

 

When asked if he?s the same pitcher he was before the injury, Parra comes clean.

 

?At this point, I?m never going to feel like you feel when you first signed,? Parra said. ?I know I?m OK. I?m able to get the job done. For me now, when someone says they?re 90 percent, that?s like when I?m 100 percent.?

 

Parra also gained a rededication to his pursuit of reaching the big leagues. Only 24-years old, he came away from the injury more committed than before.

 

?I don?t think I would ever quit until either I lost desire to play in the big leagues or they take the jersey away from me,? Parra said. ?I don?t think I would ever quit.?

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Site:

 

Getting To Know ... P Zach Jackson

 

Getting To Know ... P Steve Bray

 

If you have a question you'd like your favorite Sounds player to answer, click here to submit it. The answer might be in a future Getting To Know ... update.

 

The Sounds will be updating the site with two new Q&A's each week.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville announcer Chuck Valenches on the Parra Perfecto:

 

nashvillesounds.blogspot....ut-it.html

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Site:

 

Getting To Know ... 2B/OF Callix Crabbe

 

Getting To Know ... P Adam Pettyjohn

 

If you have a question you'd like your favorite Sounds player to answer, click here to submit it. The answer might be in a future Getting To Know ... update.

 

The Sounds will be updating the site with two new Q&A's each week.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Audio Chat with Perfect Game Hurler Manny Parra:

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/a...206-26.mp3

 

Jim Powell Interview with Manny Parra:

 

media.620wtmj.com/Desktop...wsid=17882

[Mass Haas]

Nashville starting pitcher Chris Oxspring, catcher Vinny Rottino, and reliever Steve Bray have been named to the Pacific Coast League All-Star team and will represent the Sounds on the 28-man squad that takes on the International League stars in the 2007 Triple-A All-Star Game on Wednesday, July 11 at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

 

Full details from Sounds site:

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2415

[Mass Haas]

No surprise here -- Sounds site:

 

Manny Parra Named PCL Pitcher-of-the-Week

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Site:

 

Getting To Know ... INF Joe Dillon

 

Getting To Know ... OF Tony Gwynn

 

If you have a question you'd like your favorite Sounds player to answer, click here to submit it. The answer might be in a future Getting To Know ... update.

 

The Sounds will be updating the site with two new Q&A's each week.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

host1.bondware.com/~cityp...he_id=1908

 

Sounds All-Star Oxspring is baseball advocate in Australia

By Nate Rau, Nashville City Paper Sports Correspondent

 

The game of baseball may be growing internationally, with players from 17 different countries currently on big league rosters and scouts now regularly frequenting places like China for new talent.

 

But for as popular as it has become worldwide, in one sports-crazy country baseball ranks below the likes of swimming, cricket, rugby and netball [yes, it?s a sport]. Just for a point of reference, former Milwaukee Brewer Dave Nilsson ? with his 105 home runs ? is probably Australia?s most-accomplished big leaguer.

 

But when he was growing up, one young Aussie preferred America?s national pastime to all the other sports, and now stands on the verge of re-claiming a big league roster spot. That young Aussie is Nashville Sounds pitcher Chris Oxspring, who will start the Triple A All-Star game for the Pacific Coast League next week.

 

Oxspring is in the eighth year of a pro career with its share of highs (a cup of coffee in the majors with San Diego in 2005) and lows (a so-so year in Japan last season). But the 2007 season has been perhaps his best yet. Oxspring has compiled a 6-5 record, to go with a 3.84 ERA and 99 strikeouts in 89 innings. It was those numbers which earned him the spot on the All-Star team.

 

?It?s the first time for me so it?s a big deal and a good honor,? Oxspring said. ?It?s always nice to get recognized for having a good year.?

 

Oxspring picked up the sport in Australia as a kid because his older brother and cousins played fast-pitch softball.

 

?Ever since then I just stayed with it,? Oxspring said. ?It?s in my blood now and I can?t get it out.?

 

Oxspring took a roundabout path to playing professionally stateside. He attended an independent tryout camp in Chicago eight years ago and caught the eye of scouts from the Padres.

 

His minor league career began in 2000 and Oxpsring climbed up the proverbial ladder. He topped out two years ago when he went 12-6 with Triple A Portland to earn a late-season call-up to San Diego. After holding his own in five appearances, Oxspring was left without a contract the following offseason.

That?s what led him to Japan, where he was up and down with the Hanshin Tigers en route to a 4-3 record and a 5.12 ERA.

 

He signed on with the Brewers organization last offseason and has been Mr. Consistent for the Sounds this year.

 

?It?s not just one thing, it?s a combination of a whole bunch of different things,? the modest Oxspring said. ?Having good command and them just happening to hit the ball right at guys.?

 

As he?s pursued a big league career, Oxspring has spent offseasons helping develop the game in Australia.

 

?If we?re in the top 20 [sports], we?re lucky,? Oxspring said of baseball in Australia, which has slowly grown. The national team got silver at the 2004 Olympics.

 

Oxspring conducts training camps for kids and helps publicize the game in Australia.

 

?Out there it needs a lot more publicity,? Oxspring said. ?It needs to challenge some of the bigger sports. It?s just too hard. It?s kind of like when soccer was first starting to take off here.?

 

But getting another Australian to the majors certain would help publicize the sport and Oxspring seems on the verge of making that happen. He isn?t currently on the pitching-rich Brewers? 40-man roster, but if the 30-year-old Oxspring continues pitching like he has then a promotion is inevitable.

 

?He?s a guy that shows the younger guys, ?I?m only interested in getting guys out and doing what I need to do to get better,?? Sounds pitching coach Stan Kyles said. ?If he continues to pitch like he has, with the big club in the hunt up there, they?re going to want to continue to improve their team any way they can.

 

?He?s one of the guys they?re looking at that hopefully can help them down the line."

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

tennessean.com/apps/pbcs....106/SPORTS

 

Pitcher's attitude says a lot

Commentary by JOE BIDDLE

Tennessean Staff Writer

 

R.A. Dickey never has passed up an opportunity to take the baseball, but even he had to admit what happened Thursday night in Oklahoma City was strange.

 

Originally slated to start for the Sounds tonight against his old team, the veteran pitcher threw in the bullpen Wednesday and ran 30 minutes before Thursday's game. Then interim manager Harry Spilman asked Dickey if he could start the game.

 

In two hours. After throwing 93 pitches two days before.

 

"At least they asked; they didn't tell me,'' Dickey said with a laugh Friday, fresh from a 3-1 victory over the RedHawks in which he gave up only one run and four hits in six innings. "I felt like I could do it, and I did.''

 

I'm surprised they didn't ask Dickey to stay after the game and clean all the cleats in the clubhouse. He has been that kind of player. Anything that needs to be done, R.A. Dickey is the first to volunteer.

 

Start, middle, long or short relief. Close? No problem.

 

Arm of steel

 

He was like that at Montgomery Bell Academy, as an overworked pitcher at Tennessee and into his pro career.

 

"I've taken the ball at times when it might have been to a fault, but at the same time you are who you are,'' Dickey said.

 

A first round pick of the Texas Rangers in 1996, Dickey's last-minute work Thursday night was on familiar turf. It was his first pitching appearance in a city where he spent parts of seven seasons. He holds virtually all Oklahoma City's pitching records.

 

"That's a dubious honor, to be honest,'' Dickey said. "To lead a minor league team in every record, it's only because I have been there so long, and that's not real good.''

 

Dickey is like the character Crash Davis in Bull Durham, an 11-year veteran who wants one last shot at the big leagues.

 

At 32 years old, Dickey was pitching Thursday against players he watched grow up.

 

Knuckling under

 

Dickey developed a knuckleball in 2005 and is just starting to get the confidence to throw the pitch on any count.

 

He's had a few strong outings and is 6-4 with a 4.39 ERA in 12 starts and 94 1/3 innings. If he makes it back to the show, it will be with the knuckler.

 

"It's taken about two years to get a grasp on this thing," he said, "but I'm really doing it.''

 

Dickey is smart enough to look at the parent club Milwaukee Brewers' roster and see a sea of pitching prospects.

 

"I knew coming into this I was going to have to pitch my tail off," he said. "If I do that I think I'll be a consideration. If not, I've thrown well enough to be a consideration for someone else.''

 

In a game of give and take, R.A. Dickey will take the ball and give everything he has.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

newsok.com/article/3078449

 

Nix awaits chance for big-league return

By Scott Wright

Daily Oklahoman Staff Writer

 

Nashville Sounds outfielder Laynce Nix has found himself in an unfamiliar situation.

 

Triple-A baseball was the step Nix skipped on his initial ascent to the major leagues. Now, after working through multiple injuries and a trade in the last two seasons, he's in the position dozens of other Triple-A players are mired in: waiting for a big-league opportunity.

 

Once the jewel of the Texas Rangers farm system, Nix was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers organization last July 28 as part of the deal that brought Carlos Lee and current RedHawk Nelson Cruz to the Rangers.

 

On Friday night, the 26-year-old Nix batted third and started in center field ? the position vacated earlier in the day when the Brewers recalled Tony Gwynn Jr. ? for the Sounds in a 5-4 win over the RedHawks at the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark.

 

There's not much argument that Nix will be back in the big leagues soon. The only question might be with whom. The Brewers field a fairly young roster, and they're solid in the power categories ? the strength of Nix's game ? ranking second in the majors with 117 home runs.

 

"Laynce just needs to catch a break, either with Milwaukee or another big-league club,? Sounds hitting coach and acting manager Harry Spilman said. "He's a big-league player, so it's just a matter of time before he'll get back.?

 

Nix felt he had a shot at making the Brewers roster out of spring training until an oblique injury on March 29 put him out of action for six weeks.

 

"So I've been kind of stuck here for a little while,? Nix said of his Triple-A stint. "They're doing good (in Milwaukee). I'm trying to just get right and make a run up there in the second half.

 

"It's a battle every day to stay positive and get after it and be ready for an opportunity when it comes.?

 

RedHawks manager Bobby Jones, who managed Nix briefly in 2005 during his rehabilitation stint in Oklahoma City, still sees big-league potential in the youngster.

 

"It looks like he's back on track,? Jones said. "He'll be back up with somebody.?

 

Defense hasn't held him back. Nix can play any outfield spot. He ran down a deep fly ball in the right-center field gap Friday night and earlier in the series, he fired a perfect throw from right field to third base to cut down a RedHawk base runner.

 

But Nix is coming to understand the business of Triple-A baseball.

 

"It's the same situation for a lot of the guys over on the Oklahoma team, too ? a lot of guys that are ready to play in the big leagues,? he said. "It's just a matter of staying on top of your business and being ready for that chance.?

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Site:

 

Manny Parra Named Milwaukee Brewers' June Minor League Pitcher Of Month

[Mass Haas]

Link for full AAA All-Star Game preview article:

 

web.minorleaguebaseball.c...;fext=.jsp

 

Nashville Site:

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2443

 

Listen to the game via this link at 6:35 PM Central:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c.../audio.jsp

 

Game is on ESPN2.

 

Also an available video feed here -- a small charge likely involved, but check it just in case it's free tonight, someone let us know at gametime:

 

web.minorleaguebaseball.c.../video.jsp

 

Gameday, box score and game log here:

 

web.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_pcaaaa_1

[Mass Haas]

MiLB.com's AAA All-Star Recap:

 

web.minorleaguebaseball.c...p;sid=milb

 

Nashville Site:

Link, text follows --

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2447

 

PCL Stars Fall To IL In All-Star Game, 7-5

 

ALBUQUERQUE -- The International League All-Stars posted four runs in the top of the first inning against Tacoma right-hander Justin Lehr, a former Sound, en route to a 7-5 victory over the Pacific Coast League All-Stars on Wednesday evening at Isotopes Park.

 

Nashville catcher Vinny Rottino started for the PCL, batting from the eighth position, and drew walks in each of his two plate appearances. He caught the first five innings before being replaced by Tucson backstop Mark Johnson, another former Sound. Rottino threw out one of three runners attempting to steal against him.

 

Sounds reliever Steve Bray was the final PCL pitcher to take the hill on the evening and retired the lone batter he faced, inducing a flyout from Justin Ruggiano.

 

The game featured four home runs that accounted for the majority of the scoring, including one by PCL longball leader Craig Brazell of Omaha.

 

Veteran outfielder Timo Perez of Toledo led all players with a 3-for-4 evening that included a double and two RBIs for the International League.

[Never Outhustled]

I caught the end of the game. I saw Bray's 1 pitch outing, a 92 MPH fastball, that the batter flew out on to deep center. Also, Cardinal RHP prospect has one of the funkiest deliveries I ever saw. Mariner prospect CF Adam Jones just oozes talent. I wonder how he fits there with Ichero re-signing.

[AJhawk50]

milwaukee.brewers.mlb.com...p&c_id=mil

 

The Brewers sold Triple-A Nashville right-hander Chris Oxspring to the LG Twins of the Korea Professional Baseball League on Tuesday morning.

 

The 30-year-old had a 7-5 record with a 3.56 ERA and 106 strikeouts in 18 starts. His ERA ranked third in the league and his strikeout total was second only to current Brewer Yovani Gallardo's 110.

 

"He's a little bit of an older player," Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said. "From our standpoint, he probably was down on the depth chart and not someone that we would be able to give the opportunity to here."

 

Nashville called up Mark DeFelice from Double-A Huntsville to take Oxspring's spot on the roster. DeFelice, a 30-year-old pitcher, is 6-1 with a 1.62 ERA in 26 appearances.

 

Down on the farm: Even without Oxspring, Nashville had two representatives in Wednesday's Triple-A All-Star Game -- catcher Vinny Rottino and reliever Steve Bray.

 

Rottino started behind the plate in the PCL's 7-5 loss to the International League. The native of Racine, Wis., walked twice and scored a run. He also threw out a runner attempting to steal second base.

 

Bray retired the only batter he faced in the ninth inning.

 

Meanwhile, Double-A Huntsville sent seven players -- including DeFelice -- to the Southern League All-Star Game on Monday. DeFelice started the game and helped propel the North Division to a 7-4 win over the South Division.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

www.kokomotribune.com/spo...30138.html

 

Thatcher enjoying Sounds of success

 

Kokomo product is a bullpen stalwart for Triple-A Nashville

By BRYAN GASKINS

Kokomo (IN) Tribune Sportswriter

 

The Milwaukee Brewers lead the National League Central and feature an impressive collection of young players including All-Star slugger Prince Fielder, but that is just the start of the good news in an organization that is clearly on the rise. The Brewers? farm system is stocked with talent too.

 

The Nashville Sounds are leading the minor league clubs with their play in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League. The Sounds went into the all-star break with a league-best 55-35 record and a five-game lead in the Northern Division.

 

Kokomo?s Joe Thatcher is a relief pitcher for the Sounds.

 

?Things are going really well,? the former Kokomo High School basketball and baseball standout said during a visit home this week. ?When I got there [in May], we were right at .500 and now at the break, we?re 20 games over. We?ve been hot; just playing great baseball. We have good pitching, a good bullpen, guys swinging the bats well and clutch hitting. We?re winning and we?re having fun.?

 

Thatcher is in his second full season in the Brewers? organization. The Indiana State University product opened the 2007 season at Double-A Huntsville where he posted a 1-0 record and 0.55 ERA in 14 appearances. He received a promotion to Nashville on May 17 and quickly established himself as a reliable option out of the bullpen.

 

Thatcher went into the all-star break with a 1-1 record, six holds, one save and a 2.65 ERA in 20 appearances. The southpaw has shown his usual razor-sharp control in racking up 27 strikeouts against just six walks in 17 innings of work.

 

?I?ve been throwing really well. I?ve settled into a role where I face a lot of lefties, but I?ve also reached a point where the coaches have confidence in me to face right-handed hitters,? he said.

 

As a left-handed pitcher out of the bullpen, Thatcher is often called on to face left-handed batters in pressure situations late in games. The Sounds look to him to either hold the lead or if they are trailing, to keep them within striking distance.

 

Thatcher savors those opportunities.

 

?Since I?ve been playing professionally, I?ve been in the bullpen and if you?re going to be in the bullpen, you better want those situations,? he said. ?Once you get in those situations and have some success, then it becomes fun to come into a close game and shut the door and get your team out of a tight spot.?

 

The Pacific Coast League kicked off the second half of its season Thursday. Nashville is hosting the Memphis Redbirds in a four-game weekend series.

 

Thatcher said he is enjoying his time in the Music City.

 

?We have a good clubhouse; guys get along really well and everyone wants to win,? he said. ?At the same time, the real goal is to get called up to the big leagues. We?ve had our big prospect pitcher [Yovani Gallardo] and our big stick [third baseman Ryan Braun] called up. They?re big-time talents and they belong in the major leagues.?

 

Thatcher is knocking on the door himself. He enjoyed some rest and relaxation during his visit home this week, but his mind remained on the task at hand.

 

?We have 50 games left in the regular season and then the playoffs. It?s going to be a big push to finish strong,? he said. ?I?ve tried to relax and recharge the batteries because I need to finish strong and make a push to get to Milwaukee whether it?s the end of this year or next year.?

 

Photo image provided to the Kokomo (IN) Tribune

 

http://www.kokomotribune.com/sports/images_sizedimage_193230627/xl

[Mass Haas]

The Nashville media can't write enough about their hometown boy, R.A. Dickey -- that's understandable:

 

Dickey lets fly -- Beloved pitcher is back, but now he's a knucklehead

 

Slideshow -- Watch R.A. Dickey throw a knuckleball

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

tennessean.com/apps/pbcs....328/SPORTS

 

Gwynn Jr. returns from visit to Hall

Celebrates father's induction with hit

By MAURICE PATTON

Tennessean Staff Writer

 

On a day usually filled with emotion, Sounds outfielder Tony Gwynn said his father was surprisingly lacking such during Sunday's Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremonies.

 

The younger Gwynn had a front-row seat for the occasion, taking the long way back to Nashville after being optioned down by the Milwaukee Brewers last Wednesday.

 

"He didn't break down, like I thought he was going to," said Gwynn, who hit a two-run double in the Sounds' 4-0 win Monday over visiting Sacramento. "It was a great day for the whole family.

 

"It's mindboggling, seeing those giants of baseball walking around like normal people. I don't belong anywhere near those guys, but fortunately for me, my dad does, so I get a chance to be around them. Seeing him there kinda puts in perspective what he did and how good his career was. You're definitely proud, as his son, to be a part of it."

 

Over 20 seasons with the San Diego Padres, the older Gwynn collected 3,141 hits and retired following the 2001 season with a .338 batting average. He was selected to 15 straight All-Star Games, winning five Gold Gloves and eight National League batting titles.

 

Just as he did Sunday, Gwynn had a front-row seat for most of his father's exploits.

 

"I lived through most of those highlights," he said of the '89 batting race Gwynn won over San Francisco's Will Clark ? "he was my favorite player" ? on the final day of the season and the strike-shortened '94 campaign when Gwynn flirted with hitting .400 for the first time since Ted Williams batted .406 in 1941.

 

"I don't remember him making an out (that year)," he said. "It was an automatic 2-for-4, 3-for-5, a couple of 5-for-5s. He'd have easily gotten .400. He was inclining at the end of the season. He went on a tear from June on. He ended up at .394 in August and was just starting to hit his peak, really."

 

Makes own footsteps

 

The son's career hasn't gotten off to quite the same start as the father's. Monday's appearance opened his second stint with the Sounds since opening the year on the Brewers' roster.

 

As he mingled among the McCoveys, Mayses and Bretts over the weekend, he knows the genes only do so much.

 

"Not that I needed any more inspiration, but you can't help but be inspired when you're around those type people," he said. "That's the closest thing for a baseball player that you can get to heaven on earth."

 

As for becoming the first father-son duo in the Hall, Gwynn said:

 

"It's so, so, so far ahead; there are so many things I've got to do to even be considered, I don't even bring the thought up in my head.

 

"I just want to play baseball."

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

http://www.al.com/sports/huntsvilletimes/mmccarter.ssf?/base/sports/1186046274299890.xml&coll=1

 

Mention Dad and watch son shine

Tony Gwynn Jr. never tires of bragging on father

Mark McCarter, Huntsville Times

 

NASHVILLE - His dad was a little bit shaky. The entire morning, there were butterflies in every stomach in the family. The son was getting concerned.

 

"He was emotional, more emotional than I've ever seen him," said the son.

 

Then, said the son, "just like he did on the baseball field, he settled down and he knocked it out."

 

You'll find fewer larger shadows cast than the father's.

 

You'll find fewer Juniors who more eagerly, proudly and comfortably embrace that suffix than does the son.

 

"Why wouldn't you want to talk about your father when he's done what he's done?" the son will often say.

 

So, once again, Tony Gwynn Jr. was called upon to talk about his father, Tony Gwynn Sr., one of the two latest inductees into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

 

Tony Jr. - Anthony to his father, Little Tony to mom Alicia - was sitting at his corner locker in the Nashville Sounds' clubhouse, his jersey removed, his uniform pants a palette of orange-red dirt from a head-first slide.

 

Tony Jr., one of the classiest guys ever in a Huntsville Stars uniform (2004-05) was back to work, having taken a weekend's trip to Cooperstown for his father's enshrinement.

 

"Unbelievable," he began. "There are no words to describe what it was like to go there for the first time and be surrounded by so many greats. If you're a baseball fan, it's the closest thing to heaven on earth you'll run across."

 

As for his dad's speech, "He was way better than I expected. He was rock-solid on the podium. He had a few crack-ups, but you're supposed to. I don't know if I'm being biased because it was my father, but it was one of the better speeches I've heard.

 

"The toughest part for me was when he got choked up. Then I got choked up. But when he held strong, I held strong."

 

Though Tony Jr. was recently sent back to Triple-A Nashville, he began the year with the Milwaukee and batted .274 in 59 games as the Brewers' fifth outfielder; he's had two different tours with both teams.

 

"At the beginning of the year, nobody expected me to even be up there," Tony Jr. said. "I was destined for Triple-A. And when I made the team, I don't think anybody expected me to do as well as I did. It was a learning experience, my first time starting a year in the big leagues, getting a steady job in the big leagues. I feel like I'm only going to get better because of that."

 

The up-and-down between Milwaukee and Nashville hasn't worn on Tony Jr. as it has on a certain Hall of Fame outfielder.

 

"It's been tougher on him than it has on me," Tony Jr. said. "He never had to fool with anything like that. For him to have his son go through it, it's been rough at times. But he's doing a job of keeping positive."

 

Of his father's 27-minute speech, what resonated most with Tony Jr. were actually words from his grandfather.

 

"I'm a big believer in whatever you want, if you want something out of this game, you've got to put the work in it," Tony Sr. said Sunday.

"You've got to work hard. My father said 'You work hard, good things will happen.' Boy oh, boy he was absolutely right."

 

"I remember him telling me that when I was 15 years old," Tony Jr. said. "And that sticks in my head every day."

 

To see the record crowd sprawled across the field at Cooperstown, to see the impact Tony Gwynn Sr. had with the San Diego Padres, where he was an eight-year batting champ, he was obviously a hero to thousands.

 

Then you talk to Tony Jr. And you see the biggest thing was what a hero he was in his own home.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Site:

McClung Named PCL Pitcher-Of-The-Week

[recte44]

Something tells me we'll see McClung in the bigs in about 19 days at the latest, if not sooner (Wise/Villy situation).

[JJHardy7]

I have been singing his praises for awhile. It'll be interesting to see how Nashville uses him until he gets called up. I don't expect the Brewers needing him to start the rest of the year unless something crazy happens.

[Mass Haas]

Abad is what's good in Sounds' clubhouse

BY NATE RAU, Nashville City Paper Sports Correspondent

 

Most people get welcomed to their new place of employment with a handshake and a, 'Pleased to meet you,' from their new co-workers.

 

Not so for new players coming to the Nashville Sounds.

 

They meet Andy Abad, whose first question is, "How tall are you listed on the roster?"

 

"Once you tell him how tall you are then he says, 'There's no way you're that tall,'" Sounds outfielder Drew Anderson said. "So then you stand up straight kind of eye-to-eye with him and that leads into this sort of karatechop leg-sweep and everybody cracks up."

 

Cracking people up is an unofficial part of Abad's role on the team. Abad turns 35-years-old later this month and is in the 15th season of a career that has seen three brief stints at the major league level.

 

As such, Abad has seen all the ups and downs the game of baseball has to offer and he's come to the conclusion he plays his best when things are loose.

 

The clubhouse prankster is a timehonored baseball tradition and Abad fills the role to perfection.

 

"He knows when it's time to lighten the mood and keep guys loose but he also knows when it's time to bear down and focus," Sounds manager Frank Kremblas said.

 

Abad said his role of keeping his teammates loose comes for several reasons. For starters, he sees younger players stressing out about hitting slumps or worrying about big league promotions.

 

"I see those younger guys and I especially like to be able to help them out and lighten up," Abad said. "I know I wish I had a guy like that when I was younger."

 

But Abad also appreciates the fact that he and his Sounds teammates play a game for a living.

 

"You know I love this game and I have absolutely no regrets about how my career's gone," Abad said. "A lot of it comes from the support of my wife [Glenys] who told me I can play till they rip the jersey off me.

 

"But I never lose sight of being a professional baseball player."

 

Abad is making the most of his time with the Sounds. He's hitting .319 with 10 homers and 49 RBIs.

 

"I know when there's guys on base in scoring position, that's when he especially likes to come through," Kremblas said of Abad.

 

This is Abad's second stint as a Sound - he was also in Music City in 2004 (Pirates' organization) - and he said he's enjoying this season as much as any other.

 

"Being in first place with this group of guys makes me feel young again," Abad said.

 

And when Abad's playing career does come to an end, his baseball career will likely continue on by transitioning to coaching. There was one game earlier this season when Kremblas was away from the team for personal reasons and acting-manager Harry Spillman was ejected. Abad actually stepped in and managed the team.

 

"I've had guys tell me the second I hand in my jersey as a player, they'll hand me one as a coach," Abad said. "I think I'd really like that. And I'd want to work with the young guys and give them that positive influence I try to give these guys here."

 

Nashville City Paper File Photo by Mike Strasinger

Sounds infielder Andy Abad is the club's resident jokester, but he hopes to be a manager one day.

 

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