The 2007 Hawaiian League -- Latest: Top 15 Prospects

[Mass Haas]

Huge game for Jonathan Lucroy as his single kicked off an eighth-inning rally in Honu's 5-4 win Saturday night. Earlier in the game he had a two-out RBI single an walked twice. Lucroy is now 11-for-28 (.393) with three walks and only four K's (.952 OPS). A contibution elsewhere as MiLB.com's wrap-up indicates:

 

Shintaro Yoshida lifted a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth inning Saturday as the North Shore Honu edged the Waikiki BeachBoys, 5-4.

Brewers prospect Jonathan Lucroy led off the eighth with a single and was replaced by pinch-runner Jeramy Laster (Tigers), who moved up on a sacrifice by Chris Valaika (Reds) and took third on a passed ball. Yoshida followed with a fly ball to center field to snap a 4-4 tie.

Lucroy had a pair of base hits, an RBI and a run scored, while fellow Milwaukee farmhand Mat Gamel drew three walks and scored a run for the Honu (12-6).

 

Gamel's only fielding chance was a pop out catch.

 

Steve Chapman had a quiet night, 0-for-4 and his second error of the season at first base.

 

Omar Aguilar has now had three days off, thankfully slowing the ridiculous pace of appearances set earlier.

 

Box Score

[colbyjack]

Jonathan Lucroy is already having another big night. He singled in his first AB (2nd inning), scoring on a home run by the next batter (Jamie Romak). He drove in two runners in the third with a double (later being thrown out at home as part of a double-steal).

 

Chapman so far is 0-2, once again starting the night at first. Gamel gets the night off (so far).

[Mass Haas]

Here's Sunday's final box for Lucroy and Chapman, clcik on "Log" at the link to view Omar Aguilar's and Kevin Roberts' combined three shutout innings to end the game:

 

http://www.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l405&t=g_box&gid=2007_10_21_waiwin_nshwin_1

[WV Brew]

Woke up late last night (early AM Oct 22) and saw that Oct 17th game on MASN. The last inning and a half anyway. Aguilar pitched the 9th and Chapman and Gamel batted in their half of the 9th. Nice to see the players for a change. Anyway, if you get MASN, you may be able to see some games. Good luck finding out the schedule though.

[colbyjack]

Jonathan Lucroy's most recent player journal has been posted on MiLB.com:

 

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071021&content_id=311907&vkey=news_milb&fext=.jsp

 

It's impossible not to root for this young man, who sounds as though he has a really good head on his shoulders (which we've heard before), and sounds pretty forthright about where he's at and what he still needs to work on.

 

It's particularly encouraging since both of the Brewers top picks are incredibly grounded young men, and I've heard the same thing about both Eric Farris and Caleb Gindl.

 

And we also hope that this picture is indeed Jonathan Lucroy:

 

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/images/2007/10/21/d537xlGR.jpg

[SunGrasses]

Yep, that's him. I've seen him before. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

[kgbaseball]

Another error by Gamel today, making that 5 already in the HWL.

[Mass Haas]

This paragraph from MiLB.com sums it up nicely:

 

Jonathan Lucroy singled twice -- his sixth multi-hit effort in 12 games -- and drove in two runs, giving him five RBIs in his last three contests. Fellow Brewers prospect Mat Gamel went 3-for-4 with an RBI and Stephen Chapman, another Milwaukee farmhand, singled, doubled, and scored twice for North Shore (14-6). Jeramy Laster (Tigers) belted a solo homer, his league-leading fifth, in the eighth.

 

Click on the three Brewers in the box score to get their HWL stats to date:

 

http://www.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l405&t=g_box&gid=2007_10_23_nshwin_wocwin_1

[homer]

I actually sent Jonathan an email (his address is listed at the end of his blog) with some tips on restaurants in Honolulu. He responded within two hours. Seems like a really nice kid.

[Mass Haas]

North Shore hangs on, 7-6.

 

Jonathan Lucroy with his fourth straight multi-hit game, now sports a .415/.467/.537 line (1.003 OPS in 41 AB's, 4 BB's, 7 K's).

 

Steve Chapman 2-for-5 including a double, Mat Gamel 0-for-5 with a walk, handled his only fielding chance cleanly.

 

Omar Aguilar allowed two inherited runners to score, then allowed two runs of his own, as North Shore pitchers combined to allow five runs in the 9th to almost lose the lead. Aguilar's buddy Kevin Roberts came on and stranded the tying and winning runners with a strikeout to end the game. Click "Log" for details:

 

http://www.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l405&t=g_box&gid=2007_10_24_nshwin_wocwin_1

[And That]

At this rate, we're going to be able to trade Lucroy for 25 mediocre bullpen innings this July! Yes!

[Mass Haas]

North Shore wins, 2-0, in a game shortened to seven innings. The recap available at the link includes the following:

 

Mat Gamel (Brewers) and Lou Santangelo (Astros) each singled and walked and Milwaukee farmhand Stephen Chapman doubled in three at-bats to raise his average to .299.

 

Jon Lucroy (designated hitter) was 0-for-3 (two GIDP's). No defensive chances for Mat Gamel.

 

http://www.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l405&t=g_box&gid=2007_10_25_nshwin_wocwin_1

[Mass Haas]

Link to Orlando Sentinel, text follows:

 

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/baseball/orl-llucroy2607oct26,0,569351.story

 

He blocks home plate, snorkels over volcano, and writes about it

by Dave Heeren

 

When Jonathan Lucroy agreed to play winter-league baseball, he expected to see hundreds of pitches coming at him. What he didn't expect was hundreds of e-mail messages.

 

Lucroy, 21, has come a long way since graduating from Umatilla (FL) High School in 2004. He excelled as a catcher for the University of Louisiana-Lafayette for three seasons and was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the third round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft.

 

Now, after batting .342 in a half-season in a rookie league, he is playing baseball in paradise and writing a journal about it. Lucroy's journal, written in Hawaii, has been published the past two Mondays on the Minor League Baseball Web site, milb.com.

 

"Hawaii is a wonderful place to play winter ball," Lucroy writes.

 

Lucroy is one of the youngest and least-experienced players in the league but is the league's only player writing a journal.

 

"I met a guy who works for MLB.com while playing in a showcase in 2005. [Recently] he wrote me an e-mail asking me to write the journal," Lucroy said.

 

Lucroy has plenty to write about and is well prepared for it. In college he took several writing courses and majored in environmental and sustainable resources. That background has helped him write about Hawaii's ecology.

 

"We went snorkeling over an extinct volcano," he writes. "I fully expected to go up there and see plumes of lava shooting into the air."

 

After his first article, Lucroy received more than 150 e-mail messages. Most were from people he knows. The rest were baseball-related questions from fans. He answered a few of the questions in the second installment of his journal. He replies to all of his messages.

 

But he prefers writing about the beauty of his surroundings.

 

"Personally, I like the rain forest, the mountains," he said. "Other guys like the beaches, but in Florida I've been there and done that."

 

He writes, "We played three games before taking a bus up into the rain forest, which was absolutely unbelievable."

 

Oh, and he also has played some baseball. Lucroy plays for the North Shore Honu, one of the league's better teams. His catching coach is a former player in a Japanese professional league.

 

The way Lucroy describes the daily workouts his coach puts him through makes him sound more like a football player than a baseball player -- a combination of an offensive lineman, a wide receiver and a quarterback.

 

"He works me every day in blocking, receiving and throwing," he writes.

 

Lucroy is hoping the experience in the winter league will enable him to land in the Class A Florida State League next spring. Milwaukee's farm team in that league plays in Brevard.

 

"It's only about an hour's drive from my home. If I play there, my dad probably won't miss a game. He loves it," Lucroy said.

 

He wrote his thoughts about the paradise where he lives: "Not having fun here would be a really tough thing to do."

 

But the reality of minor-league baseball isn't as glamorous as it seems. He said, "A lot of people think this life is glamorous, and it really isn't until you get to the Big Show."

 

Lucroy has his sights set on playing Major League Baseball, and on coaching college baseball after that. In the meantime, he's taking things one step at a time.

 

A nice next step would be a spot on the Brewers' Brevard roster in 2008.

[Mass Haas]

Steve Chapman with a 3-for-5 game, including a double, and has his line up to .319/.347/.431 (.777 OPS) in 72 AB's.

 

Omar Aguilar stranded an inherited runner, but then ran into a bit of trouble himself. North Shore loses, 16-6, but still sports a 16-7 record.

 

http://www.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l405&t=g_box&gid=2007_10_26_nshwin_honwin_1

[Mass Haas]

North Shore wins, 8-3 on Saturday

 

Mat Gamel homered and drove in three runs Saturday as the North Shore Honu defeated the Honolulu Sharks, 8-3, for their seventh win in eight games.

The Brewers third base prospect collected his third three-hit game in Hawaii Winter Baseball, capping a 3-for-3 afternoon with a leadoff homer in the ninth inning.

Gamel spent the regular season with Class A Advanced Brevard County and hit .300 with nine homers and 60 RBIs while committing a Minor League-leading 53 errors. He moved up to Double-A Huntsville for the Southern League playoffs and went 5-for-15 with two doubles and two RBIs in four games.

 

Gamel was actuallly 3-for-3 with a walk and sacrifice fly -- he's at .333/.440/.609 (1.049 OPS) in 69 AB's (14 BB's, 17 K's).

 

Somehow Gamel managed to outshine red-hot Stephen Chapman, who ran his hitting streak to six games with his second consecutive three-hit game and 4th multi-hit game in his last five. Chapman continues to seemingly strike out every time he doesn't get a base hit, so his BABIP (average when ball in play) is off the chart. Chapman singled three times in five AB's, and is now at .338/.363./.442 (.804 OPS) in 77 AB's (three BB's, 23 K's).

 

Jonathan Lucroy (designated hitter today) was 0-for-5 but is still hitting .347 (.845 OPS) in 49 AB's.

 

Gamel, Lucroy and Chapman hit in the 3-4-5 spots for the Honu today.

 

http://www.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l405&t=g_box&gid=2007_10_27_nshwin_honwin_1

Mat Gamel is 7-for-14 with a home run and four RBIs in his last four games. (Photo by Jerry Hale/MLB.com)

http://www.mlb.com/images/2007/10/27/Vc8dROfI.jpg

[Mass Haas]

Mat Gamel handled two balls cleanly before committing a fielding error in the 9th, his 6th in 21 games. Not good, but well ahead of his regular season pace. The thing we say with third baseman (as is the case with Ryan Braun) is that game-to-game, the fielding chances are few, so the high error counts (and lower fielding percentages) stand out so much more than middle infielders.

[Mass Haas]

North Shore rallies from five down to win, 8-6, on Sunday

 

Mat Gamel cranked his Hawaii Winter Baseball-leading sixth homer in the seventh, he was able to just focus on the bat as DH in this one. He also walked once and K'd three times. Jonathan Lucroy was 2-for-5 with a double, Steve Chapman was 0-for-5 with four K's.

 

Kevin Roberts allowed four baserunners in his two innings, but induced a GIDP and stranded the other three.

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2007_10_28_nshwin_honwin_1

[Mass Haas]

Jonathan Lucroy's latest journal -- he needs our questions, please take him up on his offer:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071029&content_id=318434&vkey=news_milb&fext=.jsp

 

Journal: Time flies for Lucroy

By Jonathan Lucroy / Special to MLB.com

Catcher Jonathan Lucroy was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the third round of the 2007 Draft. Assigned to Helena of the Rookie-level Pioneer League, the University of Louisiana product immediately impressed by hitting .342 in 61 games. The Brewers have sent him to Hawaii Winter Baseball this year to further his professional education. He'll be periodically posting his thoughts on playing baseball in paradise for the North Shore Honu.

 

Send Jonathan an email

Hello, everybody! This is Jonathan Lucroy again from Hawaii. Well, this past week has been a lot of fun, considering we went 5-1. This team is very good. We are the defending champs from last year and this year we are for sure defending our title, but as you all know, there are three other really good teams in this league and the competition is among the best in the country.

One thing about this league is that we only play 40 games. So the games are going to really fly by. For example, on Tuesday, we reached the halfway point. Of course, it didn't seem like it because it feels like we just got here.

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com//images/2007/10/16/G5SdILax.jpg

It's sad to think about the team you're on and that you don't have much time left before you go back to the "real" world of baseball. What I mean is that when we go home to get ready to train for next season, we have to work hard knowing that we might face one of our buddies who we played with in Hawaii. So it's a constant competition always, even with a guy right next to you in the dugout at Hans L'Orange Stadium.

This past week yielded very few questions, so I'm going to ask that if anybody has any type of question, please shoot me an email and I will answer it, for sure. I did receive a few, though, and I'll answer those now.

While in Hawaii, do you draw big crowds for games? Also, where do you live and what do you do for food? --Dave and Marlene from Montana

The field we play at is called Hans L'Orange Stadium. It's located to the west of Honolulu and about a 30-minute drive from where the bus picks us up. That means there aren't very many people who come to the games. Last year, the games were played at the University of Hawaii's field, so it was a lot easier for people to come and watch. However, on a Friday night, we probably get a good 200 people. So it isn't totally desolate out there. Still, it is a great atmosphere and a great place to play and get better. We have great support from the people who come and the staff that does its best to make the games enjoyable.

The place we live is a college dorm for the University of Hawaii-Pacific. There are several guys who live here with us from different teams. We all live together in rooms on the first floor. My roommate is Kevin Roberts. He played at the University of Houston and also for the Brewers. A lot of guys live all around downtown Honolulu near Waikiki Beach. It's right here near our bus pickup, so it's really convenient and easy.

The food here is different. Of course, you have your common fast-food places but also you have you upscale restaurants. Being in tourist central doesn't help out too much, either. It gets pretty expensive, but it's worth it, for sure, by just being able to play baseball here. We are fed every day before and after games, so we get those meals out of the way. Plus, we get meal money for extra food.

How familiar were you with the Brewers when you were drafted and are you excited to be part of a franchise that has a very young nucleus and should be competing for the postseason every year in the near future? --Andrew

Well, I wasn't very familiar with the Brewers to begin with. I had a few pre-draft meetings with them, but I wasn't expecting to be drafted by them at all. Actually, I really didn't know who would draft me, I was just lucky enough to be drafted by the Brewers. I am very excited to be a part of the team, that's for sure. We have so many good players in our Minor League system and such a great way of developing players. I know that I will get better constantly and so will all the guys I was drafted with. Another thing is that since we have such a good Minor League system, we are going to push the big leaguers to get better, too. So it's a constant progression of talent through the entire system.

Were there any players who particularly impressed you in either Helena or Hawaii? You appear to be a very solid player, so I'm interested to know who, from your perspective, has stood out the most so far. --Rodney

There have been several players who have stood out to me. One of them was on my team in Helena. He was our fourth-rounder this year and our second baseman, Eric Farris, who played at Loyola Marymount. His defense is among the best, if not the best, I have ever seen. I have yet to see a second baseman as good as him. Another guy in Helena who stood out to me was our fifth-rounder, Caleb Gindl. He led the entire Minor Leagues in batting average at age 19. Pretty unbelievable to watch, believe me. As far as in Hawaii, there are a lot of great players and a lot of great talent, but there isn't anybody doing anything really unbelievable. Maybe it's just because I had to play behind those two all year long.

 

 

Jonathan Lucroy has had at least two hits in eight of 16 Hawaii Winter Baseball games. (Photo by Jay Metzger/HWB)

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/images/2007/10/29/ZwhfMVVL.jpg

[Mass Haas]

North Shore breaks it open late, 8-2 --

 

Mat Gamel ruling this league, two more doubles, Stephen Chapman a single and walk, and Omar Aguilar strikes out the side and loads the bases in an eventful but scoreless 9th inning:

 

http://mlb.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l405&t=g_box&gid=2007_10_30_wocwin_nshwin_1

[PrimeTime955]

Hey i had my question answered. Must not have been many questions.

[Mass Haas]

North Shore falls, 4-0

 

Kevin Roberts had a nice 1-2-3 6th inning; Mat Gamel 1-for-4 with three K's (23 K's in 81 AB's thus far, not a hideous rate for a 1.063 OPS); Steve Chapman 0-for-4 as his OPS falls to .727 (only four walks in 89 AB's).

 

Other than a popup caught, Mat Gamel committed his 7th error, fielding a ground ball, in his only other chance. No stats on fielding percentage available, but we've tried to present the updates to include chances in many of the posts -- third basemen simply don't see enough to justify the high error totals.

 

http://www.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l405&t=g_box&gid=2007_11_02_nshwin_waiwin_1

[Mass Haas]

Link, text follows:

 

http://www.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071104&content_id=2291971&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

 

Honu wrap up Western Division title

Gamel strokes league-leading seventh homer in 8-7 win

By Michael Blinn / Special to MLB.com

The North Shore Honu clinched the West Division title with an 8-7 triumph over the Waikiki BeachBoys on Saturday as Shintaro Yoshida scored on a wild pitch in the top of the ninth inning.

The victory gave the Honu (20-8) an 11 1/2-game lead over West Oahu with 11 games to play in the regular season. They await the East Division winner in the championship game on Nov. 19.

With the score tied, 7-7, Yoshida led off the ninth with a single to left field. He moved up on a sacrifice by Reds prospect Michael Griffin before Mat Gamel was intentionally walked. Fellow Brewers farmhand Jonathan Lucroy grounded out to put both runners in scoring position and reliever David Patton (0-1) threw a wild pitch while walking Stephen Chapman (Brewers) to plate the go-ahead run.

Masahiro Nagata drove in two runs and Pirates Minor Leaguer Brad Corley hit an RBI single and scored in the fourth for the Honu. Gamel added a solo homer, his seventh, in the fifth, to tie West Oahu's Ian Gac for the Hawaii Winter Baseball lead.

Reliever Shinya Nakayama (5-1) struck out all three batters he faced in the eighth for the win and Omar Aguilar (Brewers) walked one in a hitless ninth for his first save. North Shore starter Sean Walker (Astros) yielded two unearned runs on two hits with three strikeouts over three frames.

Mariners prospect Michael Wilson launched a three-run homer in the fifth, giving him an HWB-best 27 RBIs, including 14 in his last 10 games. Antoan Richardson (Giants) tripled in a run and scored in the third to extend his hitting streak to a league season-high 11 games for the BeachBoys (14-15).

Patton, a Rockies farmhand, was charged with one run on a hit and two walks with one strikeout in one inning. BeachBoys starter Yutaka Tamaki surrendered four runs -- three earned -- on three hits with four strikeouts and four walks over 3 2/3 frames.

 

Box Score

[Mass Haas]

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/gen/articles/printer_friendly/milb/y2007/m11/d04/c319910.jsp

Journal: Lucroy ready for personal time

Honu's berth assured, days off and emails can be enjoyed

By Jonathan Lucroy / Special to MLB.com

Catcher Jonathan Lucroy was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the third round of the 2007 draft. Assigned to Helena of the Rookie-level Pioneer League, the University of Louisiana product immediately impressed by hitting .342 in 61 games. The Brewers have sent him to Hawaii Winter Baseball this year to further his professional education. He'll be periodically posting his thoughts on playing baseball in paradise for the North Shore Honu.

Send Jonathan an email

Hello, everybody! Jonathan Lucroy here again from Hawaii. I hope everybody's past week went well. This week has been very exciting for me just for one sole reason. We clinched a playoff spot. Granted, there are only four teams but still, with the level of competition that is here, I think it's something to be proud of.

Over the course of the next week we aren't going to be playing a lot. We actually have four days off in a row! I couldn't believe it. We actually have time now to go do some things we've been wanting to do, like deep sea fishing.

I have really been wanting to go and see parts of Oahu that are really hidden from all of the tourists. Obviously, I have yet to find out some places yet, but I've been asking around! We've been talking about going up into the rain forest and jumping off some waterfalls. I did that when I was here before and it was unbelievable.

This past week I received a lot of emails, so I'm going to commit a large part of this journal to answering those questions as in depth as I can.

How much off time do the Minor Leaguers get once the season is over? When you talk about getting back here to train, will you go home for a while or do you have to go the Brewers' training facility and continue with rookie workouts? --Mary, Boston

The amount of time we get off depends on the player himself. For example, there are a lot of guys who go home as soon as the regular season is over. Then there are some guys, like the guys here, who get invited to play winter ball somewhere. So that means instead of having about four months off, you get about 2 1/2. Whenever I leave here, I'll be going home. I have a professional workout facility near my house that specializes in strength, speed, agility and quickness -- all of the things that are really important to work on in the offseason. There are some guys, though, who go to a winter program the Brewers put on over the fall and before Spring Training. They work on similar things there as well.

What in your experience as a catcher, and I suppose as a hitter, are the most important qualities of a good pitcher? --Bob, San Antonio, Texas

First and foremost is the ability to locate. There are so many guys who can throw hard, but it doesn't do you any good if you can't control where that ball goes. Also, movement and velocity are big factors in pitching. The guys who effectively work down and mix their pitches well are the guys I don't like to face. Next time you watch a big-league game on TV, watch the location of the balls that are hit hard. I can almost guarantee that they are going to be elevated pitches.

What are the most important things for young players to work on? --Susan, Weyauwega, Wisconsin

The most important skills for young players to work on would be the fundamentals -- fielding, catching, throwing, baserunning and hitting. It depends on how old they are, but you don't need to be teaching a 9-year-old how to throw a curveball. Their age really is the biggest factor, but for now, just work on the basics. Find yourself a good baseball coach or tutor and ask him to show you some things the young kids can do. Hitting off a tee, for example, is one of the best drills you can do. Long toss, taking ground balls and bunting are also good fundamental skills.

Have you set a deadline for making it to the bigs? --Pat, Lafayette

No, the organization doesn't tell us those kinds of things, at least not me. I expect to be there within three to four years. That may not be realistic, it's just what I expect of myself as I get better.

You left in your junior year with a great academic record. With summer and winter league ball, can you finish up your degree work at the University of Louisiana and, if so, how hard will that be? --Pat

Yes, I am for sure. Actually, next fall, after the season is over, if I'm not invited to play winter ball, then I will be going back to Lafayette to continue work on my degree. I only have two semesters left, so I'm really close. I actually love school, so it's going to be a lot of fun for me. After I graduate though, which might be within two years, I'm going to get my master's degree. So I'm pretty excited.

As you move along the path to MLB, how hard is it to leave behind your other lifestyles, family and sunny Florida, friends and hot Cajun culture, etc.? How hard is it to maintain the familial and cultural character that have brought you to this point in your career? Do you feel that you can bring some of that culture, and more importantly that character, into play with your teammates at this level? --Pat

This life, as I talked about before, is far from glamorous. One of the things that I've had to sacrifice, and many players have to sacrifice, is spending time with family and friends. It's really sad, though, to think about everything you leave behind for this life. You have to really love it to be able to handle it, and your family and friends have to understand and support what you're doing. I know that if my friends and family didn't support me, I would have a tough time surviving.

As far as my character goes, I am not changing. I'm still the same country hunter-fisherman I've always been. I know that doesn't sound like a Florida boy, but I grew up that way. My dad always took me hunting and fishing. My parents and grandparents instilled in me the moral values needed to succeed in life. Those teachings have come through in my baseball life through my ability to handle adversity and conflict.

I bring my hunting and fishing pictures with me everywhere I go. I also get daily emails from my parents and grandparents. I am constantly reminded to be a good kid. Ha, ha. But, yes, there are guys here with me who believe and feel the same way I do about baseball and life in general.

Does Minor League Baseball offer opportunities to have you meet with young people in the community and make a difference in their lives? --Pat

During the season in Helena this year, we did several player appearances. We went to a theater and did a question-and-answer session. We also did a baseball clinic at the local YMCA for some 6- to 7-year-olds. I wish we had more time for those things. I believe that kids are a large part of the whole baseball paradigm. When I am interacting with the kids, I am constantly reminded that even though I get paid to do this, baseball is, in fact, just a game. The kids don't know it as any different and that's the way it should be.

How do players feel about the extra work in the fall and winter leagues? Are there any guidelines about a maximum number of games and innings pitched for the players in the league? I would think catchers and pitchers especially need to be monitored for excess playing time. --Dave Day

The players here realize they were sent here to get better. Everybody here is fine with that, even though a lot of us are really tired. As far as guidelines and limitations go, it depends on the player. For example, I know that the pitching coordinators for the different teams call the pitching coaches here and put a limit on a pitch count for one of their guys in a game. None of our pitchers here so far have gone more than five innings. And they won't, either. Our pitching coach here set the limit at the start of the season. We have three catchers and we rotate about every three games. It's actually easier because I caught every game but two in college this year and I caught a lot of the games in Helena.

The big club lives and dies by the long ball. I was wondering if small ball is stressed in the Minor League system. To me, that's baseball -- being unselfish and grounding out to the right side to advance a runner, hit-and-run, bunts, squeeze plays, etc. What are your thoughts on this? Also, which pitcher has the best stuff that you've caught so far this year? --Don Grosek

The answer to the first part is yes, it is, very much so. The ability to lay down a sacrifice bunt is a skill that has to be perfected. If you can't bunt, you had better hit a lot of home runs. A lot of the other stuff depends on the type of hitter you are. Whether you are a contact hitter, a free swinger or a power guy. It all depends. If you're a consistent contact hitter, you can be a good hit-and-run guy. A good bunter would be used for squeeze plays or sacrifice bunts. A lot of big-league teams like players that hit home runs and put up numbers, though. Usually, if it's a close game and a fast guy at the plate, you might see a drag bunt, or if a pitcher is hitting, you might see a sacrifice bunt. As we all know, though, the fans would rather see home runs than a sacrifice bunt.

The pitcher with the best stuff I've caught this year, by far and without a doubt, is a guy named Shinya Nakayama. He's from Japan and he plays for the Orix Buffaloes. He has the nastiest curveball I have ever seen. And he's a lefty, so it makes it even dirtier. He also locates his three other pitches well with movement and velocity.

Everyone is listed as a defensive catcher or an offensive catcher. Do you believe you can be both? --Dale, Madison

Yes, I do. I believe that hard work pays off. There are so many natural hitters. It's really a talent you have to be born with. I really believe that. Hand-eye coordination and athleticism is something that comes natural. Although arm strength comes natural, too. I believe defense is a learned skill, all in all. Defense is obviously the weakest part of my game. It's something I work on every day and try to get better at. I really honestly believe, as far as catchers go, when you put the defensive and offensive parts of your game together, you get the Jorge Posadas and the Joe Mauers. It's a tough thing to do though. I know of catchers who are really weak hitters, but they are absolute studs behind the plate. It's just a matter of knowing what your weaknesses are and working on those weaknesses.

That's it for this week, everybody! Hopefully, you all will have a nice week and remember, send me some questions. Aloha!

[Mass Haas]

North Shore falls, 8-5, Thursday afternoon

 

Third baseman Mat Gamel doubled and struck out twice in five AB's, 1.054 OPS in 90 AB's (26 K's). He did commit error # 8 (throwing), he did handle two other ground balls and two pop outs.

 

Steve Chapman was hit by a pitch, but K'd in his other three AB's (.702 OPS in 95 AB's, 32 K's). It's getting to be a looonnngg season for some of these guys. North Shore will be in the championship game a week from Monday (on the 19th).

 

Jonathan Lucroy (20-for-59, .339) singled as a pinch-hitter.

 

Kevin Roberts earns the star today --

 

West Oahu Bottom 8th

• - Pitcher Change: Kevin Roberts replaces Charles Benoit.
• - Craig Gentry strikes out swinging.
• - Anthony Hatch strikes out on foul tip.
• - Russell Mitchell strikes out swinging.

That's 11 walks but 17 K's in 14 IP thus far for Kevin.

 

Box Score

[Mass Haas]

Two disastrous innings as North Shore falls, 12-2

 

Fortunately, the only Brewer pitcher, Omar Aguilar, was very sharp, with two perfect innings, striking out three (all swinging). He's held RH bats to a .147 average, although those few hits have proven costly at times.

 

Jonathan Lucroy walked and singled as the DH, while Stephen Chapman doubled in four AB's, fanning twice. Day off for Mat Gamel:

 

http://mlb.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l405&t=g_box&gid=2007_11_09_nshwin_wocwin_1