The last tidbit from my trip to Huntsville is the interview with Stars manager Don Money.  I got over an hour of time with Coach Money so this transcript is only a partial transcript. Part Two will be coming shortly.

BCB: When did you decide that coaching was something you were interested in?

Don Money: After I finished my career in '83 I went to Japan for a few months, and then in '84 I completely got out, and starting in '87 I coached a high school team for five years and also a semi-pro team.  This was a full time job then because the high school was during the week, and the semi-pro team was during the weekends.  Once my kids got out of high school my wife said that I should get a job back, so I got a job for three years working in a shipping and receiving department part-time, and then I saw that Cecil Cooper got the minor league director's job in 1997, so I gave him a call during spring training to see if there were any openings for next year.  Coop said that there would be, but he wasn't sure where and he would call back during the summer.  So he ended up getting offered the job in Helena [Rookie ball], so then two weeks later Cooper called back and said he changed his mind and offered me the position in Beloit.  So I was in Beloit for seven years.  I had an opportunity to go to California a couple of times, as the Brewers had a team in High Desert, but it was a move from A to A, and my family was on the East Coast, so I decided to stay in Beloit.  Then four years ago when Cecil got a job in Houston, Frank Kremblas, who was the manger at Huntsville, moved up to AAA, and I moved up here.

BCB: Can you compare this team you currently have to the Beloit team you had in 2003 with [Prince] Fielder, [Rickie] Weeks, [Tony] Gwynn, [Manny] Parra, [Dennis] Sarfate, [Callix] Crabbe, and so on?

DM: The year before Prince had come up from Rookie ball, then Gwynn and Weeks came in the draft, so that team wasn't together for the full season.  That team too had more prospects on the pitching side, and this team is more on the positional players.  You go back to the scouting department and Jack Zduriencik because when I first came here in '98 and '99 and 2000 the talent was kind of thin.  You have to give credit to the scouting department.  [Zduriencik] goes out there and busts stones, as we say, and you have to find these players.  You don't just take the word of a guy who is saying this is a ace pitcher who will be in the big leagues in a few years.  You have to follow up on these players.  If you go and then the game was canceled by rain you have to stick with them.  So he has done a really good job of bringing in the talent, and it isn't just the number-one picks and the number-two picks, it is the fifth-round picks and the tenth-round picks, all the way down.  You always expect the fourth or fifth pick to be guys who are ready to go, but if you find guys who are in the 11th round and the 12th round who are better than the guys who other teams are picking there, that is really important.  And that team in Beloit was loaded, with Prince and Rickie and Manny.  Manny was dealing that year.  Now, it looks like he has finally made the turn and, knock on wood, he has pretty much solidified his spot in the rotation and maybe is over the injury bug that seemed to get him every year for three or four years.  Sarfate was there and he always had a big-league arm; he just had to throw it over the plate.  He was always a starter and now he is a reliever.

BCB: That seemed to be the role that the Brewers were projecting him into down the road.

DM:  It is hard to set up a short man or a reliever in the minor leagues.  If you look at stats here and you look at a guy like Pena and he is earmarked to be a setup or closer, but I don't know how many innings he has got.  A guy like Sarfate, because of pitch counts, after five innings he was done.  He would have thrown 100 pitches because he had a lot of strikeouts and a lot of walks and that eats the pitches.  All guys are on pitch counts, even the guys in the big leagues, and what happened was he could never turn the corner to be a consistent pitcher, and now he has been traded and maybe a change of scenery has helped him.  The thing about him is he has never been injured and that was the thing with Manny.

This team here I am surprised on the hitting side, and you got guys like [Alcides] Escobar who are [ranked] like one or two in the organization, and guys like [Mat] Gamel who are two or three in the organization, and [Cole] Gillespie, who is seven or eight, and you got [Michael] Brantley in center, and it looks like he has finally turned the corner in center, and right now he is on suspension, and that is neither here or there.  You had guys one through eight in the lineup who were hitting.  We aren't quite that team right now.  We have [Lorenzo] Cain, who is a young kid, in center field taking Brantley's spot, actually taking [Matt] LaPorta's spot, technically.  He has been here a few games, and it is early to say, but he is playing well.  He is doing a good job in center and has shown a good arm and just needs to get his feet wet.  [Chris] Errecart was having a solid year until he sprained his wrist and had to go to Arizona.  [Angel] Salome is having a great year, he just needs to work a bit better on calling games.  It is a solid team.  Gamel is having a great year--now will he go to the majors and hit .370? I think no, but will he go there and hit .300? I think with his approach he will. He should be a .300 hitter, and you look at the charts and that should be a 60 or 70 [on the 20-80 scouting scale], and the big knock on him is his defense, but it getting better.

BCB: I had heard an interview you had done with Jim Powell, and you mentioned that Gamel's footwork was his biggest problem.  When [Ryan] Braun was here 90% of his errors were throwing errors, but Gamel has made about as many fielding errors as throwing errors, so is it footwork getting to the ball and getting to the good hop and then getting ready to throw?

DM: Footwork.  Footwork is involved with both sides of it.  You have to be light on your feet, and he isn't really light on his feet right now.  He is more of a plant guy than nimble, but it is better than it was, as I have been told, because I had never seen him before this year.  He had about 55 errors last year and they were about 50/50 throwing and fielding, but this year he had mostly fielding errors until about a week ago.  He had only one or two throwing errors, but it all reverts right to his footwork.  If his footwork gets out of sync, then this [points to his arm] gets out of sync.  You can ask him, and he feels much better about it, but it is still a work in progress.  Can he make the turn and become a consistent Major Leaguer? I think he can.  Derek Jeter made 30 to 40 errors in the minors, but once he got confidence he made the turn, and now look at him.

BCB: Footwork was considered Rickie Weeks' big problem at second as well--do you see some parallels with him?

DM: Rickie, when you look at him, I only had him for a month, and he was raw.  He was oriented around hitting, but he had a great arm, and at times it looked like he relied on the strength of his arm instead of getting his footwork under him.  And if you need it the arm should be there, but you shouldn't rely on it.  Take Escobar for example: very good arm but he doesn't have to throw it at 110% until he needs to, but Rickie was doing that all the time, and that is why he was throwing it off-line and in the dirt, and that is where a lot of his errors were coming.  And now he is doing a lot better but now has to pick up his offense a little bit.

BCB: I'd like to believe that offense won't be a problem with Rickie long-term--he is still walking and showing some power.

DM: You hope it comes around at some point, because he has been there now for a few years and I think he is still working at it.  Then he hurt his wrist sitting in the dugout twirling his bat, and that has been a real nagging thing for him.  He stands there holding his bat like this [imitates Rickie's bat wiggle], and that is how he hurt it in the first place, and it is just one of those instances where he has to start getting a little better, and I think he is, but the season is a long season.

BCB: The other thing about Gamel that people haven't really touched on is how good he hits against left-handed pitching.  Many young left-handed batter struggle against left-handed pitching but Gamel seems to do just fine.  What about his approach let's him do that?

DM: He doesn't try to pull.  That is the biggest thing.  He approach is [to] left-center and right-center, and right now he very rarely pulls the ball and hits to right field with some pop.  Once he learns to recognize the pitch and he can turn on the ball, he has a chance to increase his power numbers and still hit [for average] well.

Part Two coming soon.

Recently, after being deluged with requests (okay, there were two), I added a prospect ranking to the left-hand sidebar. The off-day today seemed like a good time to expand a bit on my reasons and thinking. Besides, nothing generates good debate like somewhat arbitrary, mostly uninformed hierarchies!

01. Mat Gamel 3B (22) [AA] - .373/.434/.630/1.065, 21 errors
Breakout player of the year has gone from Ryan Braun Lite to Ryan Braun, which unfortunately includes the errors as well. Gamel has better range than Braun did, and with the system choked with outfielders, he'll get the next year and a half to prove he can't play third.

02. Matt LaPorta OF (23) [AA] - .292/.404/.596/1.000
LaPorta looks for all the world like a right-handed Pat Burrell, again including the iffy corner outfield defense. He's not the pure hitter that Gamel is, and he doesn't have the defensive upside, but he has the best plate approach in the system.

03. Alcides Escobar SS (21) [AA] - .326/.359/.435/.794, 21/26 SB
Escobar differs from the other position players near the top of this list in that he is an elite glove man rather than a defensive liability; though he's committed 15 errors already, that total is inflated by his excellent range. His plate discipline hasn't improved (his walk and strikeout rates are almost identical to those from his stint in Huntsville last year), but he's flashing significantly more power than ever before, which is a great sign.

04. Jeremy Jeffress RSP (20) [A+] - 41.7 IP, 36 H, 22 R, 22 ER, 5 HR, 15 BB, 56 K, 1.68 GO/AO, .234 BAA
The only pitcher in the system even remotely close to being a future ace at the Major League level, Jeffress throws high-90s heat, touching 100, and his slider and changeup are also potential plus pitches. He’s had a couple disastrous starts, but even in those he dominated for multiple innings before collapsing, something that could be due to lapses in focus. He’s also seen an intriguing rise in his groundball ratio this year.

05. Angel Salome C (22) [AA] - .346/.404/.534/.938, 24% CS (18/74), 8 PB
Salome might be the best prospect in the system due to position scarcity if he could actually catch, but he can’t really, despite possessing a good body for the position, which is another way of saying he’s too short (5’7") to play anywhere else on the field. He does have a missile for an arm, but it’s lacking a guidance system so far. On the offensive side of things, there’s little question that he can hit, and he’s seen a nice recovery in his walk rate from last year, especially as the season has gone on (12/15 BB/K in 82 June AB’s as his average has come down from stratospheric to merely good).

06. Jonathan Lucroy C (22) [A+] - .311/.384/.527/.911 38% CS (22/58), 4 PB
Only five days younger than Salome, Lucroy (pronounced like LaCroix) is hot on Angel’s heels as a prospect. A recent promotion to Brevard County hasn’t slowed him down at all, and a 31/40 BB/K ratio tells the story of his advanced plate approach. He has a rep as an offense-first catcher, but his stats look pretty good and the pitchers don’t seem to be saying anything bad about him. Lucroy’s also has stolen 8 bases while only being caught once.

07. Taylor Green 3B (21) [A+] - .302/.384/.459/.843, 11 E
Last year’s most pleasant surprise has carried his success over to the tough hitting milieu of the Florida State League. Gritty off the charts, nobody particularly likes Green’s tools, but he seems to be getting the job done just fine so far; next year will be a pivotal one for Green’s prospect status, as the jump to AA is the biggest one in the minors. Green’s a natural second baseman but plays an acceptable third base, a position he will likely continue to occupy until Mat Gamel claims it. He’s the system’s best Canadian prospect.

08. Michael Brantley CF (21) [AA] - .320/.403/.409/.812, 23/29 SB
Brantley came into the year as a big-time sleeper after consistently posting .300/.400 AVG/OBP stats throughout his minor league career but utterly lacking power, and he’s awakened with a roar, morphing into what could be a great leadoff hitter with stats similar to Luis Castillo’s, only from the center field position. He’s not a particularly good defensive center fielder yet, but he’s a great athlete and should improve.

09. Zach Braddock LSP (20) [A+] - 43.7 IP, 34 H, 24 R, 21 ER, 2 HR, 27 BB, 51 K, 0.67 GO/AO, .215 BAA
Braddock was the pitching version of Taylor Green last year, blowing both hitters and stats nerds away with his huge strikeout totals before being shut down with shoulder problems. Fully recovered after a delayed start to the year, Braddock has had his ups and downs at Brevard County, but has retained his dominance, as you can see from his strikeout rate and batting average against. Walks, which weren’t a problem for him at all last year, have really plagued him so far. He doesn’t have Jeffress’ pure stuff, relying on a fastball that’s about 90 MPH, but lefties who can strike people out like this get a lot of chances. Again like Green, the jump to AA next year will be quite telling for Braddock.

10. Cole Gillespie LF (24) [AA] - .277/.378/.494/.872, 7/7 SB
LaPorta Lite, Gillespie is even older and his production has resembles his teammate’s in shape but with less amplitude. He’s a polished, professional hitter who will at the very least be a fourth outfielder, but he’s probably limited to left field defensively because shoulder surgery has ruined his throwing arm.

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Stephen Chapman, in addition to being a really cool guy, is perhaps the best left-handed power bat in the system after a certain vegetarian. He's struggling a bit this year in the pitcher-friendly Florida State League for Brevard County, but anyone who can post a .277 ISO at Space Coast Stadium, the damp, windswept home park of the Manatees, is doing something right.

BCB: First of all, how do you feel about your season so far?

SC: Not too good. I’m not hitting nearly as well as I’m capable of. I do have some home runs and some triples, but my average is well below where it needs to be. Playing first base is also different, so I’m still getting used to that also. The second half just started, so I need to pick it up for sure.

BCB: Space Coast Stadium is a notoriously bad hitter's park, but you're actually hitting a lot better there. Any particular reason, or just random?

SC: Just random, probably. Our field is rough to hit at for sure. The infield grass is pretty tall, and the wind blows in every day, so you really have to square it up, too. I feel bad for right-handed hitters because the wind blows in from right field also, so they really have it rough.

BCB: Would you say it's the toughest park to hit at in the league?

SC: In all honesty, yes, without a doubt. Every field that I’ve been to so far isn’t nearly as bad as Space Coast. The Tigers’ stadium in Lakeland is a big field, 420 in center and 340 down the lines, but the wind blows out slightly, and it has a nice playing surface so a hit is a hit--the wind wont knock it down and the infield grass won’t eat it up. But without a doubt, our field is the hardest to hit in.

BCB: You've improved your plate discipline this year, walking more often overall and improving your strikeout-to-walk ratio; is that something you’re consciously working on?

SC: Yeah, it’s something I try to work on. I’m still striking out this year, which needs to improve a lot, but the good side is that I’ve been walking more. There are only so many things you can do to improve your walk-to-strikeout ratio, but I’m trying. I just can’t miss my pitch and chase stuff in the dirt; if I do that, I’ll be all right.

BCB: When you were drafted, you had the rep of a guy who could handle any fastball but was still learning to recognize off-speed stuff; is the off-speed stuff what you're struggling with this year, or are you just slumping in general?

SC: I’m just slumping in general. I’m getting myself out a lot. The pitchers aren’t getting me out; I’m getting myself out. Not to say the pitchers here are not good, ‘cause they are, I’m not taking anything away from them, but my swing has just not been right this year. I played in the Hawaii Winter League with High-A and AA pitching, and I hit .294, so I can hit this level pitching; I just need to find my groove. I’ve just been a little off all year, just a little out in front, or a little behind, or I pulled my shoulder out just a little, or this or that. I need to have a little more luck, also. I was talking to Taylor Green about luck the other day, and I honestly have had one cheap base hit all season. Hopefully, [in] the second half I find my groove and things start falling my way a little more.

BCB: Do you see yourself as a .300 hitter? Is that the benchmark you set for yourself, the goal?

SC: I would love to be a .300 hitter, but honestly, no, I’m not. Now, I can hit .300 for sure, but I’m more of a .270 to .290, doubles/triples hitter. My goal this year was to hit .275, and I know that doesn’t seem like a lot, but with our stadium and this league, it’s not too bad. I set realistic goals for myself every year so that I push myself but have an actual shot of reaching them. It serves you no purpose to say you want to hit .375, ‘cause chances are you won’t.

BCB: Just to throw another lefty power hitter out there, would you be happy with Adam Dunn's numbers? That is to say, low average but high production otherwise?

SC: Heck yeah! I don’t know a lot about Dunn, but his name has been in the news a lot lately, so I’ve heard a few numbers thrown around. What is he, a lifetime .240 hitter with 35 homeruns a year? Something like that. He’s been in the league nearly 10 years or something. If those numbers get me 10 years in the League, I would be happiest .240 hitter in the world. (laughs)

BCB: Hello pension!

SC: Exactly, and he’s not making minimum salary either. My friend is David Ross, the catcher for the Reds, and he told me Adam is a great guy, so I won’t know what all this stuff in the news is about.

BCB: That’s cool that you know David Ross. You mean the stuff about the Blue Jays' GM talking shit about Dunn?

SC: Yeah, about Dunn not loving the game and this and that--it’s a bunch of BS. But yeah, David Ross and I live in Tallahassee and train together in the off season. He’s a great guy as well.

BCB: Did you meet him through training or did you know him before?

SC: I met him through training. We’ve been training together for about three years now. We both train at Titus sports Academy in Tallahassee, Florida.

BCB: Do you know any of the Brewers' big leaguers?

SC: Yeah, a lot of them. I mean, I don’t call them or anything, but I do know them. I got in some big league games this spring training and got to hang out with them a few times. I played with [Ryan] Braun in Helena, so that was pretty cool. Prince Fielder, Billy Hall, Mike Cameron--all those guys are hilarious in the clubhouse.

BCB: Being from near Tallahassee, I'm going to guess you grew up a Braves fan.

SC: I was actually born in Washington, D.C. and my family is all in Virginia and Maryland, so I’m an Orioles fan.

BCB: Oh cool, the Brewers are playing the Orioles right now. Have you been watching the series?

SC: (laughs) Nope, the life of a minor leaguer--we don’t have cable at the house. Gas is expensive, man.

BCB: If our blog ever makes money, we'll run a contest every month where we raffle off something and use the money to buy one minor leaguer cable. Or we could run an Adopt-a-Manatee program.

SC: (laughs) I’m sure that would be greatly appreciated. Adopt-a-Manatee would work, also (laughs).

BCB: So, you mentioned Taylor Green earlier. He came out of nowhere last year; what’s the secret to his success?

SC: He’s just a good player. He had a bad first year in Helena, so nobody really though much of him, and everyone thinks that he was a surprise, but he’s always been a great player. It just happens that his first year wasn’t that good.

BCB: Jonathan Lucroy just got called up to Brevard. He looks like a really good ballplayer too.

SC: Yeah, he’s good also. I don’t know much about catching, but I think he’s good behind the plate. He calls a good game back there. You don’t see a lot of three hole-hitting catchers, either. He can really hit.

BCB: Who would you say is the most likely guy on the team to make the majors?

SC: Tough question. Most likely would be Taylor Green. The guys who I think will make it for sure are Taylor Green, Lorenzo Cain, Darren Ford, and Jeremy Jeffress.

BCB: And Lucroy?

SC: Yeah, sorry, Lucroy also, forgot him. Chances are that all the guys won’t play for the Brewers at the same time, but I think someone with want them in the big leagues.

BCB: I was going to ask you about Darren Ford. He seems like he has a lot going for him: some pop, some patience, fastest guy in the system, but he's struggled at Brevard two years in a row. You think he's got Major League skills though?

SC: Yeah, for sure. He can run anything down, he can steal off anyone, he does have some pop, and he is learning how to bunt this year. When he puts it all together, he is amazing. He is the fastest player in our organization, like you said, but I would put money down that he is [one of the] top-five fastest players in pro baseball.

BCB: Have you seen the kid at West Virginia, Lee Haydel, run? He's supposedly the only guy that can compete with Ford [in the system].

SC: (laughs) He’s a nice guy, and nothing against him, but he can’t keep up with Darren. I’m pretty fast, and I raced Darren two days ago about 40 yards, and he gave me a 10-foot head start and beat me by four steps. It’s crazy--he doesn’t run, he floats.

BCB: Tell me about watching Jeffress pitch—is his stuff as good as they say it is?

SC: Yeah, it’s good--really good. Mid-90's fastball with a really good changeup. The only time he gets in trouble is when he leaves his fastball up in the zone, but that doesn’t happen too often.

BCB: How's his breaking stuff?

SC: Good. I don’t know a lot about pitching, but I’ve seem him make numerous hitters look stupid up there. An 87 mile-per-hour slider is unfair.

BCB: He's had a couple starts this year where he dominated but then fell apart completely in one inning. What's going on in those?

SC: Leaving the ball up in the zone sometimes, trying to over-throw sometimes.

BCB: How about Zach Braddock? He's posted numbers almost as good as Jeffress', but doesn't have the same stuff.

SC: Zach has a good fastball, about 90, and he challenges hitters, which is awesome, but he gets in trouble sometimes. I like when Zach pitches--he goes after hitters. He doesn’t nibble and BS; he gives you what he’s got and if you hit it, you hit it.

BCB: How does he get in trouble sometimes?

SC: Getting too fired up and over-throwing. He gets too pumped up on the mound; he tried to do too much at times.

BCB: Back to you: tell me a little about learning to play first base. Did you ever play it before?

SC: I played it my freshman year in high school, just because they didn’t have one on varsity, and I was hitting so good at the time, but other than that, I’ve been an outfielder. First base is different, though. I have to say, I like the outfield better.

BCB: Has the team moved you to first just because of the crowded outfield position [in the system], or do they want you there long-term?

SC: Your guess is as good as mine. I hope it’s just because we don’t have anyone there right now in Brevard. I enjoy outfield better and am 100 times better there, but if I can get to the big leagues quicker by playing first base, I’m more than happy to play first.

BCB: It seems like the Brewers have a million outfielders: Cameron might be gone next year, but then you have Matt LaPorta, and then there’s Cole Gillespie and Michael Brantley at AA, plus Lorenzo Cain, you, and Darren Ford. And Mat Gamel might end up out there too.

SC: I know, it’s ridiculous.

BCB: What did you think of Gamel's defense in the Hawaii Winter League?

SC: Good, he improved his defense a ton this winter. He can just flat-out play.

BCB: Considering all the outfielders, maybe you should convert to catcher.

SC: I don’t think I’ll make it too far as a left-handed catcher, but hey, you never know.

BCB: So, who are your good buddies on the team and in the organization?

SC: Shoot, there are too many to list. Gamel, Brantley, Ford, Green, [Mike] Bell, [Kenny] Holmberg, [Brent] Brewer, [Omar] Aguilar. LaPorta. Me and [Chris] Errecart are good friends also.

BCB: Tell some of those other guys to do interviews with me!

SC: (laughs) I’ll let them know.

BCB: Well, that's about all I've got for you. Anything else you want Brewers fans to know?

SC: That’s about it. Hopefully I’ll get to meet them soon.

BCB: Good luck the rest of the season.

SC: Thank you.

I like following prospects. It's like having Christmas Eve all the time, every player a wrapped present of infinite promise, each with the potential to be a Red Ryder carbine-action BB gun with a compass in the stock. Sure, sometimes they turn out to be socks, but there's always another present to open. With that in mind, let's see how our Christmas is shaping up:

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