Brewers camp tour: Crew thinks Gallardo can be new Cy guy
By Danny Knobler | CBSSports.com Senior Writer Follow Danny Brewers: Five things to know | 
1 Man vs. 1 Fan | Macha
PHOENIX –- In Brewers camp this spring, you hear talk about winning a Cy Young.
You hear the Brewers might have an ace to match all aces.
You hear it all, and you wonder if you heard it wrong. You wonder if the Brewers missed the news that CC Sabathia left for New York, that Ben Sheets left first for free agency and then for -- surprise, surprise -- another surgery.
You wonder, and then you remember that they're talking about Yovani Gallardo.
For all the Brewers' insistence that Gallardo shouldn't feel pressure to replace Sabathia and Sheets, the rave reviews make him sound like Sabathia and Sheets rolled into one.
"I'd be surprised if he doesn't win a Cy Young," catcher Jason Kendall said. "He's that good."
"He pitches like he's 30," pitching coach Bill Castro said.
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Sleeper ... Angel Salome: It's a fact: Jason Kendall is hanging by a thread. A catcher with zero power can't hit .240 and expect to keep his job unless he throws out 90 percent of base stealers. OK, maybe 75 percent. Sixty? In any case, he has to have some other near-superhuman quality to keep his job, and Kendall, despite his long and impressive career, doesn't. Meanwhile, 23-year-old Salome won a batting title at Double-A Huntsville last year. He has power and has quickly adjusted at every step up the organizational ladder. He'll likely open the season in the minors, meaning you probably shouldn't draft him, but expect someone in your league to pick him up at some point. Bust ... Rickie Weeks: Every year, someone buys into the hype of former first-round pick Weeks, and every year, he disappoints. Yes, he has the tools -- the power and the speed. But he hits .230 ever year and can never stay in the lineup consistently enough to accumulate halfway decent RBI totals. Shoot, his career high in home runs is only 16. You haven't missed out on anything from him yet. And granted, you need steals wherever you can get them in Rotisserie leagues, but Weeks' small contribution in that category doesn't recoup his damages done. By now, Fantasy owners should stop drafting him as a potential breakout in the middle rounds and start viewing him as a late-round flier. Breakout ... Yovani Gallardo: Before his unfortunate knee injury last season, Gallardo was on equal footing with fellow prospect Tim Lincecum, who ended up winning the Cy Young. His numbers from his rookie season actually don't do him justice, considering the awful August he had to endure that year. Throw it out, and he posted a 2.16 ERA, which stands up to his 1.88 ERA in four regular-season starts last year. He has outstanding stuff and already knows how to command it at age 23. The only thing that might hold him back is the pressure that comes with serving as the staff ace. But he earned that pressure, and he might just as easily justify it with his own run at hardware come season's end. -- Scott White Top Prospects ('09 destination) 1. Mat Gamel, 3B, Triple-A 2. Alcides Escobar, SS, Triple-A 3. Angel Salome, C, Triple-A 4. Jeremy Jeffress, RHP, Double-A 5. Taylor Green, 3B, Double-A |
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The thing is, Gallardo isn't even 23. Not until Feb. 27.
He's 22, and he's pitched all of 134 1/3 major-league innings. He missed almost all of last season because of two knee injuries.
And yet, on a team that has legitimate dreams of returning to the postseason, Gallardo's development could be the biggest key of all.
"It's no fluke that everyone knows he could be our ace," said reliever Carlos Villanueva, who met Gallardo five years ago at Class A Beloit. "He is our ace."
Manager Ken Macha has already said that Gallardo won't start opening day. But even as he made that announcement, Macha suggested that Gallardo could be in the No. 1 starter spot after the All-Star break.
Macha is at a disadvantage because he's new in Milwaukee and thus hasn't had the chance to see Gallardo pitch. He has heard all the rave reviews, and he's sure to hear more.
"When I caught him last year, I just said, 'Wow, he's only 22?'" Kendall said. "He's under control. He knows what he's doing. He's got the poise of a 10- or 15-year veteran."
He's so poised it's easy for him to reject the talk that he has to replace Sabathia and/or Sheets. He's so under control that he always remembers to talk about the Brewers' rotation as a group.
"I think we have five great starting pitchers," Gallardo said. "It's not just me. Everyone is counting on the five starters we have. We've got to step it up, and show what we can do."
That's nice of him to say, but veterans Jeff Suppan, Dave Bush and Braden Looper are better in the middle or back of the rotation. Brewers people think 26-year-old Manny Parra has the chance to be very good, but they also say that Parra doesn't know how good he can be.
No, Gallardo is the guy. If the Brewers are going to have a true ace this season, it's going to be Gallardo.
Yes, he's young. Yes, he lacks experience.
But when you talk to the people who know him, you never hear any doubt he can handle it.
"He looks like he's a veteran," said Mike Rivera, who caught Gallardo two years ago at Triple-A Nashville. "He's going to be a great pitcher. When I caught him in the minor leagues, I said this guy is going to be an ace. He has that special feeling about him.
"He knew this team would need him last year. And we really need him now."
Even though Gallardo missed most of last season, he impressed the Brewers by the way he rushed back from the second injury. He started a game the last week of the regular season, helping the Brewers to a big win over the Pirates, and he pitched seven innings against the Phillies in the playoffs without allowing an earned run.
When Brewers general manager Doug Melvin talks about Gallardo, he doesn't mention any of those games. Instead, he points to an August 2007 start in Colorado, when Gallardo gave up 11 runs on 12 hits in just 2 2/3 innings.
"He just accepted it, and said he'd get them the next time," Melvin said. "There were no excuses. He doesn't get flustered."
Melvin mentions Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum and World Series MVP Cole Hamels, and says Gallardo is "quite capable of putting himself in that category."
Or maybe Sabathia really should be the comparison, even though CC is left-handed and Gallardo is a right-hander. Sabathia was a big-leaguer at 20, an ace at 22.
And, like Sabathia, Gallardo can really hit. He already has two big-league home runs in just 49 at-bats.
Born in Mexico but raised in Fort Worth, Texas, Gallardo had a chance to go to TCU as a pitcher and an outfielder. Instead, he signed with the Brewers.
Three years later, at age 21, he was in the big leagues.
Now he's about to turn 23, and quite possibly about to become an ace.
Just like Sabathia.
