NewsBrewers fortunate to have Gallardo
Milwaukee (21-14) at St. Louis (21-14), 7:15 p.m. CT
By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com
05/15/09 1:47 AM ET
MILWAUKEE -- Yovani Gallardo, who will be back on the mound for Milwaukee on Friday night against the Cardinals, almost didn't become a Brewer at all. Jim Stevenson was Milwaukee's area scout at the time covering north Texas and had been tracking Gallardo since the summer before his senior season at Trimble Tech High School in Fort Worth. He loved what he saw, and so did then-Brewers national crosschecker Larry Doughty. Gallardo was long and lean in those days, and blew away his inner-city competition with fastball after fastball, mixing in only the occasional curve. But as the 2004 First-Year Player Draft approached, it was anything but sure that Gallardo would become a Brewer. General manager Doug Melvin remembers hearing suggestions from some of his scouts that Gallardo, rated the 24th-best high school prospect by Baseball America, was worth a first-round pick, but the Brewers were very high on Maine high schooler Mark Rogers at No. 5 overall. Milwaukee didn't pick again until No. 46. "I was really fearful that we were going to lose Yovani," said Doughty, who is now with the Rays. "He had gone to a Major League workout with another club and overwhelmed them in a Major League workout. I understand he had a super, super day, and I got word of that." Doughty couldn't say it, but a Brewers official with Texas ties said the other team was the Rangers, Gallardo's hometown team. Texas had two first-round picks, No. 10 overall and then No. 30, the latter pick as compensation from the Braves for free-agent departure John Thomson. Instead of taking the local kid in Gallardo, the Rangers instead used the 10th pick on University of New Orleans right-hander Thomas Diamond, and spent No. 30 on Eric Hurley, a high school right-hander from Jacksonville. Gallardo continued to fall and was available to Milwaukee when it was its turn in the second round. "A lot of teams were scared of the unknown," said Stevenson, who scouts for the Astros now. "His 'stuff' said definite first-round, without a doubt. I think teams shied away from the program he was at, the fact he [hadn't done] the national showcases since he was 13 years old." Even though Gallardo was available, the Brewers were still debating in the moments before their pick. They were high on a local kid of their own, right-hander Erik Cordier from Southern Door High School near Green Bay, Wis. Cordier had been to Miller Park for a pre-Draft workout and impressed Brewers officials with his arm and his personality. He even called a club official the morning of the Draft to say how much he wanted to be a Brewer. "A lot of people were in [Cordier's] court, and I certainly liked him," Doughty said. "But, to me, there was an edge to Yovani, something special. I remember the second round beginning and Jack Zduriencik, the scouting director at the time, was looking at the reports, and then he looked at the room and said, 'We're taking Yovani.'" For Stevenson, it was a huge relief. "What Jack told me is that he looked across the room and had his national guy [Doughty] saying, 'I've got this guy [Gallardo] No. 1 on my list,'" Stevenson said. "Jack told me he was like, 'How do I not take him?'" In the end, Draft success depends partly on luck, and the Brewers lucked out in this case. Cordier went at No. 63 to the Royals and underwent reconstructive elbow surgery in 2006. He missed all of '07 and the start of '08, and is currently pitching for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans in the Advanced Class A Carolina League. Gallardo, meanwhile, is 4-1 in the big leagues this season going into Friday's start at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. Stevenson, who was also responsible for scouting left-hander Dana Eveland for the Brewers in 2002, still keeps in touch with Gallardo during the offseason. "I have as much respect for him as any guy I've ever signed," Stevenson said. "He's a special kid. Every year you want to find another guy like him, and they're just not there." Pitching matchupMIL: RHP Yovani Gallardo (4-1, 3.09 ERA)
Gallardo either struggled with his command or with home-plate umpire Jerry Crawford's postage stamp-sized strike zone on Saturday against the Cubs, but he limited the damage to two runs in five workmanlike innings and nearly didn't allow a run at all. Gallardo's pitch count hit 60 before he recorded the final out of the third inning, and he crossed the 100-pitch barrier in the fifth, but the righty was one out away from a scoreless outing when Micah Hoffpauir belted a two-run home run with two outs in the fifth. Gallardo has faced the Cardinals twice without much success; he allowed four runs in five innings of a no-decision at Busch Stadium and seven runs in 5 2/3 innings of his only outing against the Cards at Miller Park, a loss. STL: RHP Kyle Lohse (3-2, 4.25 ERA)
Lohse pitched well for five innings Friday night but was doomed by a five-run sixth at Cincinnati. The big blow was delivered by Reds pitcher Aaron Harang, who snapped an 0-for-13 skid with a two-run bases-loaded single. Lohse finished with seven earned runs allowed on nine hits in six innings. He walked three and struck out four. Overall, Lohse has not fared as well on the road with the Cardinals as he has at Busch Stadium. Tidbits
Fueled by a four-game sweep in July, the Brewers went 6-3 in St. Louis last season, posting more wins than losses there for the first season since the club moved to the National League in 1998. The Brewers came close in 2004, when they were 5-5 at the old Busch Stadium. The new park of the same name opened in '06, and the Brewers are 12-13 there. ... Brewers manager Ken Macha gave right fielder Corey Hart a day off on Thursday. Hart sparked the Brewers' go-ahead rally Wednesday night with a walk, but he has not homered since April 13 and has had no extra-base hits since May 5. He went 4-for-19 (.211) with two RBIs during the just-completed homestand. ... Shortstop J.J. Hardy was back in the lineup Thursday after exiting the night before with symptoms of a migraine headache. Hardy would like some answers for his recurring problem with headaches. ... As expected, the Brewers activated catcher Mike Rivera from the 15-day disabled list on Thursday and optioned Carlos Corporan to Triple-A Nashville. Tickets
Buy tickets now to catch the game in person.
On the Internet
MLB.TV
Gameday Audio• Gameday
• Official game notes On television
• FS Wisconsin HD On radio
• WTMJ 620 Up next
• Saturday: Brewers (Jeff Suppan, 2-3, 5.50) at Cardinals (Adam Wainwright, 3-1, 4.35), 12:10 p.m. CT
• Sunday: Brewers (Manny Parra, 2-4, 4.82) at Cardinals (Todd Wellemeyer, 3-3, 5.80), 1:15 p.m. CT
• Monday: Off-day
Adam McCalvy is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
