Gabe Gross - Articles - Zimbio

Game Recap - Giants 4, Brewers 5

Mon, 8 Apr 2008 00:06:00 GMT

posted by aubreyjones
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Although Manny Parra's bid to make the starting rotation appeared to be falling apart toward the end of spring training, the Milwaukee Brewers decided to give him a shot anyway.

It looked like a wise move Saturday, as Parra earned his first major league victory with a breakout performance in Milwaukee's 5-4 win over the San Francisco Giants.

Brewers manager Ned Yost said the team wrote off Parra's shaky performance near the end of exhibition play as a young player showing some nerves as he tried to secure a spot on the team.

"There is some pressure there, and you do press, and you don't do what comes naturally," Yost said. "And what he does naturally is really, really good."

The 25-year-old left-hander looked like a natural on the mound Saturday, holding the Giants hitless through five innings before giving up a pair of runs in the sixth and leaving the game with a 3-2 lead.

The Giants scored another two runs off the Brewers' bullpen in the final three innings, but late-inning homers from Ryan Braun and Gabe Kapler helped Milwaukee hold the lead.

Kapler came out of retirement after managing in Boston's farm system last year.

"When he came to spring training, you could see real quick, this guy still had game left in him," Yost said.

The Brewers will try for a three-game series sweep of the Giants on Sunday.

Parra gave up a leadoff triple to Eugenio Velez to start the sixth, ending his no-hit bid. Velez then scored on a passed ball by catcher Mike Rivera, and Parra gave up a double to Randy Winn. Ray Durham singled in Winn and Yost pulled Parra in favor of reliever David Riske.

Parra, who threw a perfect game for the Brewers' Triple-A affiliate in Nashville last year, realized he had the early makings of a no-hitter but wasn't fixating on it.

Read the full recap at ESPN

Reds Hit the Road with Trip to Milwaukee Brewers

Mon, 8 Apr 2008 13:17:00 GMT

posted by aubreyjones

Johnny Cueto's swift rise from Single-A to the Cincinnati Reds' rotation took less than a year.

After his first major league start, he didn't leave much room for improvement.

Cueto can't hope for more than a duplicate of his dominating debut when the Reds begin their first road trip of the season against the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday.

Oddsmakers from Sportsbook.com have made Milwaukee -105 money line favorites (MLB Odds) for tonight's game, the over/under has been set at 8.5 total runs (Matchup). Current public betting information shows that 61% of bets for this game have been placed on Cincinnati -105 (View MLB Bet Percentages).

A year ago, Cueto (1-0, 1.29 ERA) was pitching for Single-A Sarasota of the Florida State League. He rose to Triple-A Louisville by the end of last season, compiling a 2.05 ERA in four starts there while striking out 21 in 22 innings.

After an impressive spring, the 22-year-old right-hander made it to Cincinnati. He didn't disappoint in his debut, retiring 21 of 22 batters in seven innings against Arizona last Thursday.

"The way he was throwing the ball today has no age," Reds manager Dusty Baker said.

Cueto struck out 10 - becoming the first Reds rookie since 1900 to do that in his first start - and allowed only Justin Upton's solo home run, retiring the first 15 batters he faced in a 3-2 Reds win.

His 96 mph fastball helped him strike out eight of the first 13 batters, and he's already drawn comparisons to Pedro Martinez due to his similar 5-foot-10, 185-pound frame.

"The guys on the bench were saying they haven't seen anything like this in a long time," Baker said. "I guess it's something they've never seen, and there's a lot they still haven't seen from this young man."

Cueto will try to stop the Brewers from winning six of their first seven games for the first time since 1998. Milwaukee (5-1) also started quickly last season, jumping out to a 24-10 mark before blowing an 8 1-2 game NL Central lead to the Chicago Cubs down the stretch.

"I just think this year, we're more experienced," Brewers manager Ned Yost told the team's official Web site. "Some of the things that
I see us doing are products of that experience, which is a really good sign."

The Brewers scored 25 runs in a three-game home sweep of San Francisco, with Ryan Braun and Gabe Kapler leading the way. Braun, the reigning NL rookie of the year, went 5-for-9 with two home runs and four RBIs in the last two games, while Kapler - who spent last season managing a minor league team - was 6-for-10 with two homers and five RBIs in the series.

Read the Rest at TheSpread.com

Welcome to our blog about Gabe Gross

Wed, 7 Sep 2006 02:23:56 GMT

posted by The_Zimbio_Team
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