Gomez hits homer, benches clear

Brewers Beat Marlins 2-0

After four days off for the All-Star Game festivities, the second half of the Major League Baseball season is here.  While it was only four games, both the Brewers and Marlins offenses were sluggish out of the gate. 

It was a pitching dual through the first three innings with both pitchers only surrendering three hits apiece.  The Brewers had an opportunity to score in the bottom of the first inning.  With one out, Jean Segura started the inning with an infield base hit.  Ryan Braun then came to the plate, only to popup to shortstop, Adeiny Hechavarria for the second out of the inning.  Jonathon Lucroy drew a walk, and then the Brewers perfected a double steal, with Segura making it to third and Lucroy taking second.   With two outs in the inning, the Brewers tried to get on top early, but All-Star Carlos Gomez grounded out to third, to end the threat.

The Miami Marlins would come back in the top of the second inning to get two, two out base hits, only to strand the runners on first and second.  Jeff Bianchi of the Brewers did get a base hit to left with two outs in the bottom of the inning, but would remain at first to end the second. 

In the third, the Miami Marlins went a quiet 1-2-3, with Kyle Lohse striking out two batters.  Norichika Aoki did his job for the Brewers by leading off the inning with a base on balls.  The Brewers tried to rally again with two men out, when Lucroy singled to center, but they failed to score after the lead of walk.

For a second consecutive inning, the Marlins went down in order, and it was not until the Brewers came up when we would finally saw some scoring.  Leading off in the bottom of the fourth inning, Juan Francisco broke the zero, zero tie by hitting an opposite field homerun off Justin Turner, his 12^th of the season.  Rickie Weeks then followed with a walk, and would steal second base with one out recorded by Bianchi.  Pitcher, Kyle Lohse then hit a weak foul ball right to the third basemen, Polacido Polanco, for the second out.  Aoki would then walk for a second consecutive at-bat, but Jean Segura grounded out to end the scoring threat. 

Kyle Lohse was cruising threw the first four innings, keeping the Marlins bats relatively quiet.  Lohse would get into some trouble early in the fifth when Hechavarria would single to right, and advance to second on a rare error by Aoki.  After his hit, Lohse would not allow him to score, striking out two and getting pitcher Justin Turner to hit a weak ground ball to shortstop.  The Brewers were finally able to do some damage with two outs in the inning, with Carlos Gomez crushing a ball down the left field line for his 15^th homerun of the season.  This gave the Brewers a 2-0 lead after five.

Logan Morrison hit a two out double in the top of the sixth inning, but the Marlins failed to continue the two out rally.  Rickie Weeks did lead of the bottom of the frame by reaching on a hit by pitch for the Brewers.  The Marlins then made a pithing change by bringing in right-hander Ryan Webb for Justin Turner.  Webb would finish off the inning by pitching a clean sixth, to keep the score at 2-0 Brewers. 

Kyle Lohse’s night was over.  After six strong innings of shut out baseball, John Axford came in out of the bullpen in relief.  It would be a quiet game the rest of the way, with both teams using two more relief pitchers each to get the job done.  Francisco Rodriguez closed it out in the ninth inning to record his 10^th save of the season, giving the Brewers the win, and improving their record to 39-56.  Kyle Lohse would pick up the win with Justin Turner being saddled with the loss.  The final score was the Brewers two and the Marlins zero. 

As Ron Roenicke would say after the game, “We played good baseball tonight, we pitched well, got a couple of base hits, defensively I thought we played a nice job, but whether we get back to .500 or not, we have to really play well there is no doubt about it, we have to play really good baseball…”

The Brewers pitching staff pitched nine strong innings of shut out baseball, and helped the Brewers start off the second half of the season on a positive note.  The usual stars did not lead the offense with Aramis Ramirez on the disabled list and Ryan Braun going zero for three, instead Carlos Gomez and Juan Francisco’s homeruns made the difference in tonight’s game.  Time will tell if the Brewers can get back to .500 ball, but tonight they started off on the right foot, with their excellent pitching and solid offensive performance.   

Carlos Gomez is Finally Living Up to Expectations

Carlos Gomez is an electric player.  His ability to steal bases, make amazing catches and hit homeruns with ease makes him a fun player to watch no matter what team you are rooting for.  He has always had the athletic ability to be a successful Major Leaguer, but early on in his career he struggled and was unable to live up to the expectations of being a top prospect. 

At the age of 16, the New York Mets signed Carlos Gomez as an international free agent, who was considered to be a five-tool player, and he instantly became one of the Mets top prospects.

On May 13, 2007 Carlos Gomez made his MLB debut for the Mets, not even five years after they signed the youngster out of the Dominican Republic.  While Carlos Gomez quickly became a fan favorite in New York, he struggled in his limited amount of action.  Even though he batted a disappointing .232 in 125 plate appearances, he showed signs of becoming a star in the making with his excellent speed and defensive abilities. 

In the following offseason, the New York Mets had their eyes set on the two-time Cy Young Award winner, Johan Santana, who the Minnesota Twins were actively trading.  The Mets were able to swing a deal for the lefty, but had to part with numerous prospects including Carlos Gomez. 

This trade allowed Carlos Gomez to leave the Mets crowded outfield, and gave him the opportunity to compete for a starting outfield spot in Spring Training.  Gomez was able to beat out Denard Span and Jason Pridie to win the starting centerfield job.  Throughout the season he showed glimpses of stardom, but also made many plays that made you shake your head in disbelief.  He hit for the cycle once in 2008 and led the MLB in 30 bunt base hits, but he was picked off a major league high 10 times and committed eight errors. 

In 2009 Gomez received only 349 plate appearances, compared to the 614 he received a season ago, and he continued to struggle at the plate producing a .229 batting average.  Even though he was disappointing at the plate, he continued to improve defensively with a .997 fielding percentage. 

His career in Minnesota did not last long, in the offseason he was traded for a second time in his short career to the Milwaukee Brewers for shortstop J.J. Hardy.  While he continued to develop into an elite defender and base stealer, he still continued to struggle at the plate. 

It was not until the 2012 season, where he experienced his greatest success, producing career highs with a .260 batting average, .305 on-base percentage, 19 homeruns, and 37 stolen bases.  His terrific performance earned him a three-year contract extension worth $24 million, making him a Brewer through the 2016 season. 

Carlos Gomes said during the All-Star media session at Citi Field about his early career struggles, “For five years, I’ve been trying to do what others have told me – hit ball on the ground, bunt it. For five years, that hasn’t worked. Why do I need to keep trying to do that if it’s not working?’” 

When asked what he want to do.

“I’m going to try to hit the ball with power,” Gomez told them.

This move has paid off big time for the young star.  He is now having the best season of his career for the Brewers in 2013, posting numbers that fans and coaches expected of him when he first broke into the big leagues back in 2007 with the New York Mets. 

“Now I step up to the plate and every time I think, I think of hitting home runs to center field,” Gomez said. “That’s my approach and everything is coming together.”

This approach has shown, at the All-Star break, Gomez has a .295 batting average with 14 long balls and 45 RBIs.  He is fifth in stolen bases with 21 and ranks first in triples with 9 in the National League.  Not only has his hitting improved, but also he is having another great defensive season.  He has a .996 fielding percentage with only one error committed, and he has made multiple homerun saving catches.  Gomez also ranks higher than anyone in the MLB, including the best player in the game –Miguel Cabrera, with a 5.7 wins above replacement. 

Carlos Gomez has developed this season into the five-tool player everyone thought he would eventually become.  He has demonstrated that he can do damage with the bat, while also being able to change the game with his amazing speed and great defense. 

The Brewers made the right decision by locking Carlos Gomes up to an extension before the season.  He is finally living up to the expectations he had when he was once a top prospect, and is having the best season of his big league career.

Carlos Gomez is an All-Star this season, but do not be surprised if that is the only recognition he receives for his outstanding play.  He has been arguably the best defensive centerfielder this season and deserves to win the Gold Glove Award, ending the Brewers long drought of 30 years with out a Gold Glove winner.  He also should receive some MVP votes, while it is a long shot that he wins it, his WAR and overall statistics are just as good as any other deserving candidate in the National League. 

Everyone was wondering when Carlos Gomez would finally have a breakout season and live up to the high expectations, and this season he is finally producing at a level he was expected to do since day one.  While it took many years and struggles to become a consistent contributor at the Major League level, Carlos Gomez has transformed his career from when he first started with the Mets becoming one of the best centerfielders in all of baseball.  

Does Bryce Harper Deserve to be an All-Star?

Bryce Harper has become one of the most likable players in baseball, but that does not mean he is a star just yet.  Last season he was selected to the All-Star Game as an injury replacement, and this season he will be making another appearance, but this time it is as a starter.

This was a huge surprise, since Harper has missed 31 games due to injury, and when healthy, has struggled to produce at the plate.  In his limited amounts of at-bats (178), he is only hitting .281 with 13 home runs and 29 RBIs.

Bryce Harper is going to be one of the biggest stars in the game, and a fixture in the All-Star Game for years, but right now is not his time.  With Carlos Gomez and Michael Cuddyer both having career years and producing at an incredibly high level, Harper does not deserve to be starting in the All-Star Game.

Should Bryce Harper be starting in the All-Star Game? Leave your thoughts below.  

Carlos Gomez's Amazing Game Saving Grab