OAKLAND, Calif. – Before Gio Gonzalez was
struggling in the major leagues, he was struggling in Sacramento.
Sent from the Oakland rotation to the bullpen on Wednesday,
Gonzalez got off to a slow start with the River Cats, admittedly putting too much pressure
on himself to prove he belonged in Triple-A.
Now, he’s having the same problems once again – this time in
Oakland.
“This is a new experience for me,”
Gonzalez said. “They put me in [the bullpen] to get back to the mode where I
was throwing a lot of strikes and getting people out. They have all the
confidence in the world in me.”
River Cats pitching coach Rick Rodriguez speculates the
problem is the 22-year-old doesn’t have enough confidence in himself.
“As soon as he learns to relax, he’ll be fine,” Rodriguez
said. “Once he has that confidence up there, and believes he belongs at the
major league level, he’s going to take off.”
Acquired as part of the Nick Swisher deal last season, Gonzalez had a
3.91 ERA in five April starts with the River Cats before going 4-5 with a 5.75
ERA in 11 appearances between May and June.
The young lefty said he then started developing a feel for
the Triple-A level, posting a 5-1 record and a 1.75 ERA in his final seven
starts in Sacramento.
“The first couple months, he kind of struggled a little
bit,” Rodriguez said. “He told me he came over after the trade trying to
impress guys. In the big leagues, you’re trying to impress guys there.”
By sliding him out of the rotation, Oakland manager Bob
Geren hopes to use Gonzalez in circumstances in which he won’t need to impress.
“A few runs up, a few down – we’re going to use him in
non-pressure situations,” Geren said. “There’s a possibility that we’ll get him
back up and starting. We’ll be flexible with him the rest of the year.”
Gonzalez believes the flexibility will help him regain the
form that earned him a place on the 2008 All-Pacific Coast League team. He’s
1-4 with a 9.32 ERA in seven starts with Oakland.
“A lot of big leaguers have had the experiences that I’m
going through right now,” Gonzalez said. “Giving up runs, trying to find their
pitches – that’s where I am right now. …It’s a big old learning experience for
me.”
Rodriguez has confidence in
Gonzalez’s ability to turn his major league experiences into a lesson learned.
He said there’s a learning curve to overcome every time a player moves up a
level, and that Gonzalez will figure things out with the A’s as he did with the
River Cats.
To figure things out in Oakland, Gonzalez said he’s looking
back toward Sacramento.
“When I got to that comfortable level in Triple-A,
everything just worked,” Gonzalez said. “Everything clicked. I could throw a
pitch and close my eyes knowing it was going for a strike.
“Now, I’m at that point where I’ve got to get that feeling again. Once I get that feeling, it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
Adam Loberstein can be reached at aloberstein@projectprospect.com.