Posted March 20, 200718 yr http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/basebal...-sports-marlins Pitching prospects impressing McKeon Gaby Sanchez also catches eye of ex-skipper By Juan C. Rodriguez South Florida Sun-Sentinel Posted March 17 2007 JUPITER ? Brett Sinkbeil must have done something right last season. He made enough of an impression on Jack McKeon for him to butcher his name. The former Marlins manager and current special advisor, McKeon arrived in Jupiter on Friday for a 10-day stint with the club. Sinkbeil was among the players McKeon, who resides in Elon, N.C., regularly scouted while watching the Marlins' low Class A South Atlantic League team in nearby Greensboro. He was impressed with the coming wave of first-round draft picks the organization assembled there. Chris Volstad, Aaron Thompson, Ryan Tucker and Sinkbeil all will pitch at high Class A Jupiter in 2007. Sean West will miss the year after undergoing arthroscopic shoulder surgery this week. "They were all good," McKeon said. "Volstad and West, command-wise they were better, but the other guy, `Sinkerball,' had good command, too." Sinkbeil, the Marlins' 2006 first-round draft pick, should take solace in that McKeon generally doesn't botch a guy's name if he doesn't like him. McKeon didn't mispronounce Volstad, but the Palm Beach Gardens product also is high on his list. Last season McKeon offered Volstad a little advice: throw fewer strikes. "He's always around the plate, so you go up there you know you're going to get something close," McKeon said. "I told him, `Get comfortably wild a couple of times.' Not walk anybody, but throw one over somebody's head or inside. You know he can throw strikes." McKeon also was impressed with Gaby Sanchez, the Marlins' Organizational Player of the Year. He batted .317 with 14 homers and had a 1.051 on-base plus slugging percentage in 55 games at Greensboro. Listed as an infielder, Sanchez also can catch. Behind the plate is where McKeon thinks Sanchez should stay. "I saw him catch three or four games and to me, the way the catching is today, I'd let him catch a year and see if he couldn't really do it," McKeon said. "When I see catchers in the minor leagues, he's as good as any of them and he hasn't played there much."
March 20, 200718 yr That's awesome to hear about Sanchez. He could be a huge asset behind the plate if he could handle it.
March 20, 200718 yr I really can't believe they would consider putting Gaby back at catcher (but if he can hack it, by all means)
April 4, 200718 yr Didn't Sanchez switch positions because of injury? more like because he couldn't cut it there
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