Bill Mitchell's Minor League Ramblings

Minor League Ramblings For the week of :
July 22, 2002

Minor League Ramblings is produced by Bill Mitchell for Minor League Watch.

Devil Rays' Gomes a power hitter in the making
July 27, 2002

Jonny Gomes watches his Bakersfield
teammates from the dugout.

Jonny Gomes is the classic late bloomer. Not drafted after his high school career in California ended, the right-handed hitter enrolled in nearby Santa Rosa Community College. Gomes was again ignored by all 30 major league baseball organizations after his first season at Santa Rosa.

Two years later, Gomes' potential as a prospective major league baseball player is impossible to overlook.

Selected by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 18th round of the 2001 free agent draft, the 6-1, 205 pound Gomes catapulted himself into the ranks of one of minor league baseball's best power-hitting prospects.

Gomes debuted last year with Princeton of the rookie level Appalachian League. He outplayed all of the higher draft choices playing in the league, earning MVP honors by hitting .291 with a league high 16 homeruns. Gomes topped the Appy circuit in both on base and slugging percentage. He also stole 15 bases.

The Devil Rays challenged the 21-year-old slugger by jumping him two levels, placing Gomes in the high class A California League with their Bakersfield affiliate. It appeared that Gomes was overmatched at first, beginning the season in a 0-for-29 slump. But he quickly recovered and is now one of the top power hitters in this level. Gomes is currently hitting .287 with 23 homeruns, eight triples, 58 RBIs and 10 stolen bases in 331 at bats. His OPS (on base + slugging percentage) is a very impressive 1.040.

While Gomes is pleased that he is performing so well in the California League, he knows that he still has a lot of room for improvement. But he isn't being overly complicated about it. "Swinging at strikes and taking balls," answered Gomes, simply, when asked the question about improving his skills. "I'm a real over aggressive hitter and a free swinger."

Jonny Gomes during pre-game exercises.

That much is obvious from Gomes' strikeout totals. To date in his career, he has fanned 194 times in 537 at bats. But he isn't worried that much about the high strikeout totals. "Being over aggressive is a lot better than being under aggressive," stated Gomes, and then added, "I don't need too many dramatic changes."

Gomes is further motivated by the fact that he is a later round draft choice who has often been surrounded by number one picks, such as Rocco Baldelli (recently promoted from Bakersfield to AA Orlando) and Josh Hamilton (injured for the remainder of the season). Does this fact help him in his preparation for the game?
"It does," replied Gomes. "Being able to jump from Princeton (rookie league) to here (Bakersfield) and be able to play with them (the number one picks) and protect them in the lineup ... is an honor."

Gomes' other area for improvement is in his outfield play. The Tampa Bay coaches have helped the converted catcher considerably in this area. "Our outfield coordinator, Dwight Smith, has done a lot with my routes," remarked Gomes.

The Devil Rays have been so pleased with Gomes' progress that they drafted his older brother in the eighth round of the 2002 draft. Joey, an All American at Santa Clara University, is off to a good start with Tampa Bay's short season A team in Hudson Valley, New York, batting .267 with seven homers in 146 at bats.

Gomes is very focused on where he wants his career to go in the next year. When asked his primary goal for the 2003 season, he immediately responded, "Make it to the big league camp."

--- Bill Mitchell