It was about time for Todd Frazier. The Cincinnati Reds slugger was one of the top rookies in the National League last season, and arguably the most valuable player on a team that won 97 games. Drafted 34th overall in 2007, he could have been in Dusty Baker’s lineup earlier than he was.

Two lines in his 2010 Baseball America Prospect Handbook bio help explain his delayed arrival. In rating him Cincinnati’s top prospect, the publication described Frazier as “a jack of all trades but a master of none” and listed his position was as “OF/2B/3B.” Originally a shortstop, he had become a man without a defensive home.

Last year, his versatility proved more of a blessing than a curse. When Joey Votto went on the shelf, Frazier stepped in and provided solid production at first base. When Scott Rolen went down, he did the same at third base. Overall, he hit .273/.331/.498, with 19 home runs, in 128 games.

Frazier, who celebrates his 27th birthday on Tuesday, heads into the 2013 season as Cincinnati’s starting third baseman.

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David Laurila: Are you finally an established big-leaguer?

Todd Frazier: I have that first year under my belt, but I don’t think I’m an established big-leaguer. You need at least a couple of years in to be that, but I do feel I’m a big-league ballplayer. I think I’ve opened some eyes, although there’s always room for improvement.

It’s crazy, because you play in the minor leagues — you wait your time — and when you finally get your chance, it’s: `What are you going to do with it now?’ Often, when guys get called up, they play a lot. When I got called up, I was in a pinch-hitting role. I told myself that when I get that opportunity, I need to step up. I think I was 5-for-6, or 6-for-7, as a pinch-hitter and was able to help the team enough that they kept me on. The next step was to show I belonged, and I did that. I think I proved I belong.

DL: Did not establishing yourself in any one position hold you back? Read the rest of this entry »

Gary Bell was late for the glory. He debuted with the Cleveland Indians in 1958, one season removed from the best 10-year stretch in franchise history. From 1948 to 1957, the Tribe won at least 88 games nine times.

That doesn’t mean he didn’t enjoy himself. The right-hander was a hard thrower, and he lived life the same way. He won 121 games in 12 big-league seasons, and there were plenty of laughs to go with the strikeouts. Seventy-eight years old, he’s as gregarious today as he was in his playing days.

Bell talked about his time in Cleveland, including notable teammates, during a visit to Fenway Park last season.

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David Laurila: You broke into the big leagues in 1958. What was baseball in Cleveland like at that time?

Gary Bell: Cheap. I was making $7,000 a year, which is a little different from now. Our team was pretty good. My first year, we finished third or fourth, but in 1959 we finished second and probably should have won it. That’s the year the White Sox beat us out. It would have been a nice World Series. The Dodgers played in the Coliseum, which held 100,000. We got 75,000 in Cleveland, so it would have been a huge payoff for those days, probably have been five or 10 grand.

DL: You had some notable teammates.

GB: When I came up, old, great pitchers like Bob Lemon and Mike Garcia were still there. I didn’t really learn from them, though. Back in those days, if you were a rookie you were nothing. They didn’t want to help you, because they were afraid you were going to take their job. Herb Score was there, as well.

DL: You also played with “Sudden Sam” McDowell and the younger version of Luis Tiant. Which of them threw harder? Read the rest of this entry »

Don’t believe Gerrit Cole when he says velocity isn’t important. The 22-year-old right-hander has a fastball that reaches triple digits and his slider is as hard as many heaters. His ability to overpower hitters is what makes him one of the top pitching prospects in the game.

The 6-foot-4 flamethrower is on the fast track to Pittsburgh. Drafted first overall in 2011, out of UCLA, he pitched at three levels last season and struck out more than a batter per inning while logging an impressive 2.80 ERA. His next stop is the Pirates starting rotation, where he projects to be the ace of the staff for years to come.

Cole talked about his game when the Double-A Altoona Curve visited Portland late in the 2012 season.

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David Laurila: How would describe your approach?

Read the rest of this entry »

Dave Eiland isn’t a big fan of teaching the cutter, nor does he feel a true curveball can be easily taught. That doesn’t mean the Kansas City Royals pitching coach isn’t a master of his craft. Highly respected among his peers, he played 10 big-league seasons and spent eight years as a pitching coach in the Yankees system — three with the parent club — before joining the Royals. Eiland shared his thoughts on tutoring young pitchers during a late-summer visit to Fenway Park.

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David Laurila: What is your primary responsibility as a big-league pitching coach?

Dave Eiland: To get the absolute most I can out of the pitchers’ abilities. To do that, I focus on their strengths and on improving their weaknesses. I also concentrate on how their strengths match up to the hitters’ weaknesses. I do that with film work, studying hitters’ strengths and weaknesses, and how each individual pitcher can use their strengths to attack those weaknesses.

DL: What role do scouting reports play?

DE: They play a big role, and I do my own scouting reports. By studying film, I know where certain holes are and what pitches hitters can and can’t handle in certain areas and counts. I know their tendencies in certain counts.

A lot goes into it, but I try to keep the information that I give to pitchers simple. I don’t want to overload them with so much stuff that everything starts running together. Then you have paralysis by analysis.

DL; Is the amount of information you share with pitchers handled on a case-by-case basis?

DE: They all read the same scouting reports, Read the rest of this entry »

If you weren’t a baseball fan between 1968 and 1984, you probably aren’t very familiar with Tom Burgmeier. Even if you know the name, chances are you don’t realize he was one of the top workhorse relievers of his era. Over 17 big-league seasons — mostly with the Royals, Twins and Red Sox — the lefthander appeared in 745 games and threw 1,258.2 innings.

Burgmeier was no slouch. An American League All-Star in 1980, he finished his career with a record of 79-55, 102 saves, and a 3.23 ERA. Displaying excellent control, he walked just 2.7 batters per nine innings. As for the innings themselves, they rarely came one at a time, even though he finished 370 games.

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David Laurila: How did being a relief pitcher in the 1970s and early 1980s differ from today?

Tom Burgmeier: Back in my era, it didn’t matter when you came into the game, whether it was the third inning, fifth inning, or whenever. You pitched until you got in trouble. Nowadays everything is designated. A guy is a long man, so if it gets past the fifth inning he never comes into the game. They have a sixth-inning guy and a seventh-inning guy. They don’t have an “eighth-inning guy,” he’s called a set-up guy. Then you obviously have your closer, who is another one-inning guy.

All through my career, if you came into the game in the fifth inning, you got them out in the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth. You stayed in there until the ninth unless you had a bona fide closer. When I was with the Red Sox, we had Bill Campbell and Bob Stanley. and we were all reliable for multiple innings. That’s what we did. It kind of bothers me to see a guy come in and have really good stuff, and strike out the side, and the next inning there’s someone else on the mound.

DL: You were a closer in 1980 and saved 24 games.

TB: By definition I was a closer. In total, I had 19 saves that were more than one inning. Read the rest of this entry »

Richie Shaffer won’t be displacing Evan Longoria any time soon. That doesn’t mean the 21-year-old Tampa Bay Rays third base prospect doesn’t have a promising future. Drafted 25th overall last year out of Clemson, Shaffer projects to bash his way to Tropicana Field.

Shaffer talked about his game when the short-season Hudson Valley Renegades visited Boston to play in the Futures at Fenway doubleheader.

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David Laurila: How have you been approaching your first professional season?

Richie Shaffer: I’ve been going out there and being myself. I’m playing baseball and doing the best I can, trying not to over-think things. I’m letting the work I do before games translate into production during the games. That’s the key. You want to be consistent. Basically, I’m trying to get the feel for what professional baseball is all about.

DL: Are there specific things you need to focus on?

RS: There are things I want to key on, both strengths and weaknesses. I want to do improve my game and make myself more well-rounded. I’m constantly working on my footwork at third. I’m constantly trying to keep my swing where it needs to be. I’m working on my pitch recognition and plate discipline. I’m thinking about my approach and driving the ball the other way. All of those things, because I want to be a complete, well-rounded baseball player.

DL: Have you seen scouting reports — in Baseball America or elsewhere — that you don’t fully agree with? Read the rest of this entry »

Mike LaValliere was never the sexiest catcher in baseball. He didn’t make any All-Star teams and in parts of 12 big-league seasons [1984-1995] hit just 18 home runs. Nicknamed “Spanky” he ran like he was carrying a piano on his back.

But he was a damn fine backstop. The Pirates went to the playoffs in 1990, 1991 and 1992, and LaValliere was their primary catcher all three years. In 1987, his first year in Pittsburgh, he won a Gold Glove.

Originally signed as a non-drafted free agent, he broke in with the Phillies and also played for the White Sox and Cardinals. He caught a lot of good pitchers, and in this interview he talks about which of them had the best stuff, and which — much like himself — did the most with the least.

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David Laurila: How good of a hitter were you?

Mike Lavalliere: Put it this way, with my speed they were all legit. I didn’t have many infield hits, so the ones I got were earned. I was a guy without much power, although I did have a little gap power. I like to think my hits helped the team.

DL: You hit .300 [twice] and had a pretty good OBP [.351 lifetime].

ML: I had a pretty good eye and didn’t strike out much. Again, if I could have run a little better, I probably could have flirted with .300 a few more seasons. But without running well, you’re kind of limited offensively.

DL: How much would you be valued in today‘s game?

ML: Catchers nowadays have maybe a little more bang, without quite as much emphasis on their defense. If I were joining a team that had a bunch of boppers and didn’t have to rely on my offense, I think I could be a real good fit.

DL: Did being a catcher help your plate discipline?

ML: They’re two different animals. Read the rest of this entry »

Going into last season, Justin Ruggiano was your classic AAAA player. A soon to turn 30-year-old outfielder, he’d appeared in 98 big-league games over three seasons, hitting just .226. The Rays had released him over the winter, and the team that picked him up — the downtrodden Astros — had sent him to Triple-A.

Then he got the opportunity he’s long been waiting for.

On May 26, Ruggiano was traded to the Miami Marlins and promptly jumpstarted his career. In 91 games, the native of Austin, Texas hit .313/.374/.535, with 13 home runs and 14 stolen bases. He also played solid defense in center field, where he is slated to begin the 2013 season in a Marlins uniform. As he famously Tweeted to Ken Rosenthal in November, “I got this.”

Ruggiano recently sat down to talk about his 2012 campaign, as well as the Marlin’s controversial salary dump, steroids and the Hall of Fame, and much more.

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David Laurila: You had a breakout season. Why?

Justin Ruggiano: You can’t have a breakout year if you’re never given an opportunity. It was basically my first chance to play an extended amount in the big leagues, and once the dust settled, I was able to relax and play my game without being too caught up in the moment. I felt like I was playing baseball again, as opposed to in years past, where I was the 25th man on the team and didn’t know what tomorrow would bring, if I’d still be there or if I’d be going back to Durham.

It was a satisfying season, because I was able to back up what I’ve thought I was capable doing this whole time. Can I go out and duplicate what I did last year, every time? Not necessarily, but that’s baseball. That said, I think I proved I can play at this level.

DL: Earlier this winter, Ken Rosenthal tweeted that the Marlins need a centerfielder. Your response was “No we don’t. I got this.” Read the rest of this entry »

Jed Bradley isn’t making excuses. The Milwaukee Brewers pitching prospect knows he underperformed in his first professional season, and he’s spending the winter doing something about it. A 22-year-old lefthander, Bradley logged a 5.53 ERA for Brevard County, in the Florida State League, after being drafted 15th overall in 2011 out of Georgia Tech.

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David Laurila: Do your numbers accurately reflect how you pitched?

Jed Bradley: I think they’re pretty indicative. It was not a great year. I did start out strong. Coming out of spring training, I felt great. My velocity was down, but my pitches were working well and my command was on. I don’t think I gave up an earned run over my first 20 innings.

After that, the five-day rotation and the growing pains of my first year really set in. I didn’t know how to handle a lot of it. I did too much in between starts, whether it was throwing, running, or the weight room. I kind of stretched myself too thin, and it caught up to me.

A lot of times you have to learn the hard way. I would get on the mound multiple times between starts, and I played way too much catch — both long-toss and short stuff. I wasn’t very cognizant of the effect that would have over the course of a 142-game season. I guess my mindset was more about the number of reps, as opposed to a quality number of reps. When they say, “Save your bullets,” that saying is around for a reason.

DL: According to Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook, you were throwing 96 mph in instructs [in 2011]. Was that accurate?

JB: I don’t know how that could be true. Read the rest of this entry »

Pete LaCock is a good storyteller. The former first baseman is prone to embellishment — Retrosheet doesn’t see eye-to-eye to with some of his recollections — but his tales are certainly entertaining. The son of long-time Hollywood Squares host Peter Marshall, LaCock played for the Chicago Cubs (1972-1976), for the Kansas City Royals (1977-1980) and for the Yokohama Taiyo Whales, in Japan (1981).

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LaCock on battling Bob Gibson:

“Billy Williams had broken his ankle, so the team was looking for a left-handed hitter. I had been hitting the ball pretty well, so they brought me up from Double-A. I was 19 years old. The game was in Chicago, and Bob Gibson was pitching for the Cardinals.

“It was 3-2, bottom of the ninth, and we had runners on second and third with two outs. Our pitcher was due up and Don Kessinger was the next hitter. He wasn’t a very good left-handed hitter — he was a better right-handed hitter — and Gibson had already struck him out a few times.

“I figured they were going to walk me. My run didn’t mean anything and putting me on meant they could get an out an any base. They had a meeting on the mound and somebody said, ‘Does anybody know this guy?’ Gibson said, ‘If they’re bringing in a rookie, I’m pitching to him.’ Ted Simmons was the catcher, and he told me this. When he comes back behind the plate, he goes, ‘They’re going to pitch to you, kid.’ I said, ‘Great.’ Read the rest of this entry »