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04-17-2004, 04:36 AM
<b>Catchers serve as young arms' tutors</b>
Houston - Like much of the country, Brewers manager Ned Yost was talking about apprentices Thursday.
Unlike much of the country, he wasn't thinking about Donald Trump.
Yost doesn't watch a lot of television, so he was not caught up in the hype surrounding the final episode of "The Apprentice" Thursday night on NBC. If you mention Omarosa, one of the main characters from the reality show, Yost will probably think you're talking about San Diego reliever Eddie Oropesa.
When Yost talked about apprentices Thursday afternoon, he was referring to his pitchers and the impact that catchers Chad Moeller and Gary Bennett have had on them so far this season.
"Both our catchers are doing a great job so far with those guys," said Yost, who was a catcher during his playing days and has two former catchers (Butch Wynegar and Rich Donnelly) on his coaching staff. "They have a real idea of what we're trying to do out there on the mound.
"Right now, our pitchers are apprentices and not craftsmen. Our catchers have been a big part of the teaching process."
Yost likes the fact that Moeller and Bennett visit the mound often during games.
"After we decided to walk Barry Bonds (in a critical situation Wednesday in San Francisco), Moeller went out and made sure that (pitcher Jeff) Bennett knew exactly what we were going to throw to (Giants pinch hitter Edgardo) Alfonzo. We ended up getting Alfonzo out.
"Both of our catchers are doing a good job. We're getting tremendous offensive production and tremendous defensive production. I can't think of two catchers that I'd rather have than our guys."
Houston - Like much of the country, Brewers manager Ned Yost was talking about apprentices Thursday.
Unlike much of the country, he wasn't thinking about Donald Trump.
Yost doesn't watch a lot of television, so he was not caught up in the hype surrounding the final episode of "The Apprentice" Thursday night on NBC. If you mention Omarosa, one of the main characters from the reality show, Yost will probably think you're talking about San Diego reliever Eddie Oropesa.
When Yost talked about apprentices Thursday afternoon, he was referring to his pitchers and the impact that catchers Chad Moeller and Gary Bennett have had on them so far this season.
"Both our catchers are doing a great job so far with those guys," said Yost, who was a catcher during his playing days and has two former catchers (Butch Wynegar and Rich Donnelly) on his coaching staff. "They have a real idea of what we're trying to do out there on the mound.
"Right now, our pitchers are apprentices and not craftsmen. Our catchers have been a big part of the teaching process."
Yost likes the fact that Moeller and Bennett visit the mound often during games.
"After we decided to walk Barry Bonds (in a critical situation Wednesday in San Francisco), Moeller went out and made sure that (pitcher Jeff) Bennett knew exactly what we were going to throw to (Giants pinch hitter Edgardo) Alfonzo. We ended up getting Alfonzo out.
"Both of our catchers are doing a good job. We're getting tremendous offensive production and tremendous defensive production. I can't think of two catchers that I'd rather have than our guys."