View Full Version : Gary Glover
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=332833#post332833 target=_blank>Gary Glover Signs</a>
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=363395#post363395post363395 target=_blank>Davis moves forward</a>
<b><font size=4>Another new addition</font></b>
Add Gary Glover to the list of new Brewers dads.
Glover returned to Maryvale Baseball Park on Monday after spending the weekend in Tampa, Fla., where his wife, Vanessa, gave birth to a seven-pound, 13-ounce baby boy named William Jacob Glover at 6:21 p.m. ET on Friday evening. He is named for Glover's father and grandfather, but will go by "Jake."
"We liked the ring of William Jacob better than Jacob William," said Glover, who also goes by his middle name (his first name is actually John). "It was so hard to get back on that plane. But I have to put food in the little boy's mouth, too."
Glover, who is out of minor league options, is fighting for a job on the Brewers' pitching staff as a starter or long reliever. He signed with Milwaukee for the second half of last season and pitched well in four games, three starts, down the stretch. Glover went 2-1 with a 3.50 ERA in 18 innings of work.
"I feel comfortable now," he said. "That was a big problem for me last year, going into Cubs camp. I'm not the kind of guy who is real outgoing, willing to meet new people. This year I feel like I know a lot of guys."
Glover picked up a cut fastball from pitching coach Mike Maddux late last season and is working on that pitch in camp.
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=364890#post364890post364890 target=_blank>Brewers look for starters</a>
<b><font size=4>Proud papa</font></b>
Right-hander Gary Glover returned to camp after spending the weekend at home in Lutz, Fla., while his wife, Vanessa, gave birth to a son, William Jacob. Glover celebrated by distributing cigars around the clubhouse.
"I don't even smoke them," he said.
The right-hander started three games for the Brewers last season, going 2-1 with a 3.50 earned run average.
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=365396#post365396 target=_blank>Pre-workout work</a>
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=365456#post365456post365456 target=_blank>Comeback trail</a>
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=367513#post367513post367513 target=_blank>Moving up the depth chart</a>
<b><font size=4>In the mix</font></b>
Glover looked sharp during his two-inning start and is still officially in the running for a spot in the starting rotation behind Ben Sheets and Doug Davis.
"We're still looking at eight guys that are fighting for the starting spots," Yost said. "It's hard to lengthen eight or nine guys out. So we're going to start getting guys on a five-man rotation, trying to piggy-back and do whatever we can do. Some guys are going to have to throw on the minor league side to get their work in.
"A lot of times, guys will make decisions for you. Their performance will make your decision for you. We're not there yet. But it's getting to the point where every outing has got to count for these guys."
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=369990#post369990post369990 target=_blank>Number five position still up for grabs</a>
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=370974#post370974 target=_blank>Time for tough decisions has arrived for Brewers</a>
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=371716#post371716post371716 target=_blank>Bullpen in flux</a>
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=372000#post372000 target=_blank>Brewers' pitching rotation remains up in the air</a>
<b><font size=4>Last call</font></b>
No. 5 starter Gary Glover is not slated to make his first start until Tuesday, but he was to be available in relief on Friday and Saturday, Yost said. With relievers like Mike Adams and Ricky Bottalico still waiting for their first call, it appeared unlikely Glover would see action unless it was emergency middle relief. ... Chad Moeller and Damian Miller visited before Friday's game with their former Diamondbacks manager, Bob Brenly. The Cubs hired Brenly last winter to replace television analyst Steve Stone. ... The Brewers' 19-run outburst in their first two games was the most since they scored 21 runs on the first two days of 1995.
<b><font size=4>Glover rediscovering mind-set</font></b>
CHICAGO -- Traditional thinking says No. 5 starters have one of the toughest jobs in baseball. He starts one day, might not toe the rubber again for another 10, then is expected to be just as sharp in his next start.
Brewers pitching coach Mike Maddux does not subscribe to traditional thinking.
"That's all between the ears," Maddux said.
That is exactly what Maddux told right-hander Gary Glover, who holds the fifth spot for Milwaukee. Glover will not make his first start until Tuesday at Miller Park, by which time Ben Sheets and Doug Davis will already have pitched twice. Because of team off-days, Glover is scheduled for just three starts in April.
It's a familiar spot for the soft-spoken 28-year-old, who has experience bouncing between the starting rotation and bullpen for the Chicago White Sox. But this is the first season Glover has been assured a spot in the rotation out of Spring Training, and he is feeling more confident than ever about a role as the swing man.
"In the past, I did think of it as two different mindsets and I think that got me into trouble more than anything else," said Glover, who entered the season 16-14 with a 4.92 ERA in 134 big league games, 36 starts.
Glover was used in relief on Friday, replacing Tommy Phelps with two outs and a Cubs runner on base in the ninth inning. Glover surrendered a single to Nomar Garciaparra that pushed the potential winning run into scoring position, but struck out Aramis Ramirez to force extra innings in the Brewers' eventual win.
Glover said Maddux has opened his eyes to the mental aspects of pitching, but Glover already had a head start. He started using visualization techniques while pitching in the Blue Jays' Minor League system in the mid-1990s after a conversation with childhood friend Jeremy Hayman, a competitive golfer.
"I asked him, 'What do you do to remind yourself to keep the same swing over and over again?'" Glover remembered. "It was visualization. He would visualize his swing, visualize the last few seconds of ball flight, visualize the ball dropping into a 10-foot circle around the pin.
"I figured out that it's the same with pitching. I started visualizing the ball going right into the catcher's mitt, and it turned my game around that season."
Glover got away from the technique for several years, but recently started using it again under Maddux's tutelage. The pair has worked on a series of minor mechanical and mental adjustments that have given Glover's pitches, not to mention his career, new life.
"I don't know whether it helps or not now, but it's something that's part of my routine and I'm sticking with it," Glover said. "When I was younger, I would try to throw the ball through a brick wall without having any idea what I was doing. Now I have an idea out there. I'm feeling a lot more confident."
According to manager Ned Yost, Glover is not the only Brewer soaking up lessons from Maddux.
"At this level, this is a mental game," Yost said. "You're not going to find anybody up here who's going to need a major overhaul of mechanics. You're going to find guys who need gentle tweaking of mechanics. Mike gets these guys to think about being a pitcher. He sets rules and foundations for them to live by. He's a phenomenal pitching coach in that respect."
"He has really changed my outlook on things," Glover said of Maddux. "I look at being able to work with him as a blessing."
<b><font size=4>Glover needs changeup</font>
Right-hander hopes to work on flaws before next start</b>
Minneapolis - The staple elements of Gary Glover's routine won't change this week. The Milwaukee Brewers right-hander will do his running. He'll play catch in the outfield. He'll practice hitting and bunting and shag balls in the outfield.
At some point before he takes the mound Wednesday against Colorado, Glover probably will visit the drawing board, too.
A 1 1/3 -inning performance Friday night against Minnesota - the shortest start of his big-league career - had Glover contemplating some adjustments.
"I've definitely got to make some changes," he said, reflecting on a seven-hit, four run performance that paved the way for a 7-1 loss. "Nothing drastic, but I've got to do a little something.
"I have basically two pitches, both firm," Glover said, referring to the four-seam fastball and cut fastball that have dominated his repertoire of late. "I have to find a way to get (hitters) off that.
"I've got a changeup and I've got a curveball. I've got to throw one or the other. I think I need something in the lower 80s (mph) or upper 70s.
"It's not like they hit a lot of balls hard off me. They hit a few flares and they found a few holes. But I don't think I was fooling anybody out there. Even when I make a great pitch, they're able to react to it and foul it off or put it in play.
"My cutter is getting a little too big. I need to shorten it. There are a few things I have to work on. I've got to figure it out."
Manager Ned Yost agreed with Glover's assessment. "You could tell pretty early that it wasn't going to be his night," Yost said. "But Gary will get back on track. He's pitched some good ball games for us this year."
Glover's previous shortest start also came against the Twins. While pitching for the Chicago White Sox on Oct. 6, 2001, he worked two innings and gave up five runs and six hits, including two homers, en route to a 6-5 loss.
<b><font size=4>Glover out, catcher in</font>
Pitcher designated for assignment</b>
Understandably nervous about having only one healthy catcher for the three-game series against the New York Yankees, and probably beyond, the Milwaukee Brewers made a move Monday that prompted them to drop right-hander Gary Glover.
With No. 1 catcher Damian Miller sidelined with a groin injury, the Brewers summoned Julio Mosquera from Class AAA Nashville to provide protection for Chad Moeller. The Brewers opted not to put Miller on the disabled list because they expect him to be able to play again in three to five days.
Because Mosquera was not on the 40-man roster, the Brewers had to clear a spot for him. They did so by designating Glover for assignment, giving them 10 days to trade him, release him or have him accept a demotion to the minors.
"We got strapped a little bit," general manager Doug Melvin said. "It's the only decision we had. We were running out of moves.
"You can't go into a game with one catcher. The doctors said Miller might be able to play late in the game, for one inning. But what if something happened to Moeller in the first or second inning?"
The situation emphasized the Brewers' lack of depth at catching. Mosquera, 33, is a journeyman minor-leaguer who signed over the winter as a six-year free agent. In 25 games at Nashville, he was batting .204 with one home run and 12 RBI.
Melvin declined to second-guess himself for selling 42-year-old catcher Pat Borders to Seattle a couple of weeks back. Borders, who was the No. 1 catcher at Nashville, took over as the Mariners' top catcher after injuries decimated them at that position.
Calling up Mosquera temporarily left Nashville with only one catcher, Mike Rivera, who was playing in the independent Atlantic League a few weeks ago.
Melvin talked with Houston about acquiring catcher Raul Chavez, who was designated for assignment last week. But by the time the Astros got back to him, Melvin had made the Mosquera move.
"We needed a catcher today," Melvin said. "We have enough pitching for now. We're talking about a No. 3 catcher, on the depth chart, so let's not get too dramatic."
Glover started the season as the No. 5 starter in the rotation. When Ben Sheets came off the DL on June 2, manager Ned Yost replaced Glover with Wes Obermueller, who had pitched well as a spot starter in place of Sheets.
Since that switch, Obermueller has made two poor starts, allowing eight hits and eight runs in a total of 5 1/3 innings. Glover pitched in relief in both of those games and also fared badly, allowing 10 hits and nine runs in 4 2/3 innings.
Overall, Glover was 3-4 with a 6.70 ERA in 12 outings (nine starts). Because of an off day Thursday, the Brewers don't need a fifth starter again for nine days.
With a little more than a third of the season complete, Miller has been sidelined three times with minor injuries. He missed time earlier with a lower back strain as well as biceps tendinitis.
Melvin said he did not consider those injuries a red flag on Miller, 35, who signed a three-year, $8.75 million free-agent contract over the winter.
"It's the wear and tear of the position," Melvin said. "He's still never been on the DL. He's just had nagging injuries, here and there.
"It's tough when a catcher has a nagging injury and has to go back there (behind the plate). When you get older, it's something to be concerned about but we're not an old club."
<b><font size=4>Waiting game</font></b>
Right-hander Gary Glover, who was designated for assignment on Monday to make room on the roster for backup catcher Julio Mosquera, remains with the club while awaiting his fate.
"We never kick our guys out the door," Yost said. "We want Gary to accept an assignment and go to (Class AAA) Nashville and get things ironed out."
After throwing a 21-minute bullpen session Tuesday afternoon, Glover said he expects to find out whether he cleared waivers at 1 p.m. Thursday. If he goes unclaimed, he can elect to take his free agency or accept a minor-league assignment.
Glover, whose contract pays him $390,000 to pitch in the big leagues and $90,000 to work in the minors, said he doesn't harbor any ill will toward the organization.
"I don't think (the catching shortage) was the ultimate factor," he said, referring to the Brewers' decision. "It played a part in the urgency, but I haven't really done my part."
Glover began the season in the rotation and was sent to the bullpen after nine somewhat shaky turns. In 12 outings, he is 3-4 with a 6.70 earned run average.
<b><font size=4>Glover clears waivers, accepts minor league assignment</font></b>
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Brewers right-hander Gary Glover cleared waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A Nashville on Thursday.
Glover began the season in Milwaukee's rotation. He was designated for assignment Monday when catcher Julio Mosquera was called up from Triple-A.
Glover was 3-4 with a 6.70 ERA in 12 games, including nine starts. He went to the bullpen after ace Ben Sheets returned from the disabled list late last month.
<b><font size=4>More movement</font></b>
Gary Glover cleared waivers and accepted reassignment to Nashville this weekend. Glover, 28, was 3-4 with a 6.70 ERA for the Brewers.
"We know Glover. We know what he's capable of," Brewers manager Ned Yost said. "He'll be able to pitch and do well [with Nashville]."
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=394077#post394077 target=_blank>More moves</a>
<a href=http://www.addictsports.com/baseball/showthread.php?p=427948#post427948 target=_blank>Brewers sign six to Minor League contracts release Glover</a>
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