Heels On The Field: A Baseball Blog

Josh Schmidt Looks Ahead To All-Star Appearance

Trenton Thunder pitcher Josh Schmidt was kind enough to talk to me before Saturday's game, despite being exhausted. The team arrived at seven that morning from a series in Erie and skipped BP. Schmidt is one of five Thunder players who've been named to the All Star team. It is not his first stint, he was also selected in his first professional season with Single A Tampa.

"It's been a fun ride," he says of the first half of the season. "I try to do the same thing day in and day out and keep it consistent."

I asked him if he was excited (yes, my name is Princess Obvious) or if he was nervous. "Hopefully I'll do well. They have 11 or 12 pitchers, so I don't know if I'll get in."

Schmidt is 7-1 with a 1.34 ERA. He goes back to the C word, in what's made him successful so far.

"It's really just about consistency. I don't throw hard. It's about being able to throw the ball where I want to."

I also chatted with New Britain Rock Cats (Minnesota Twins) manager Tom Nieto who also has five of his players going to the All Star Game: Pitchers Anthony Slama and Matt Fox, OF Rene Tosoni, 2B Brian Dinkelman and 1B Whit Robbins.

"When we started the season we were, 2-10. So we got off to a really slow start. But the one thing that these guys have always done is play hard," he said before the start of Monday's game. "Their work ethic is damn good."

In other Twins minor league news, they've recently suffered a setback with pitcher Kevin Slowey going on the 15 day DL, and the club called up Triple A righty Anthony Swarzak.

Meanwhile, following my rounds at Trenton yesterday, the Thunder went on to win 7-6, in a 14 inning marathon over the Rockcats. Justin Snyder doubled to end it. I'm imagining those guys felt like a dirt nap at the conclusion of that one.

I'll be doing a story coming up on the Thunder's youth camps and have enjoyed getting to know the Thunder players, some of whom will participate in the camps. Unfortunately, my Phillies stories yesterday were not winners. I wound up with nothing because the players I needed to talk to were otherwise occupied.

What I do for baseball.

If Healthy The Mets Could Take Back The NLE Crown

The Mets may have experienced a myriad of living nightmares in 2009, but they might only be a few tweaks away from taking back the National League East.

While I'm in no way joining the club that says manager Jerry Manuel should be fired NOW, the team could certainly use a top-to-bottom renewal. Internal issues came to the surface with GM Omar Minaya's public lashing of Mets beat writer Adam Rubin. Manuel has lost considerable fan support and, truthfully, he may not have been most fans first choice when Willie Randolph was dismissed. The Mets could use a new face to sell their brand. And Manuel may not be it. 

It's hard to point the finger away from the obvious, despite displeasure with Manuel or the PR debacle, none of it mattered on the field when their full team was not there to play and play healthy.

Injuries ultimately destroyed them. They could hardly recover from the loss of Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes and J.J. Putz. Reyes and Beltran were two big bats in that lineup and two key guys in the clubhouse. Leadership can't be measured by a stat, but the Mets must have been feeling like a ship without a captain or two. They appeared that way as well.

But the Phillies weren't exactly in tip-top shape and the Marlins, Braves and Mets were in the race during different parts of the season. The Phillies weren't the clear winner early on and certainly weren't as the season wound down. They outplayed the teams they needed to. But they did it with key pieces missing, particularly a strong bench and the struggles of closer Brad Lidge and starting pitcher Cole Hamels. The Phillies overcame. The Mets succumbed to the wounds.

The Yankees/Phillies World Series was no home run derby and the power pitching wasn't so overpowering. But the Yankees did the little things they needed to at the right time and held off the Phillies best hitters. Lidge imploded and, we now know, was pitching through pain. And, if anything, the Johnny Damon double steal was the most significant and memorable moment of the series. Power wasn't the story. Smart baseball was.

The Phillies weaknesses were exposed up against the Yankees and could be exposed early and often in 2010.

As for the Mets/Phillies rivalry: if ever there was a phrase to retire it would be "Team To Beat", so let's not begin 2010 with that again. Instead, we could focus on the possibilities:

The Mets, healthier and refueled, could be dangerous in the National League East and beyond. Add more pitching, multiply offensive power.

The Phillies, healthier and refueled, could be dangerous in the National League East and beyond. Add more pitching, subtract overuse of bullpen.

There's no macho slogan in all of that. Just simple mathematics.

Erika and Kathryn Fluehr Share Focus and Maturity

Erica and Kathryn Fluehr are dynamo twin sisters on the high school track.

And although they have a bond through running, they are two very different girls, both with their own talents and approaches.

You can read my story about them here:

http://www.milesplit.us/articles/30568

Floodlights On: Washington Nationals Minor Leaguer Erik Arnesen

Harrisburg Senators righty Erik Arnesen has a tendency to be aggressive and it can hurt him. But it's a lesson he's already got a jump-start on.

"I believe the one thing I struggle with the most is being too aggressive," Arnesen said by e-mail. "I do not like to give in, but I know there are times when it really is the right thing to do."

This also led to changes in his repertoire. While he's comfortable mixing things up, he's now throwing a combination of a curveball and slider. He's also nixed the changeup and is now developing a splitter.

"I feel good about how far I have come with this pitch. but it is probably the pitch that still needs the most work."

In July the 25 year old was 6-3 with a 2.96 ERA when I first got to see him pitch for the Senators- the Washington Nationals Double A affiliate- in 2009. In August he led all starters on the Eastern League squad, with a 3.48 ERA. He finished the season 8-6 with a 3.87 ERA and surrendered only 11 home runs.

When the Senators played the Trenton Thunder at Waterfront Park, I got to see a lot of them. They had tremendous success against the Thunder, a team that had produced several Yankees players on this year's World Championship roster.

He attributes his personal success to being open to coaches advice as having a huge impact on how quickly and effectively he's learning.

"I try to keep an open mind to whatever the coaching staff is telling me. In terms of things I still need to learn, I know I need to continue developing reading swings and different hitters approaches," he said.

Arnesen is also relaxed about how the Nationals might use him in the future.

"I enjoy being a starter. I like the routine and I like the idea of always having a chance to win every start," he says. "However, I have no issues with being a reliever if it's decided that is where I can help the most."

With the winter cold about to settle in, it helps keep his arm strong when he can catch a break in the weather.

"I look forward to the random warm day during the winter, because it is nice to throw outside," he said. "We do receive an off season throwing program from our pitching coordinator."

In the meantime he works a winter job like so many minor league players. Arnesen, however, holds down a few: he works as an office engineer on water main and sewer installation projects in Staten Island for HAKS, but also works as a handyman; painting and doing lawn work. He keeps close to baseball as well, giving pitching lessons at Extra Innings.