News
Gardenhire, Gomez discuss frustration
Speedster vexed by slow start, spotty playing time
By Kelly Thesier / MLB.com
04/26/09 4:14 PM ET
CLEVELAND -- Carlos Gomez spent over half the 2008 season in the leadoff spot for the Twins, but Sunday's series finale against the Indians marked his first stint atop the lineup this year. It seemed a surprising time for the center fielder to be slotted in the leadoff spot, considering the frustration that Gomez has shown both on and off the field recently. Gomez has been upset for most of the past week, sitting by himself in the dugout and acting far different than his usual gregarious self. He even threw his batting gloves into the stands following a strikeout during his one at-bat in Saturday night's contest. Twins manager Ron Gardenhire had a talk with Gomez in his office on Sunday morning about the outfielder's visible frustration. The conversation was mostly one-sided, Gardenhire said, with Gomez listening to what the skipper had to say. The message to Gomez was that regardless of whether things are going well or going poorly, a player must try to stay on an even keel and act like a professional. "If you show your frustrations, everybody sees it and you become not a team player," Gardenhire said. "So don't do that. Don't get yourself in those situations. He's a young player that wants to play and he's a little frustrated." Sunday marked the first time in the past four games that Gomez was in the starting lineup, after Gardenhire gave the outfielder a breather to clear his mind. He entered Sunday's contest batting .205 on the season with just a .244 on-base percentage, and went 0-for-2 with a walk before being replaced by Denard Span in the Twins' 4-2 defeat to Cleveland. But Gardenhire said his decision to put Gomez in the leadoff spot was based on him having limited options for the role since he gave Span the day off. The skipper also acknowledged that he wanted to give a boost to Gomez's confidence by batting him leadoff. "If he starts making contact, he can do a lot of things," Gardenhire said. "He can steal bases and do all those things. ... It also says I have no fear with this guy in the lineup because he saves as many runs out there defensively as most guys knock in. But I also think we need somebody there today and he fits the bill better than most of them. We know he's not a perfect leadoff guy. But he can do a lot of things with speed." As for Gomez's attitude this past week, Gardenhire didn't seem too concerned about it turning around. He knows that Gomez has had a lot on his mind. In addition to thinking about his play on the field, Gomez has also been dealing with the fact that his wife, Gerandy, is in Fort Myers, Fla., and is due to give birth to their first child any day. Gardenhire said that Gomez told him after their talk that he understood the message and the Twins manager expects things to be better. "Young guys don't even know they are doing it," Gardenhire said of Gomez's outward frustration. "You talk to them and explain what they are doing and what you see from the other side. And then they step back and go, 'Oh, I didn't know I was doing that.'"Kelly Thesier is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
