NECBL Deals D’Backs a Pair of Aces: Part One-Cole Gillespie
By Don Leypoldt
Photo credit: DAVID CALVERT/RENO ACES Used with permission.
“You’re gonna be a star. All the way to Reno,” – From Reveal
R.E.M sang those words tongue-in-cheek but roaming the Reno Aces’ outfield on Opening Day, via New England, are two bona fide Major League prospects with a shot at stardom. The Arizona Diamondbacks’ Triple-A affiliate started Connecticut native and 2007 Vermont Mountaineer standout A.J. Pollock in center field, and 2005 North Adams SteepleCat Cole Gillespie in right.
Pollock may well be a star one day- he is just 24 but he is ranked by MLB.com as Arizona’s number three position prospect. On April 18th, he made his Major League debut.
Gillespie saw extensive time with the Big Club in 2010 and was called up again in 2011. Gillespie, who captained Oregon State’s 2006 College World Series champion team, had a brief seven game stay in North Adams, but it was long enough to create a favorable impression of both the NECBL and the SteepleCats’ organization.
The pair of Aces, along with their hitting coach Rick Burleson, recently spoke with NECBL.com. This article features the interview with Gillespie; next week will highlight our chat with Pollock.
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As a young shortstop at West Linn High in suburban Portland, OR, Cole Gillespie learned plenty about Lewis and Clark.
Today, Gillespie strives to be like Luis (Gonzalez) and (Tony) Clark, who combined to swat 283 homers in a Diamondback uniform.
Days prior to winning the College World Series, Gillespie was selected by Milwaukee in the third round of the 2006 Draft. After earning All-Star nods in his first two full Minor League seasons, Gillespie was traded to the Diamondbacks’ organization in July 2009.
He got 104 at-bats with Arizona in 2010. After Gillespie slammed at least a dozen each of doubles, triples and homers at Reno, he got another cup of coffee in the Big Leagues in 2011.
The fleet outfielder- Gillespie has over 100 career Minor League steals and a 77% success rate- slowed down long enough to talk with NECBL.com.
NECBL.com: You didn’t spend a lot of time in North Adams, but what do you remember about your summer there?
Gillespie: “That was my first time out East and it was a short period of time, but what I remember most was the hospitality they showed me out there- (GM) Sean McGrath and (then-owner/host Dad) John DeRosa. It was a good experience to get out there and there was good competition in that League.”
NECBL.com: You accomplished something real special in 2006 with Oregon State winning the College World Series. Talk about that team. What ingredients did you need to win a title?
Gillespie:“I think we gained a lot of experience from the ’05 season when we got to the World Series. Even though we went two-and-out it was still quite an accomplishment to get there. I think, at that time, we were more excited about being there and I don’t know if we were expecting to go too far in the World Series.
“In 2006, we brought back a lot of players. We obviously lost a couple of good players in Jacoby Ellsbury and Andy Jenkins but we got there. I think that was the big difference between the ’05 team and the ’06 team. Things were expected and we knew what it took to win.
“We got our butts kicked in the first game with Miami and we knew it was a do-or-die situation from there on out. We took it as a one-game- at-a-time deal. Soon enough, in the championship series against North Carolina we found ourselves down in the first game of that series but the attitude we had throughout the whole season was ‘We were never going to give in.’”
NECBL.com: You weren’t just happy to be there anymore…
Gillespie: “Definitely. We knew we were a good team and I think that whole mentality really drove us to the World Series in ’06. We got down early but we came through with pitching, defense and getting timely hits when we needed them.”
NECBL.com: That OSU team has placed 5 or 6 guys in the Big Leagues. When you are surrounded by that amount of talent, does that push you as a player?
Gillespie: “I think we all wanted success individually and as a team. I don’t think there was any extra incentive or pressure to do things that we weren’t capable of doing.
“But like you said, we did have some talent on that team- not necessarily that superstar or a top 10 talent except for Jacoby. Dallas Buck in the third round was our top pick from ’06. We didn’t have that superstar but we all played really well together and respected one another. Pitching and defense was our philosophy all season and that is what carried us.”
NECBL.com: So many of our fans are also Red Sox fans who watch Jacoby every night. Do you still keep in touch with him?
Gillespie: “We’re still good friends. I stayed with him my freshman year in the dorms and through out college. Right before Spring Training, I spent a few nights with him. He comes out here to work out in the offseason and every year he is always trying to get me to move to Arizona and work out with him.
“We still stay close. We have different schedules but we text here and there just to let each other know how we’re doing. We stay supportive.”
NECBL.com: OSU’s philosophy was pitching and defense. You won a Gold Glove last season and defense is one of your calling cards. What are some things that can help college players improve defensively?
Gillespie: “From an outfield perspective, the one thing you can’t be shy about doing is getting reads off of bats in live BP. Anyone can go back on balls from a machine but you need to see the spin, see the balls come off of the bats. That also lets you work on routes and timing. That’s the best drill that I take away. In batting practice, you’d rather just hang out or talk with the other guys out there, but you can really utilize that time to become a better defensive player.
“I was coming from the infield out of high school. When I made the transition to the outfield in college, repetition for me was the biggest thing. Just getting reads down. And the first step is so big in the outfield. If you make that one misstep where you come in on a ball that goes over your head, that makes the difference right there.”
NECBL.com: What does the Arizona organization like about Cole?
Aces’ Hitting Coach Rick Burleson: “Cole has been up and down a few times and when he has gone up, he has done a nice job with the Big League club. He can step in and play both corner spots as well as center field if needed. Our right field goes out to 420 and he really runs the ball down well out there. He won the Gold Glove last year, so that says a lot on how he plays defensively.
“Offensively, he is a very hard worker but he hasn’t put it together to the point where he is satisfied or anyone else is all of that satisfied. He has been around the .300 mark for most of his career but his consistency as far as driving the ball…he hasn’t had as much success as he wants to doing that. Yet.
“But he works very hard. He is very knowledgeable about the game and what pitchers are trying to do to him. It’s just whether or not he can continually make the adjustments to be an everyday Big League player.”
NECBL.com: What is being traded like? Did it take you long to be comfortable with the D’Backs organization? (Note: Gillespie and another Minor Leaguer were traded for infielder Felipe Lopez in July 2009)
Gillespie: “I had mixed emotions. We were on the road getting ready to leave on a bus trip and the manager pulled me off the bus and told me the news. I was shocked. Until it happens to you, that first time you’re traded, you never really expect it. I had played with a lot of those guys in the Brewers’ organization for three years so I had built strong relations with them but when you go back and look at the business aspect of it, I realized it probably would be a better opportunity for me. Not that the Brewers didn’t like me but they needed someone and the Diamondbacks were definitely interested in me as well. I looked at it as a good opportunity.
“At first, it was a little uncomfortable, the teams you’re facing or the people you’re meeting for the first time. But the transition to Reno was made easy by (then manager) Brett Butler and the guys on the team really made me feel welcome.”
NECBL.com: What was your Major League debut like?
Gillespie: “I heard I got called up when I was sitting in a hotel in Fresno. The manager and a couple of other guys called me into a room and really put me on the spot. They made me feel like I had failed a drug test in Spring Training. They had me all concerned. I said ‘I’m not hiding anything from you guys! What’s going on?’ They had some fun with me for a little bit and then told me the good news. That’s one thing that I’ll always remember.
“I got up there the next day and was called up in the 8th inning in a pinch-hit role facing Chris Carpenter, a former Cy Young winner. I was so anxious and excited and nervous all at the same time. I was on-deck getting warmed up and Kelly Johnson was hitting behind me. He told me ‘Hey, nothing has changed. This is still baseball man. Have fun with it.’ Hearing that relaxed me a little bit. I got a hanging cutter Carpenter left over the plate that I hit down the left field line for a double. That is something I’ll never forget.”
NECBL.com: What are the differences between Big League and Triple-A hitters? What do you need to work on to get up to Arizona for good?
Gillespie: “I think it’s mostly being consistent. So many guys in the higher levels of the Minors have the talent to make it, but it’s being consistent and being reliable for your team. When anyone is hot you feel like you’re a Big League player, but when you’re struggling, can you still help your team out and win? It’s staying positive and keeping a good attitude. Sometimes in the past, I let things that I can’t control effect me. I’ve learned now that all I can do now is play my hardest and produce some good numbers and hopefully the rest will take care of itself.”
Burleson: “I think it’s just being a little more consistent in his approach. Being able to drive the ball a little bit more and be a little bit more productive.
“But I still think there is a spot for him on a roster. I don’t know if he is going to break the outfield of Arizona, to be quite honest with you, with the talent that is there. I’m talking about Parra, Upton, Chris Young and now they’ve added the big bat of Jason Kubel#. But as far as a guy who can come off the bench and do some things, I think there is a big future for him.”
(# Upton, Kubel and Young have all had a 28 homer season in the Majors)
Cole Gillespie’s Advice to the NECBL Class of 2012:
“Have fun with it. I know that everyone wants to be a Major League player and be in the Big Leagues for a long time but you have to enjoy what you’re doing first. With that obviously comes hard work. There is always someone in front of you and there is always someone behind you trying to take your job. If you’re not working as hard as you can be to be the best player that you can be, then you’re cheating yourself. This game will go on without you. The two things I’d take away with it are work ethic and enjoying what you’re doing.”
Bonus sidebar, Rick Burleson. Reno’s hitting coach has a higher Q rating in New England than most current Big Leaguers. Rick Burleson played in the Majors for 13 years, seven of them with Boston. The four-time All-Star won both a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger in his impressive career. Knowing that a lot of readers would also be Burleson fans, he caught NECBL.com up with how he got into coaching:
Burleson: “I never felt like I was able to fulfill my career as a player, with the injury to my shoulder when I went to Anaheim. I only played parts of three years out of the six there and was never the player there that I was in Boston. So I wasn’t fulfilled that way with the game. I sat out a year when I was finished and missed it enough that I wanted to get back. Oakland hired me as an infield instructor and it just went from there.
“I kind of did it backwards. In other words, I was a coach at the Big League level before I coached in the Minors. One thing that stuck with me is that Don Zimmer said that if he ever managed again he would have wanted all of his coaches to have managed in the Minors. I had never done that so in ’97 I put my resume out there and Seattle hired me as a Minor League manager.”
Burleson managed in the Mariners organization and reached Triple-A with the Reds’ organization. He also managed a team in the 2003 Arizona Fall League. But managerial turnover is inevitable. “When I lost my last managing job,” Burleson continued, “I decided I’d like to stick around but I didn’t know what my niche was. Arizona hired me as a hitting coach and I’ve done that the last few years.
“There is less stress and less pressure. You don’t have 25 guys with problems, just the 12 or 13 hitters. It’s a little easier and more relaxing. I’ve just been taking it year by year and seeing what will become of it. Reno is a great place. The fans are good. The ballpark is brand new. Everything is first class so as far as if I’m in the Minor Leagues, I couldn’t be happier as far as where I am right now.
“That’s the joy we get from it now, when you see a guy called to the Big Leagues. When one of those guys gets called up it’s a dream come true for them. That is where we get our satisfaction and really feel the gratitude.”
Gillespie keeps working for that call-up. Meanwhile, the Dodgers’ Ramon Trancoso knows that Gillespie can hit in the Big Leagues. Gillespie victimized Trancoso for a grand slam in Arizona’s final regular season game of 2011. R.E.M could have sang about it in Electrolite:
”You are a star tonight. You’re some electric out of sight.”
