Sunday, April 14, 2002
Reds farm report
Naehring: Kearns 'is going to be fine'
By John Fay, jfay@enquirer.com
The Cincinnati Enquirer
PHILADELPHIA — Tim Naehring looks beyond the batting average, which isn't good, to the approach to the game, which is.
Austin Kearns isn't hitting his weight at Double-A Chattanooga, but it's because he's in slump — not a mental funk.
“This game is hard enough,” said Naehring, the Reds director of player development. “When you start micro-analyzing, it doesn't do any good. Young players struggle at times. It's like Adam Dunn. They're going through the same thing.”
Kearns, the No.1 draft pick in 1998, had his mini-fallout with the organization over sending him to Chattanooga instead of Triple-A Louisville. He skipped two days of workouts.
Kearns, a 21-yar-old right fielder, is about as nice and as quiet a player you'll find, so the episode was somewhat out of character.
Naehring said there's been no lingering effect.
“If his approach to the game was different, if he wasn't playing hard, I'd be concerned,” Naehring said. “But Austin is going to be fine.”
Kearns is still dealing with soreness in his right thumb. A torn ligament in the thumb forced him to miss most of last season.
“There's no question that at times the thumb is going to be very sore,” Naehring said.
Kearns opened the season 2-for-21 at the plate. He did drive in the winning run with a double in Chattanooga's 4-3 victory over West Tennessee on Wednesday.
ALSO STRUGGLING: David Espinosa, the No.1 pick in 2000, has had a rough go of it at Single-A Stockton. Espinosa was hitting .179 through eight games.
“Some people were a little concerned when we sent David to Stockton,” Naehring said. “The California League is known as a pitcher's league. It's a tough league for hitters.”
“But we know David is going to hit.”
The bigger concern is Espinosa's adjustment to second base. Espinosa was switched from shortstop to second in spring training. He hasn't committed an error yet.
“He's playing fairly well,” Naehring said. “But he's still making the little mistakes that don't show up as errors. He knows what he has to do. He's working at it.”
SPEAKING OF STOCKTON: The Port opened the year 6-1 under new manager Jayhawk Owens.
Owens, the former big leaguer who prepped at Glen Este High, is managing for the first time. He spent two years as a hitting coach in the Houston minor league system.
Naehring was looking for managerial candidates in the offseason. Owens' agent, Joe Bick, recommended him.
“I was really impressed with him when we sat down and talked about the game,” Naehring said. “He's not, "Here's the bats and balls, go play.' He's concerned about the little things, the fundamentals that myself and the staff stress.”
SIZZLING RAUL: Louisville outfielder Raul Gonzalez continues to swing the hottest bat in the International League. He had hits in each of the Bats' first eight games. He was hitting .500 overall and leading the IL in hits and was second in RBI and average.
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