KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP) -J.R. Towles follows Brad Ausmus wherever he goes at Houston Astros spring training.
The 24-year-old rookie will succeed Ausmus as the Astros’ everyday catcher in 2008, and he’s trying to absorb every lesson he can from the 38-year-old veteran, who’s seen just about everything in 14 seasons.
“He has a way of explaining things that make senses to me,” Towles said. “Everything he says is a help. I just listen.”
While confident he can handle his new job, Towles is still bewildered by how quickly he’s risen through the Astros’ system.
The Crosby, Texas, native started last season in Class A Salem and considered getting to the major leagues a goal that would take years to reach. By last September, he had already made it, playing well in nine starts and even setting a team record for RBIs in a game.
good things happened. I got the opportunity and made the most of it.”
Towles hit a paltry .200 without a home run in Salem, hardly numbers that foreshadowed what was to come. He was promoted to Double-A Corpus Christi on May 14, but only after fellow catching prospect Lou Santangelo earned a 50-game suspension for a positive steroid test.
“I was just hoping to get to Double-A last season,” Towles said. “When I got to Double-A, I was like, ‘OK, I’ll make it a goal to finish my career in the big leagues.”’
Towles hit .324 with 11 homers and 49 RBIs in 61 games with the Hooks, raising eyebrows in the Astros’ front office. He was promoted to Triple-A Round Rock on Aug. 10 and played only 13 games before the Astros called him up on Sept. 4.
“I thought I was a couple of years away,” he said. “They told me, ‘You just never know when your time is. Strange things can happen.’ This definitely seemed like a strange thing.”
But Towles made a smooth transition, playing in 14 games and hitting .375 with a homer and 12 RBIs. On Sept. 20, he set a single-game franchise record with eight RBIs in an 18-1 romp over St. Louis.
The whirlwind three weeks erased any doubt in his mind that he belonged in the big leagues.
“If it wasn’t for last year, I’d be nervous right now,” he said. “Right now, I’m not nervous at all. That month really helped me.”
mus is an ideal tutor. One of the game’s most respected and knowledgeable catchers, Ausmus has schooled Towles on everything from scouting reports on hitters to communicating with pitchers to how to talk to umpires.
“He’s got the skills to become a good, solid major-league catcher, which is tough to do,” Ausmus said. “If I can aid in speeding up that learning curve and pass along some of my experiences to him, that would not only be beneficial for him, it’d be beneficial to the team.”
On Thursday, Ausmus was catching Houston ace Roy Oswalt in the bullpen next to where Towles was catching Chris Sampson. Oswalt cracked a smile after trying a knuckleball.
“I hope ‘Junior’ Towles has fun catching that,” Ausmus said.
“Is he going to throw that during games?” Towles asked.
“Yeah, if we’ve got a seven-run lead and two strikes (on the batter),” Ausmus answered.
Ausmus will catch Oswalt this season, but the rookie will be expected to counsel the rest of the Astros pitchers and not be afraid to tell them if he sees something wrong with their mechanics or notices that one of their pitches isn’t working.
Ausmus has told Towles that simple communication will earn him the respect of the pitchers and trump his age and inexperience.
“They have to know you care,” Ausmus said. “It’s not just about how they’re pitching on the mound. They have to know you care when they’re pitching their bullpens, they have to know you care as much about the pitcher next to them as you do about them.
“Most importantly, they have to know that you’re putting the team first and that winning is the most important thing and that sometimes, you may have to do something that isn’t great for the individual, but better for the team,” Ausmus continued. “They may not like it in the short term, but they’ll respect it in the long term.”
Manager Cecil Cooper isn’t worried about Towles handling the role.
“I’d just like to see him be a little more consistent, handling the pitchers and those types of things,” Cooper said. “He showed us those things at the end of last year. I just want to see him continue to grow in that area and be the guy that takes charge. I think those are things he can do and will do.”
Add A Comment
THIS IS NOT A GAMBLING SITE – If you think you have a gambling problem click here.
Disclaimer: This site is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Individual users are responsible for the laws regarding accessing gambling information from their jurisdictions. Many countries around the world prohibit gambling, please check the laws in your location. Any use of this information that may violate any federal, state, local or international law is strictly prohibited.
Copyright: The information contained on TheSpread.com website is protected by international copyright and may not be reproduced, or redistributed in any way without expressed written consent.
About: TheSpread.com is the largest sports betting news site in the United States. We provide point spread news, odds, statistics and information to over 175 countries around the world each year. Our coverage includes all North American College and Professional Sports as well as entertainment, political and proposition wagering news.
©1999-2023 TheSpread.com