Gibson says Bell woes just ‘minor’
MILWAUKEE — After reliever Heath Bell’s rough outing on Tuesday against the Cardinals, the Diamondbacks coaching staff queued up old video from previous years, comparing how Bell looked when he was having success to how he looked against St. Louis.
Manager Kirk Gibson’s conclusion: Not much had changed. Hedidn’t see any noticeable mechanical difference, nor did he detect Bell tipping pitching. And so Gibson believes Bell isn’t far from getting back on track.
He took a step in the right direction on Saturday night, tossing a scoreless seventh inning against the Milwaukee Brewers.
“We didn’t see anything, and that’s when you know it’s minor,” Gibson said. “When I went back and looked at the film, I saw balls down the middle of the plate and I saw him missing his location by (about a foot). I know if he gets it there, it’s a different story.”
Against the Cardinals, Bell gave up a home run on the first pitch he threw — a fastball that Pete Kozma drove into the center-field overhang at Chase Field — and two batters later gave up another homer to the Cardinals’ Jon Jay.
Bell didn’t finish spring training on a high note, giving up runs in his final three exhibition appearances, and given the brutal 2012 season he is trying to bounce back from, it would seem his bad outing on Tuesday would have represented an inauspicious start. Gibson didn’t see it that way. “This guy has had a ton of success in the big leagues,” Gibson said. “You don’t think he’s ever been through it before? He’s got a ton of confidence. It’s not like he’s going to run from it. (General Manager Kevin Towers) knows that; that’s part of the reason why he got him. You’re looking for people who have the character to fight through things when they happen.”
During the first week of the season, Gibson has been paying close attention to the Michigan State baseball team’s web site, tracking the progress of his son, Cam, a freshman outfielder who is following in the footsteps of his father. Gibson played football and baseball at Michigan State in the 1970s.
Gibson, who delayed a media session last week as he waited for his son to finish an at-bat, smiled widely on Friday when Cam got a hit while Gibson met with reporters. A moment later, Gibson’s phone started buzzing with a text message from his wife, Joanne.
“I like it when it’s on video and I can watch, but certainly anybody would want to watch their son play,” Gibson said. “There’s a little more meaning to it that he wears my number (30) in the place that I played.”
Short hops
The Diamondbacks claimed right-handed reliever Will Harris off waivers from the Oakland A’s and assigned him to Triple-A Reno.
» The Mike Gonzalez wild pitch on which the Diamondbacks scored two runs in Friday night’s game was changed by the official scorer to a passed ball on Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy.
Tracking Cam