BASEBALL / STEVE HENSON : Mesa Took His Game to a New Level

A new name, a rising star, a bullpen savior. Jose Mesa has saved 17 games in 17 chances, helping the Cleveland Indians jet to the fastest start in the major leagues.

Who is this guy?

Anyone who followed the Ventura County Gulls, a Toronto Blue Jays Class-A team in 1986, might remember Mesa. He was quite a story even then, although for a different reason.

Only 20 years old as a Gull, Mesa already was in his fifth professional season. He was signed by legendary scout Epy Guerrero out of the Dominican Republic at the age of 15, before most of his counterparts in the United States had even joined their high school varsity teams.

Mesa, who turned 29 in May, is in his 14th season as a pro, having thrown nearly 1,000 minor-league innings and 700 in the majors.

At Ventura, he spoke little English and threw very hard. He was a starter, posting a 10-6 record.

The right-hander made his major league debut in 1987 with the Baltimore Orioles but suffered a succession of arm injuries and did not stick for a full season until ‘92, when he was traded to Cleveland at midseason.

The arm problems are behind him: In a game last week, Mesa threw four consecutive pitches at 98 m.p.h.

Mesa, who has four brothers with professional baseball experience, is fully Americanized now, living in Westlake, Ohio, with his wife and five children.

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Geronimo Berroa, 30, of the Oakland Athletics is another former Gull signed by Guerrero who took a long time to reach his potential.

The Dominican outfielder is batting .262 with 10 home runs after leading the A’s last season with a .306 batting average, when he hit 13 home runs and drove in 65 runs. Yet 1994 was his first full season in the majors.

Berroa made his major-league debut in 1989 with the Atlanta Braves and had brief stints with the Cincinnati Reds and Florida Marlins in ’92 and ’93. But it wasn’t until the A’s signed him as a six-year minor league free agent in January, 1994, that he got his big break.

Berroa’s promise first was shown with the Gulls. He led the team with 21 home runs and 232 total bases, and was selected to the California League all-star team.

Other former Gulls currently in the major leagues include right-handed pitcher Todd Stottlemyre (A’s), left-handed pitcher David Wells (Detroit Tigers) and catcher Greg Myers (Angels).

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Just about the time he thought he might rot in Rochester, Greg Zaun received a long-awaited promotion to the Baltimore Orioles, following in the footsteps of his uncle, Rick Dempsey.

Zaun is still waiting to make his first appearance since joining the Orioles on Tuesday. He will back up Chris Hoiles, who put together back-to-back strong offensive seasons with Baltimore but is batting only .182 this year.

The Orioles released unproductive Matt Nokes and promoted Zaun ahead of Rochester’s other catcher, Cesar Devarez, who spent a short time with the Orioles earlier in the season.

“Zaun earned it,” said Glenn Geffner, a Rochester official. “He threw out 50% of base-stealers and he is really durable for a smaller guy.”

Zaun, 5 feet 10, 190 pounds, has caught more than 100 games every season since he was drafted out of St. Francis High in 1989. Last winter, he hit the weights, adding 10 pounds of muscle.

His power has improved in step with his weight. After hitting seven home runs all of last season, Zaun had seven at the time of his promotion and a .293 batting average.

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A snub was followed by a promotion last week for Bobby Hughes, a catcher in the Milwaukee Brewer organization.

Hughes, a former Notre Dame High player and son of Brewer scout Bob Hughes, was not chosen to play in the recent California League all-star game.

But while most of the all-stars returned to their Class-A teams after the game, Hughes kissed the Cal League goodby. He was promoted from Stockton to El Paso of the double-A Texas League last Sunday.

Hughes, 24, a strong defensive catcher, was batting only .235 but was leading the Ports with eight home runs and 31 runs batted in in 53 games.

This marks Hughes’ second stop in El Paso. He played 12 games there last season, batting .278, after spending most of the season at Stockton.

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More than a year after the Montreal Expos signed him for $417,500 because of his hitting prowess, Brad Fullmer last week hit his first professional home run.

An injury to his throwing shoulder kept Fullmer sidelined last season after being drafted in the second round out of Montclair Prep. He is playing first base and designated hitter for Albany, Ga., of the Class-A South Atlantic League.