Giambi Hopes Minor Success Becomes Major

Jeremy Giambi calls this his “season without slumps.”

It produced a .372 batting average--the best in triple-A--with the Kansas City Royals’ farm club in Omaha and now it has given him a chance to show what he can do in the major leagues in the final weeks of the season.

He hopes his stretch of success doesn’t change.

“This is a great opportunity, and I want to try to make the most of it,” Giambi said. With the call-up this week, Giambi became the second player from Cal State Fullerton’s 1995 College World Series championship team to reach the big leagues. Rookie Mark Kotsay is a right fielder for the Florida Marlins.

“The best thing is that it will give me an idea of what it’s like up here, and hopefully I’ll be able to build on that next year,” Giambi said. “I know it will be a big adjustment for me, just was the way it was for Mark last season when he came up with the Marlins for a couple of weeks.”

Giambi, who was in the starting lineup for the third time as the designated hitter Friday night when Kansas City opened a three-game series against the Angels, is following in the footsteps of his older brother, Jason, a regular with Oakland.

Manager Tony Muser says he’s eager to see how Jeremy Giambi will do.

“We know he’s a great kid, and he has great genes,” Muser said. “We’re going to give him as many at-bats as we can in September and then see what we think. We know he’s going to need some time. The gap between triple-A and the majors now can be a big one.”

Giambi showed his skill as a hitter this season in Omaha. His average was the best in the Pacific Coast League when he was called up.

Giambi had 20 home runs and 66 runs batted in for 96 games but missed a month of the season with hamstring problems.

“You can never say what might have happened if I hadn’t been hurt, but I was fairly consistent all season,” Giambi said. “I didn’t have a slump all year, and that really helped. I might go 0-for-4 in one game, but I always seemed to be able to come back the next game with a couple of hits. I think I matured a lot this season as a player. I feel I’ve gotten smarter at the plate.”

When Giambi returned to the lineup in Omaha, he played 10 games before hurting his hamstring again while trying to cut off a line drive in the gap.

“Then when I came back, I was the DH for eight games, and I was back playing the outfield for only five games before they called me up,” he said.

Giambi, whose home is in Covina, has gained about 15 pounds since he played at Fullerton and says he’s stronger physically after working in a weight-training program during the off-season with Jason.

“He’d come over from Palm Desert for a few days each week and we’d work out,” Jeremy said. “I think it helped me a lot this season.”

Muser, however, says he doesn’t want Giambi to overdo the weight work.

“He needs to keep an athletic build,” Muser said. “Sometimes when players get too thick they can lose speed, and I want to make sure he doesn’t go backward defensively.”

The Royals have asked Giambi to play winter ball in Puerto Rico. “That should help him be ready for spring training, and then we’ll see about where he is on opening day,” Muser said.

Giambi says that while he wants to make the most of the call-up, he doesn’t want to expect too much too quickly. And like most new players in the majors, he says he probably is a little overanxious.

In his third at-bat with the Royals, Giambi took off for first base after what he thought was ball four. Six or seven steps down the line, the home plate umpire called him back. “I’d fouled off a couple of pitches, so I guess I lost the count,” Giambi said.

Giambi did walk on the next pitch, but Toronto first baseman Carlos Delgado was waiting for him when he reached base.

“He just told me it takes four balls for a walk in this league,” Giambi said, grinning.