O’Gara Gets Shot From Cattle Call

Dan O’Gara knew the odds when he went to a Milwaukee Brewers’ tryout camp last month.

Every summer, herds of wannabe Randy Johnsons and Mark McGwires answer cattle calls for open tryouts.

They fill out information cards, show their stuff, then are almost uniformly given thanks for their efforts and sent on their way.

O’Gara, a right-handed pitcher from Paraclete High who graduated from Tulane in June, was back home in Lancaster for the summer and deciding his future.

He heard about a camp at Pierce College and figured he’d give it a shot.

“I thought nothing but good could come from it,” said O’Gara, who was 5-4 as the No. 3 starter on a team that advanced to the NCAA regionals. “I knew the odds were very bad, but I also believed I had what it takes to play pro ball.”

With a 90-mph fastball, a little savvy and a lot of luck, O’Gara beat the odds.

A day after showing up for a second Brewer camp, O’Gara was packing his bags for Helena, Mont., and the short-season Pioneer League.

“It’s very rare that we sign someone out of one of those camps,” said Kate Geenen, Brewers’ administrator of minor league operations. “It’s almost an aberration.”

Scouts say the camps are used more often as a way to identify younger players who might be drafted in later years. It doesn’t hurt as a public relations tool, either.

O’Gara, 6-foot, 190 pounds, was in the right place at the right time.

When Milwaukee scouts Corey Rodriguez and Bruce Seid returned home from the camp, there were messages waiting for them. An injury created an opening for a right-handed pitcher at the organization’s lowest rookie-level affiliate and someone was needed right away.

They considered another pitcher who threw harder than O’Gara but he didn’t have as much polish as the former Paraclete standout.

O’Gara was given a $500 signing bonus, a plane ticket and a chance.

He took a physical on Wednesday and made his professional debut later that night, allowing two runs in two innings against Great Falls.

“He’s created his own chance,” Rodriguez said. “Had he not shown up to the second camp, we never would have called him. The timing and the situation was right and he was the best fit.”

Things happened so fast for O’Gara that, as of Friday, he had not talked to his parents in Lancaster.

“It’s been a great experience so far,” he said. “But I’m still trying to catch up with everything.”

Catching up should be easy. The tough part was catching on.

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By coincidence, Geenen, the Brewers’ minor league administrator, has ties to Paraclete.

From 1992 through 1995, she taught Spanish and served as the school’s girls’ basketball coach and assisted the softball team.

She had nothing to do with the decision to sign O’Gara. That was Gonzalez’s and Seid’s call.

As the only member of the player development department who speaks fluent Spanish, she bridges the communication gap between the Latin players and the organization.

Geenen also handles minor league contracts, insurance issues, assignments to instructional league and some of the unusual requests from coaches and players.

The most unusual?

“Once, a guy thought he deserved a limo while he was playing in Helena,” she said. “Some have big-league minds at the minor league level.”

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Outfielder Joe Borchard of Camarillo High and Stanford, the Chicago White Sox’s first-round pick, is scheduled to leave today for Chicago’s training site in Tucson and will likely be assigned to Winston-Salem of the Class-A Carolina League when he’s ready to play.

Borchard agreed to terms on a record $5.3 million contract last week and signed on Friday.

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The Lancaster JetHawks, who clinched a California League playoff spot by winning the first-half title of the South Division, entered the weekend with a 30-12 record and a 7 1/2-game lead over the San Bernardino Stampede for the second-half championship.

The JetHawks, in the middle of their longest homestand of the season, were second to the St. Lucie Mets in Baseball America’s most recent Class-A power rankings.

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Shortstop Jack Wilson of Thousand Oaks High was traded last Sunday from the St. Louis Cardinals to the Pittsburgh Pirates for left-hander Jason Christiansen.

Wilson was assigned to the Altoona Curve, the Pirates’ double-A affiliate in the Eastern League

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Baseball America selected Mike Lieberthal of Westlake High and the Philadelphia Phillies as the best defensive catcher in the National League this week in its annual Best Tools report.

The magazine polls major league players and managers for its selections.

Lieberthal, who sprained his ankle in a home-plate collision, came off the 15-day disabled list on Friday. The Phillies were 4-11 without him.

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Outfielder Gabe Kapler of the Texas Rangers, formerly of Taft High and Moorpark College, extended his hitting streak to 18 games on Friday night.

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Shane Monahan’s suitcase has seen more action than his bat.

The former JetHawk outfielder began the season with Tacoma, the Seattle Mariners’ triple-A affiliate.

He was sent to double-A New Haven before being released.

The San Diego Padres picked him up and sent him to triple-A Las Vegas, but released him, as well.

Now, he’s with the Cincinnati Reds, who sent him to double-A Chattanooga, but recently promoted him to triple-A Louisville.

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Right-hander Keith Evans of Crespi High, who has struggled with injuries all season, was activated from the disabled list last week by the Montreal Expos’ triple-A affiliate in Ottawa. . . .

First baseman Mike Mitchell of Rio Mesa High was placed on the disabled list by the Tucson Sidewinders, the Arizona Diamondbacks’ triple-A club. . . .

Shortstop Freddy Sanchez of Burbank High, an 11th-round selection by Boston Red Sox in June, was promoted from short-season Lowell to Class-A Augusta. . . . Outfielder Covelli Crisp of Pierce College was promoted from short-season New Jersey to Peoria of the Class-A Midwest League by the St. Louis Cardinals. . . .

Outfielder Matt Riordan of Westlake High came off the disabled list and is playing for Delmarva, the Baltimore Orioles’ Class-A affiliate.