Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 10, 1990 TAG: 9006100064
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: D6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOHN SMALLWOOD
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
It's just that after spending most of last season in Salem and putting up decent numbers in the Class A Carolina League, Pennye was hoping to start this season a little farther north - in Harrisburg (Pa.) of the Class AA Eastern League.
"Yeah, I was kind of disappointed," said Pennye, taken by the Pirates out of Southwest Texas State University with the 37th selection of the June 1988 draft. "I thought I had a good enough year that I would get a try at Harrisburg. But the Pirates told me they wanted me to go to Salem, have a good season and then there was a possibility I could get moved up."
Pennye, though, got off to a miserable start.
On April 28, he had just four hits in 37 at-bats for a .108 average.
It was not the type of performance expected of a player who had hit .262 in 446 at-bats during his first stint in the Carolina League. Before that, he hit .357 in Augusta (Ga.) of the South Atlantic League and .314 in Watertown (Pa.) of the New York-Penn League.
"You say to yourself that you're not going to try and do too much, but deep in your mind you are," Pennye, 23, said. "I was hoping to get off to a good start. Maybe I did put too much pressure on myself."
Bucs manager Stan Cliburn had similar thoughts and decided to sit Pennye down for a few games.
"It was very tough," said Pennye, who resides in Temple, Texas. "I sat down five days. That was more than in my entire career. I played every game but one last year in Salem."
The break, however, didn't just allow Pennye to regroup his thoughts and overcome the disappointment of not being in Harrisburg - it gave him a chance to make some changes in his swing.
"I had made a mechanical adjustment in spring training," Pennye said. "No one said anything to me because I'd always been so consistent. It happened that at the start of the season it was really messing me up."
What Pennye had done was move his hands a little more forward than he had done in the past. It was small thing, but "I'm an aggressive hitter," he said. "With my style I can't afford to be off as much mechanically as some other guys."
Cliburn, who had managed Pennye last season in Augusta, noticed the change and suggested Pennye switch his stance back to the one he had always used.
"I just moved my hands back a bit," Pennye said. "Before, I had too much movement in my swing, and it wasn't allowing me to get ready or adjust to pitchers setting me up. Now I can see the ball a little longer, which makes my [hand-to-eye] coordination better."
The results speak for themselves.
Pennye was back in the Bucs lineup May 2 against the Winston-Salem Spirits. He went 1-for-3 with a double. In the next 36 games, he had 48 hits in 134 at-bats, and his .358 average over that span raised his overall average to .304. After having just one extra-base hit in April, he has 16 doubles and six home runs, matching his total of last year.
"Everybody has hot and cold streaks, but I've been going for more than a month now," Pennye said. "When it's that long you're talking about consistency, and that's what everyone's striving for. I've always been pretty consistent."
There is another change for Pennye since last season. He married his girlfriend Maria in September.
"She's been the best thing for me," Pennye said, "especially during the bad times. She's pulled me through the tough nights. She's helped calm me down and taught me not to take this game so seriously."
And as far as moving to Harrisburg, "I've kind of shut that thinking down," he said. "[Coming to Salem] may have been a blessing in disguise. Being here and playing every day is better than being in Harrisburg and playing once or twice a week. [Moving up] will take care of itself as long as I put the numbers up."
In his first game with the Harrisburg Senators, former Buccaneer Domingo Merejo, who was called up on Thursday, had an RBI single in the top of the 12th inning as the Senators beat the New Britain Red Sox 7-3. Former Bucs Tony Longmire, Carlos Garcia and Junior Vizcaino also had RBI singles in the 12th, making a winner of pitcher Blas Minor (4-1). . . . With a crowd of 761 for a doubleheader against the Durham Bulls on May 30, the Peninsula Pilots attendence increased to 20,717. That surpassed last season's total attendence figure of 20,059 in just 22 dates. . . . The Pilots and Frederick Keys will play in Baltimore's Memorial Stadium today after the Orioles' home game against the New York Yankees. . . . Not just the players in the Carolina League are waiting to be called up. On June 2, umpire John Dezelan, who has worked several games at Salem Municipal Field, was promoted to the Class AA Eastern League. He was replaced by Wil Stone, who was acquired from the Appalachian League. . . . The Pittsburgh Pirates signed right-handed pitcher Kurt Miller, the team's first-round draft pick, and assigned him to Welland (Ontario), their Class A farm club in the New-York Penn League, which opens play June 19. Miller (6 feet 5, 195 pounds) was selected Monday out of West High School in Bakersfield, Calif. He had a 9-1 record and an ERA of 1.41 his senior season. The Pirates selected 41 players during the three-day draft. As of Thursday they had signed 10.
by CNB