Chris Gimenez hopes he's seen his last roach motel.
Over the past 13 months, the Gilroy native and recent call-up to the Cleveland Indians' Triple-A affiliate has made a remarkable climb up the minor league ladder, moving from Single-A Kinston in North Carolina to the double-A Akron Aeros to a new home with the Buffalo Bisons.
Grinding through nine-inning affairs in dilapidated parks and taking bus rides sometimes as long as 14 hours on days in between games, Gimenez, 25, is now experiencing the life of a ballplayer on the cusp of reaching the pinnacle of his sport: playing Major League Baseball.
"It's neat to think I've gone through every level and now I'm just one more away," Gimenez said. "At the same time, you can't get caught up thinking about that."
Doing so would go against everything that has helped him get as far as he has. After being pulled up to the Bisons in June, Gimenez started a rough 3 for 17 at the plate while splitting duties at catcher. Since that time, though, he has started to find his swing - he now boasts a .240 batting average - through reassessing what helped him get to Buffalo in the first place.
"I was called up and knew I had a good opportunity, and really I was just trying to impress people," he said. "My approach at the plate was a little off from what I had been doing."
Entering a clubhouse with a veteran presence - many of the players on Buffalo's roster have spent years playing for MLB teams - Gimenez was in the process of understanding his role on a club that has rules, or a code, that is strictly enforced through seniority.
"I was a little nervous coming in, I guess, because once you get to this level there are a lot of veteran guys who are trying to make their comeback to the Majors," he said. "You don't want to say anything to make anybody mad. You don't want to be too loud."
Getting to the park seven to eight hours before first pitch on gamedays, Gimenez spends as much time as possible trying to soak up pointers from fellow players such as third baseman Morgan Ensberg, a 2005 All-Star. With a better knowledge of the way the game works at the Triple-A level, while also focusing on getting back to basics, Gimenez's confidence is as high as it's ever been.
"The funny thing is it's really not that different," he said. "I think you kind of expect it to be but it's really not.
"The mental game is definitely a little sharper here, but physically - it's basically the same thing."
One thing, of course, is much different.
"The travel gets a lot better as you get up her," Gimenez said. "We actually get to fly to some places. For me, that's a huge step up. The only bad thing about that is you have to get up at five in the morning for a flight, but I can handle that."
Josh Koehn Josh Koehn is the sports editor of the Gilroy Dispatch.
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