It was
rather direct, as queries go, but a fair one. After all, you don't find
many career .304 hitters, minor leaguers or not, just turned out into
the street, the way McGowan was dumped by the San Francisco Giants after
last season.
There
had to be something wrong with him, right? Not necessarily, although with
his shaved head and massive, 6'6", 240 pound frame, he does strike
a rather fearsome pose.
It turns
out that, after four years of bouncing around the Giants chain, the behemoth
from Burlington, Mass. just needed a change of scenery.
"I
don't hold any grudges against the Giants. It just didn't work out."
Too
bad for San Francisco. Their loss, as they say is Boston's gain. McGowan
wasn't out of work for long when he was snapped up by the Red Sox and
sent to Single-A Sarasota.
He spent
two months with the SaraSox, racking up a .368 average in 18 games before
making the jump to Portland.
It would
be nice to say he hit the ground there running, but in reality it was
more like a stumble. After two weeks with the Dogs, McGowan was batting
around the .220 mark, and an unproductive .220 at that. He mashed a three
run homer in his first day with the club, but then managed no homers and
just four RBI in the next three weeks.
Maybe
there were some bones rattling around the alcove, after all.
Skipper
Johnson knew better than that. "He's had success at this level and
the Triple A level before," said Johnson, "so I've never been
worried about him. He put some pressure on himself when he first got here.
He hit a home run the first day he was with us, and I think from there
he felt he had to come and help jumpstart the club. That wasn't coming
from me, because I never really had any doubts about him."
Johnson's
confidence was justified soon enough. Stationed in the middle of an efficient
if not power-laden Portland batting order, McGowan went on a tear and
hasn't stopped.
By the
middle of July, he was one of the hottest hitters in the Eastern League,
with a batting average bumping up against the .300 mark. During one stretch,
McGowan went 40 for 94 (.426) and had all but carried the PorSox in through
a tough stretch in their fight for a spot in the Eastern League playoffs.
"This
game is all about making adjustments on a night to night basis,"
said McGowan. "That's pretty much how you survive in this game. You
make adjustments better than guys who can't."
The
biggest adjustment McGowan made was from the neck up. His hitting eye
returned, he said, when he "finally stopped trying too hard."
"It's all a 'head' adjustment," said Johnson.
"It's
just getting into that comfort zone and relaxing. Just come to the ball
park and play." For his part, McGowan has played himself into position
for a big (you could say "giant-sized") future with the Red
Sox.
"Fortunately
I'm with an organization that trusts in my ability," he said, "and
knew that I would come around, sooner or later."
He has.
In a big, big way.
