Gilbert overcomes odds to rise through the baseball ranks
- June 29, 2010
It’s getting harder and harder for Midland RockHounds outfielder Archie Gilbert to rank his career accomplishments.
There was the 2008 California League championship with Single-A Stockton. The next year, he helped lead the RockHounds to a Texas League title. He was even inducted last month into the ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥ Sports Hall of Fame where he played during his college career. And tonight he will start for the South Division in the 74th Annual Texas League All-Star Game, which begins at 7:05 at Citibank Ballpark to culminate All-Star week.
“It’s a landmark in my career,” said Gilbert, whose mother Archie will be in Midland today to see him play in the game. “So many things are happening this year for the positive so it’s definitely an exciting year.”
The 5-foot-8 Gilbert has made an unlikely ascent through the baseball ranks since going undrafted in 2005 after his senior year at what was then Cal State-Hayward. The odds were against Gilbert making it this far.
RockHounds manager Darren Bush has managed Gilbert since 2008 in Stockton. He’s witnessed the hours of work Gilbert has put in on and off the field to get to where he is today.
“It’s well-deserved,” Bush said of Gilbert’s All-Star selection. “Archie’s as hard a worker as anyone in the game, if not harder. To see him reap the rewards and reap the benefits is great. I’m very happy for him.”
Of course, Gilbert didn’t have a blank palette to work with when he got to the Minor Leagues.
He holds the Cal State-East Bay career runs, hits, RBI, doubles and triples records along with a school record 36-game hitting streak. He already had a knack for hitting coming out of college.
And after a subpar first year in pro ball, Gilbert has been a solid hitter at each stage of the Minors. This year, though, he’s taken his production to another level. He’s tied for the team lead in home runs, second in runs, RBI and total bases and he leads the club in stolen bases. He’s posted these numbers after moving into the leadoff role after spending the first couple months of the season bolstering the middle of the order.
“He’s not forcing things anymore,” RockHounds hitting coach Webster Garrison said. “He’s just reacting to the ball, whereas last year he was more of a force hitter, just trying to work on certain things, grinding himself to go a certain way a certain at bat or trying to pull the ball. Now I just see him reacting to the ball, which good hitters do.”
His improvements at the plate haven’t come at the cost of his defense, either.
Gilbert has showed off his versatility in the outfield, constantly rotating outfield spots.
It’s a challenge he welcomes in order to show the Oakland Athletics he can play wherever he’s needed. And Bush wouldn’t move him around if he wasn’t capable.
“He has good instincts,” Bush said. “He gets a very good jump. He’s made some of the better plays I’ve seen, from running into fences and diving over his head. He actually dove one time and it hit his glove over his head and he caught it with his hand. Full extension, he dove, it hit his glove and he caught it with his bare hand as he was falling to the ground.”
While turning himself into one of the best outfielders in the Texas League has been rewarding for Gilbert, his goal is to one day suit up for Oakland, which neighbors his native Hayward, Calif.
It’s a dream so significant to Gilbert, he missed his Hall of Fame induction to remain with the RockHounds for a doubleheader in May. The good news is, a promotion to Triple-A Sacramento would move Gilbert a couple hours from home — all the more motivation to earn a promotion.
Being selected as an All-Star starter is a sign he’s on the right track.
“For them to select me, somebody out there has to recognize what I do,” Gilbert said. “Is it (a sign I’m making strides)? Yeah, it’s definitely good for your résumé. It gives you a chance to go out there and show your face.”