Sinisi finds his stroke with Bevos

Acquired from Texas, outfielder has worked on hitting for power

By jason vondersmith

The Portland Tribune, Jun 5, 2007, Updated Oct 30, 2009

JIM CLARK / P0RTLAND TRIBUNE

Outfielder Vincent Sinisi is tops on the Beaver roster with a .332 average and 69 hits.

Right before our eyes, Portland Beaver outfielder Vincent Sinisi has solidified himself as one of San Diego’s prospects.

The parent Padres didn’t know what to expect from Sinisi, who hit .220 at Triple-A Oklahoma last season before the organization acquired him from Texas.

But Sinisi has been consistent and good, hitting a team-leading .332 with 69 hits entering Monday’s game. Asked to work on hitting with more power, Sinisi has nine homers and 29 RBIs.

“Feeling good right now,” says Sinisi, a 25-year-old from Houston. “I’m finally putting it together, feeling healthy and ready to go.”

Sinisi has been surging since the start of May.

From May 4 through May 7, he had four homers. From May 10 through May 19, he had an eight-game hitting streak (.387). In his 10-game hitting streak entering Monday, Sinisi was hitting .378.

“He’s barreling the ball,” manager Rick Renteria says, meaning that Sinisi has been hitting solidly with the bat. “Time will tell how consistent or inconsistent he will be.”

The Padres sent speedy outfielder Freddy Guzman to Texas for Sinisi, a former star with Rice, the 2003 College World Series champion.

Interestingly, it was Grady Fuson, then with Texas, who drafted Sinisi in 2003; Fuson now serves as San Diego’s vice president of scouting and player development.

Sinisi’s development had been stunted the past three seasons. He suffered a broken forearm in June 2004, colliding with a shortstop while with Texas’ Class A team at Stockton, Calif., and only now feels past it.

He has hit for decent averages in the minors, but never for power.

Entering the year, he had 25 career home runs.

“We wanted to challenge him to get the ball out of the park,” Fuson says. “It’s nice to see it’s holding up.”

However, “I wish I could say it was as easy to do as say,” Renteria adds.

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