Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The: BREWERS NOTES; Taking a gamble; Pitcher Eveland goes from casino t

Dana Eveland was in Biloxi, Miss., on Thursday, doing a little casino gambling, when he found out that the Milwaukee Brewers wanted to take a chance on him.

The left-hander for Class AA Huntsville had a day off after pitching a scoreless inning Wednesday night in the Double-A All- Star Game in Mobile, Ala.

"I was having a good time, playing some cards," he said. "I was with my girlfriend and my mom; we were going to stay the night in Mississippi. Then I got a phone call saying, You've got a plane to catch at 7 o'clock in the morning.' It was a huge surprise."

Eveland got back to Huntsville about 10 p.m. and by 3 p.m. Friday, he was at Miller Park, a member of the Brewers' bullpen.

In what manager Ned Yost called "an upgrade," the Brewers brought Eveland up without ever having him pitch in Class AAA. To make room on the roster, left-hander Tommy Phelps (0-2, 4.63 earned run average) was sent to Class AAA Nashville.

"He's a younger guy who's been in our plans," Yost said, referring to the 21-year-old Eveland. "Tommy did a great job for us but this is a step in getting guys brought in that we think can be here for a long time."

Eveland, a 16th-round draft choice in 2002, was 10-4 with a 2.72 ERA as a starter at Huntsville. He wasn't in the major-league camp during spring training but the Brewers took him on several trips with them including to Miller Park for exhibition games against the Chicago White Sox and kept a close watch on him.

Yost said pitching coach Mike Maddux "pushed hard to have us consider bringing him up out of spring training. Mike believed in him that much."

Asked to describe Eveland's style, Maddux said: "He's a command pitcher, a pitch-maker, with a little bit of velocity. He changes speeds and locates the ball but he has enough stuff that he doesn't have to be perfect."

As someone who has been a closer (in rookie ball) and a starter, Eveland offers versatility in the bullpen, Yost said.

"He's more than a situational left-hander" someone brought in to face lefty hitters the manager said. "He can pitch multiple innings.

"We play so many tight games, we need to figure out ways to get to (closer) Derrick Turnbow. We need one or two more guys to protect (Julio) Santana and (Matt) Wise, so that they don't have to pitch every day."

Asked if he would feel confident using Eveland in the late innings, Yost said, "If he throws strikes, I've got faith in him."

What about the jump of two levels, without pitching in Class AAA? Maddux said it wasn't necessarily a risk.

"From A to Double-A is huge," he said. "From Double-A to Triple- A is not as big. When I was (coaching) at Double-A Round Rock for Houston, we had Roy Oswalt, Tim Redding, Brad Lidge all go from Double-A to the majors."

Eveland was asked if he felt confident, having faced some major- league hitters in spring training.

"Right now I can say sure, it helped," he said with a laugh. "But I haven't been on this mound yet. There are definitely some nerves, but I think once I get out there and throw a pitch or two, I'll definitely cool down."

Flight decked: The Navy's Blue Angels flying team, in town for an air show, zoomed over the stadium for a second straight day.

Maddux watched them with special interest. He had a flight with the Air Force Thunderbirds in 1996.

"It's something else," he said. "They knocked me out" from the G- forces built up by the supersonic maneuvers.

"They say, Yeah, get right in, we'll be doing four G's," he said. "It's kind of like telling someone, Just step into the box, the guy will be throwing 88 (mph).

"It's the quietest ride, actually, because you're outrunning sound. All the noise is behind you.

"But it's a violent ride, like (Mike) Tyson's got you in a corner."

FULL COUNT

FREQUENT FLIERS

Entering play Friday, Milwaukee's Carlos Lee ranked ninth-best in the National League this season in what Major League Baseball calls "home run ration," or at-bats per home run. Here are the NL's top 10 in the category:

Player Team No.

Derrek Lee Chicago Cubs 11.8

Andruw Jones Atlanta Braves 12.3

Morgan Ensberg Houston Astros 12.4

Adam Dunn Cincinnati Reds 12.6

Cliff Floyd New York Mets 13.8

Reggie Sanders St. Louis Cardinals 14.1

Albert Pujols St. Louis Cardinals 15.2

Jim Edmonds St. Louis Cardinals 15.4

Carlos Lee Milwaukee Brewers 15.6

Pat Burrell Philadelphia Phillies 15.8

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