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Canes Closer Gutierrez Now Causing Pain For Batters

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By JORGE MILIAN Cox News Service

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 14, 2008

Facing a win-or-go-home situation against Oregon State in the 2006 College World Series, the University of Miami turned to ace Carlos Gutierrez.

But Gutierrez didn't last past the second inning, allowing four runs in an 8-1 loss to the eventual national champion.

"I just didn't have my stuff that night," Gutierrez said. "I went out there and tried to get the job done, but Oregon State got the best of me."

The best of Gutierrez? Not quite.

Gutierrez took the mound against the Beavers knowing that his right elbow was a mess and would require a ligament-replacement procedure - better known as Tommy John surgery - days after the Hurricanes returned from Omaha, Neb.

Told that he couldn't injure the elbow any further, Gutierrez received a cortisone shot to relieve inflammation and agreed to pitch.

"It was pretty gutsy," said David Gutierrez, Carlos' younger brother and a sophomore pitcher for UM. "He had no feeling in his arm."

Fast forward two years and Gutierrez, who missed all of last season while rehabbing his elbow, is feeling no pain.

His opponents? That's another story.

Now a reliever, Gutierrez has developed into one of the nation's best closers and, according to UM coach Jim Morris, is the key reason the top-ranked Hurricanes (52-9) are back in the CWS for the 23rd time, facing Georgia (41-23-1) tonight at Rosenblatt Stadium.

Gutierrez (5-3, 3.02 ERA) has earned 13 saves heading into tonight's game, a number that ranks eighth on UM's all-time single-season chart.

None of those saves was bigger than the one he earned Sunday night in the deciding game of the NCAA Super Regional against Arizona.

Pitching for the third time in three days and attempting to preserve a 4-2 lead, Gutierrez entered the game in the eighth inning with runners on second and third and two outs. Gutierrez hit Arizona pinch-hitter Dillon Baird to load the bases before inducing Wildcats leadoff hitter Rafael Valenzuela to hit a dribbler that died between home plate and third base.

The 6-foot-3, 205-pound Gutierrez scooped up the ball with his back to first base, turned and threw a perfect strike to first baseman Yonder Alonso a split second before the speedy Valenzuela's foot touched the bag.

"That was the play of the year for us," Morris said. "That's the difference between us winning and losing that game."

Gutierrez got out of more trouble in the ninth inning, securing the victory and setting off a celebration on the mound at Mark Light Field.

Clinching the trip to Omaha capped an eventful few days for Gutierrez.

On Thursday, a day before the Super Regional began, Gutierrez was drafted in the first round by the Minnesota Twins with the 27th overall pick.

ESPN draft analyst Keith Law called Gutierrez "the biggest surprise of the first round."

UM coaches and players said they were also surprised, but in a different way.

"If there was a surprise, it's that he was drafted as late as he was in the first round," Morris said.

The joy of getting drafted didn't last long for Gutierrez. On Friday night in the opening game of the Super Regional, he served up a three-run home run to Arizona's Jon Gaston in the 11th inning of a 6-3 loss.

"It was definitely a good feeling to get drafted, then Friday I come out and the guy hits a home run off me," said Gutierrez, a native of Miami. "It's humbling. You really do need a short memory. It's how you bounce back that makes the pitcher."

Gutierrez bounced back like a helium-filled basketball, registering the final three outs in Miami's 14-10 victory Saturday, then stamping UM's ticket to the CWS on Sunday.

"It's crazy what he did, but he's always had that bulldog mentality," said Alonso, whose younger sister, Yaine, is Gutierrez's girlfriend. "I don't want to face him in scrimmages. His sinker drops a ton and it's 92-93 mph. That's not easy to hit."

Now that his right elbow is in one piece, UM's opponents in the CWS may learn what Alonso already knows.

"This time, we'll see how it turns out," Gutierrez said.

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