Newly re-signed Gwinnett Braves outfielder Stefan Gartrell thought his body of work would speak for itself in his quest to make the major leagues.
A career .258 hitter with 77 home runs and 250 RBIs in five Triple-A seasons, Gartrell earned a shot in the majors when he signed with the Chicago White Sox last winter. His stay was brief. After he failed to earn a spot on the Opening Day roster, the White Sox released him on April 4.
While he hardly saw himself as invaluable to the White Sox — he hit .211 in spring training — he says his release wasn’t strictly based on his performance. Instead, Gartrell learned another lesson on the business of baseball.
“When you get released like that, it feels like there is a lot of unfinished business,” Gartrell said. “That itch was bad to be able to play again and when I went to Mexico to play, I had a chip on my shoulder to prove that I could still play at a high level.”
After several soul-searching weeks, Gartrell, 29, headed to Campeche of the Mexican League, where he hit .346 (9-for-26) in 26 games, good enough to recapture the interest of the G-Braves, who signed him on May 22. Gartrell had played for the G-Braves in 2011 and 2012, hitting 45 homers during the two seasons.
“Honestly, I just feel really blessed to be able to play baseball and that I was given this opportunity,” Gartrell said. “Being able to come back to a place I have good history with is a really big blessing.”
G-Braves manager Randy Ready is pleased with the re-addition.
“He’s a guy that’s been here before and has a proven track record,” Ready said. “He brings experience and a lot of pop to the lineup. He’s had a lot of success at this level.”
Gartrell says he has a new outlook on the game. While he wants his character to speak louder than his bat, he also understands that his bat needs to do the talking sometimes too.
He doesn’t play with anger, he says, but rather with a determination to attack every at-bat like it’s his last.
“You have to give teams a reason to want you, not a reason why you shouldn’t be there,” Gartrell said. “It sounds stressful, but going through what I went through, I’m not afraid anymore. I’m playing to prove something and it’s a different type of motivation.”
That motivation came from the person Gartrell is closest to: his wife Shavon. After his release by the White Sox, Shavon noticed that Stefan wasn’t himself. Stefan missed the little things: being in the clubhouse, being in a uniform or even being able to put cleats on. So she pushed him to take the job in Mexico and get him back around the game he loved.
“I could tell he was disappointed and discouraged, but it was my job as his wife to encourage him” Shavon said. “So I asked him if he felt like his career is over. And when he said no, I felt like it was my job to encourage him to stay in baseball. I had to support him and uplift him.”
Stefan’s hiatus affected Shavon as well. She had to take on a full-time job back in San Francisco, where the couple lives.
“It’s good for him to focus on just baseball and not have to be concerned with how I’m doing,” Shavon said. “I just make sure he knows I’m OK and that he needs to concentrate on the game.”
That focus has Gartrell prepared for wherever his baseball journey takes him next.
“God has blessed me to be able to go through this experience and be able to see and understand the type of mindset you have to have,” Gartrell said. “I don’t want to take baseball for granted so I’m going to do everything in my power to continue playing.”
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