LAKEWOOD, N.J. – Charleston RiverDogs right-hander Gabe Encinas admits his time in Staten Island wasn’t all that enjoyable last summer.

Oh, he liked Richmond County Bank Ballpark and the outfield views of Lower Manhattan and the freighters chugging past the outfield wall.

The 21-year-old native of Whittier, Calif., rated the Yankees’ No. 30 prospect by Baseball America, just didn’t like the way he was pitching.

“It was a real struggle,’’ said Encinas, now a member of the Class-A Charleston RiverDogs. “I just didn’t relax out there. This season, so far, has been different.’’

The word out of the South Atlantic League in April was Encinas, part of a prospect-laden RiverDogs pitching staff in the South Atlantic League, “is dealing,’’  As the season, heads into May, those words, and his performance, ring true.

Encinas, a 6-foot-3, 195-pounder, taken by the Yankees in the sixth round of the 2010 draft out of St. Paul High in Santa Fe Springs, Calif., – signed by scout Jeff Patterson and given a $300,000 bonus – has been just about untouchable.

In five starts and 29 innings, Encinas has allowed just a single earned run, 16 hits and has a strikeout-walk ratio of 23-9. His 3-0 record comes with a minuscule 0.31 ERA. The reports are correct. He “is dealing.’’

So what’s the difference between the young hurler who went 3-7, 4.97 in 16 appearances (15 starts) at Staten Island last season and the one who has dominated the full-season SAL from the start this year.

“With Gabe, we had to change his mental approach,’’ said Charleston pitching coach Danny Borrell, who also has promising right-handers Jose Campos and Rafael DePaula under his wing. “He just had to relax and use his pitches.’’

Encinas agrees.

“I had to learn to trust my stuff and just throw strikes,’’ he said. “I feel my fastball is moving and I’m throwing my curve ball for strikes.  I just have to keep the consistency going.’’

Borrell also worked with Encinas on his delivery, which he is repeating well, and to make sure his arm slot and release point stay consistent.  This has shown on the mound, as Encinas’ strikeout-to-walk ratio is greatly improved over last season.

“I’m learning to spot my pitches and work with my fastball,’’ Encinas said. “It doesn’t matter if a fastball is 91 or 99 (mph). If it doesn’t move, they’ll hit it.’’

Pitchers can dominate in the SAL with an overpowering, moving fastball and a snappy curve, but not at higher levels. A hurler needs to have at least three pitches if he is going to succeed at Double-A and above. Encinas realizes this.

“That’s why we’re working hard to improve my change-up this season,’’ said Encinas. “It’s such an important pitch in so many situations and I’m throwing it with more confidence as well. I realize I’ll have to go to it in a lot of situations.’’

Encinas began to show progress over the winter in instructional league. He’s coachable and enjoys making progress.

“This is a big season for me, the first time I will make over 20 starts,’’ Encinas said. “They’ll be watching my innings (the most he has pitched in any start is six innings so far).  It’s my first year in a full-season league.’’

Continued success, along with his increased velocity, could earn Encinas a promotion to Class-A Advanced Tampa later in the season, and perhaps a shot at Double-A Trenton some time in 2014.

“That’s the goal, keep moving up,’’ he said, “but I have to take care of business where I am at first. It’s been fun so far this season.’’

For Encinas, but not the rest of the SAL.

YES Network finally got around to putting together and airing a “Yankeeography’’ featuring Gene Michael.

Perhaps I’m a bit prejudiced about the production, but I think it is one of the best this outstanding series has aired.

“Oh, I was lucky with a lot of those trades that went down,’’ said Michael, 74, who has been the Yankees’ “Super Scout,’’ officially Senior Vice President and Special Advisor presently, since 1966. “Some of those guys made me look good.’’

Like Paul O’Neill, whom he acquired for popular Yankees prospect Roberto Kelly Nov. 3, 1992. O’Neill easily surpassed Kelly in both individual and team accomplishments, during his tenure as Yankees general manager from 1990-95.

“I liked Roberto a lot,’’ Michael said, “but we were very right-handed at the time. We needed a left-handed bat and a player with intangibles. Cincinnati asked about Kelly, and we made what turned out to be a great deal for us.’’

That was just one of many moves – including the rebuilding of the Yankees farm system, that set the tone for the Yankees Dynasty of the late 1990s – and the program finally gives a man who batted .229 in a 973-game big-league career, spent mostly with the Yankees, credit for what he has done.

Insiders have long known this about the man who, as a light-hitting shortstop, perfected the hidden-ball trick, then, as outsiders now realize, to become one of the sharpest talent scouts baseball has ever seen.

These days, you will not only see Michael at meetings with Cashman and others in New York, but also watching Yankees prospects at Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.  He’ll be totally focused, taking note after note on each player.

“Gotta see the kids, what they’ve got and how they are developing,’’ said Michael, who will get a glimpse of the Yankees’ Class-A prospects when the Charleston RiverDogs visit the Lakewood BlueClaws in a series beginning tonight.

Michael is most-known for being the force behind the trade that brought the Yankees star first baseman Tino Martinez from Seattle between the 1995 and 1996 seasons.  The Yankees received Martinez, Jeff Nelson and Jim Mecir for Sterling Hitchcock and Russ Davis.

The trade wasn’t all that easy to complete, Michael reveals.

“It  was at the time I was stepping down (as GM) and Seattle wanted Andy Pettitte.  It was tough to part with either Pettitte or Hitchcock, who we did trade, And I liked Russ Davis as well, but we had to replace Don Mattingly.

“There were some things about Pettitte, and his determination to be one of the best that set him apart. I wanted the Yankees to keep him, and we did. Hitchcock was in the trade.’’

While both Hitchcock, won 13 games for Seattle in 1996, and Davis hit 20 or more homers in a season as a Mariner a few times, Martinez and Pettitte certainly overshadowed them.

“As I said, I got lucky a few times.’’

And appreciated. When the Boston Red Sox approached the Yankees in 2002 about Michael becoming their general manager, permission was denied.

The man built the Yankees’ 1990s dynasty, and his influence has helped keep the Yankees’ farm system strong. He enjoys watching Tyler Austin, Ramon Flores, Slade Haethcott and Jose Ramirez in Trenton. He’ll be taking notes on Charleston’s Gabe Encinas and Dante Bichette Jr. at Lakewood this week.

The Yankeeography was overdue. Michael has done as much to mold the Yankees over the last 30 years as anyone.

TRENTON, NJ – Trenton Thunder first baseman Kyle Roller hails from Rockingham, N.C, where NASCAR used to hold the race after the Daytona 500.

Now the track, affectionately known as “The Rock,’’ hosts the Fast Track High Performance Driving School, which serves as a venue for NASCAR’s testing. So far this season, Roller has proven to be a “Rock’’ for the Thunder offense, and is threatening to jump on the “Fast Track’’ of development in the Yankees system.

Roller, 25, who played collegiately at East Carolina University and is a past Cape Cod League MVP, is opening eyes by hitting .337 (31-for-92) in 22 starts, with four homers and 19 RBIs. His 31 hits rank second in the Eastern League, his 19 RBIs fourth.

“It’s been a switch,’’ said the 6-foot-1, 250-pound Roller, who picked up Eastern League Player of the Week honors for his performances the week of April 22. “I usually start slow and go on a hot streak in June or July.

“This is the first time it’s gone like this. Maybe it’s a good omen.’’

Roller, who has batted .395 (17-for-43) with a pair of homers and 11 RBIs in his last 10 games, will lead the 12-11 Thunder into the scheduled opener of a four-game series with the New Hampshire Fisher Cats at ARM&HAMMER Park this evening.

He opened a few eyes last season by belting 18 homers and driving home 85 runs at Class-A Advanced Tampa in 2012. The 18 home runs in the Florida State League, with games played in spacious big-league spring-training parks and in brutally hot weather as a rule, translate to 25-27 in a league such as the Double-A Eastern.

“Home runs are nice, but that’s not what I’m aiming for,’’ said Roller, who was named an Organization All-Star by www.milb.com last season. “I was probably trying to hit too many home runs at the expense of everything else in the past.

“There’s more to it. I saw I needed to be more selective and did a lot of work over the winter. I’m really pleased with this start.’’

Roller batted .266 (111-for-418) at Tampa last year and, as would be expected, struck out 115 times as a power hitter. This year, in 92 at-bats, he has taken the turn back to the dugout just 22 times.

“The home runs will come,’’ he said. “I have to be patient and go with what they give me. I can already see there are a lot of good pitchers in this league.’’

Veteran Thunder manager Tony Franklin appreciates Roller’s improved approach at the plate.

“Kyle has worked hard and it shows,’’ said Franklin. “That’s what we like to see. We’re in the development business and to be successful. We’re also in a performance-related business and Kyle is showing he can perform on the field.’’

Offense is just half the equation in baseball, however, and Roller, who was drafted in the eighth round by the Yankees in 2010, is giving equal attention to his defense.

“That’s another challenge,’’ he said. “I don’t want to be just a body out there at first. I want to make the plays needed and contribute. I want to keep improving that aspect of my game.’’

So far, Roller is doing just that. He made three key scoops of low throws in the recently concluded series with the Portland Sea Dogs, and contributed a leaping put out on a high throw in Sunday’s game against the Sea Dogs.

The man is showing he’s got more than a bit of Rockingham in him.

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It’s a legitimate question. Is John Ryan Murphy, better known as JR, emerging as the best catcher in the Yankees farm system?

“The way JR’s game has improved, how he’s a leader, and how he fights for us when he thinks a pitch is a strike makes him great to throw to,’’ said Trenton Thunder starter-turned reliever Shaeffer Hall. “He’s really become a leader.’’

The Thunder (11-9), the Yankees’ Double –A farm team, open a seven-game homestand at 7:05 tonight, hosting the Portland SeaDogs.  This begins a stretch in which area Yankees fan catch catch the prospect-laden-team, which plays 14 of its next 17 at ARMHAMMER Park.

“JR is doing what a pitcher needs in each game,’’ said the lefty Hall, who is 3-0 in relief and has not allowed a run in 11.2 innings pitched. “Our pitching staff really looks up to him.’’

So, has Murphy moved ahead of fellow – and more heralded – prospects Austin Romine, who is at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and Gary Sanchez, who is at Single-A Advanced Tampa? He’s not worried about it.

“I can only control what I can control and try to do the best I can here,’’ said the 21-year-old native of Bradenton, Fla., who turns 22 May 13. “Certainly I know about the other guys, but I never think about that.

“What I have to do is keep improving in all facets of my game. If I do that, and play consistently, things will fall into place.’’

So far, Murphy is hitting .293 (17-for-58), with four homers and 15 RBIs for the Thunder. Three of his homers came in the same game at Erie at the start of the team’s just-concluded eight-game trip to Erie and Akron.

He’s also doing what the Yankees asked as far adding to his offensive statistics.  His easy swing, along with an increased ability to pull the ball, is giving Murphy a bit more of a power approach.

On the defensive side, his quick release is retiring over 30 percent of opposing base-runners attempting to steal, and is entire manner behind the plate is adding more and more polish.

As far as handling a pitching staff, Hall’s opinion can be seconded by any other pitcher in the Thunder clubhouse.

“We can see where JR has improved,’’ said Thunder manager Tony Franklin. “His game is coming together and he is a definite leader out there.  He’s been outstanding so far.’’

Murphy logically says, “there is still a lot of room for improvement,’’ but he’s competing quite well in a star-studded race.

Just over 100 miles north, Romine is batting .341 (16-for-41) with a homer and four RBIs on 13 games played with the Triple-A RailRiders.  Down in Tampa, Sanchez is batting .306 (22-for-72) with four homers and 15 RBIs.

The reports out of Scranton are Romine’s game is consistent, while those from Tampa mention Sanchez’s defense is catching up to his slugging power.

With both Francisco Cervelli and Chris Stewart certainly filling the early bill in The Bronx, it will be interesting to see how this catching derby proceeds over the summer.

Right now, Murphy is making his move to stay ahead in the prospect race by a neck.

PORTLAND, Maine – It feels like an eternity for Binghamton Mets outfielder Darrell Ceciliani since he was selected by the New York Mets in the fourth round of the 2009 draft.

He had just finished his senior season at Columbia Basin Community College in Pasco, Wash., where he ranked third in school history for single-season RBIs with 41.

“That was a long time ago!” laughed Ceciliani before the B-Mets opened their road series at the Portland SeaDogs Monday evening. “I wanted to play pro ball my whole life, and that was the one thing on my mind – just hoping it would work out.”

These days, the one thing on his mind is staying healthy. The 22-year old, who made his professional debut with Kingsport in 2009, has been plagued by hamstring issues for the past two seasons, beginning in 2011.

“I pulled my hamstring in Savannah the first time in a game, just running out to first base,” he recalled. “I missed a little bit of time, and it was frustrating, but I was ready to rehab and get back as soon as possible.”

Ceciliani played in 109 games for the Sand Gnats in 2011, batting .259 (109-for-421) with 23 doubles and 41 RBIs.

Binghamton’s Darrell Ceciliani is looking to put together a strong season in 2013.
(Photo by Nicole Sorce)

He thought he would be “good to go” after that, but sometimes things have to get worse before they can get better. This was unfortunately the case for Ceciliani.

“The next year, I pulled my hamstring four times in St. Lucie, and that was tough,” he said. “That was honestly the worst because it just kept recurring.”

He was limited to 23 games and 85 at-bats last season. The only positive was he hit .329 in limited action with St. Lucie.

This was the last thing anybody could’ve expected for the outfielder after he posted impressive numbers in the New York Penn League during his 2010 stint with the Brooklyn Cyclones. Ceciliani led the league that year with a .351 batting average, 95 hits, and 56 runs. He also earned All-Star honors and won the Brooklyn Sterling Award.

“The main thing I learned there was just going out and competing every day,” Ceciliani said of his time with the Cyclones. “Being healthy was another.”

In fact, a great deal of Ceciliani’s mental approach was shaped by two influential ex-major leaguers in Brooklyn – his manager, Wally Backman, and hitting coach Benny Distefano.

“They both had time in the big leagues and had been around awhile, so I just picked their brain for anything – the way to go about the game and all kinds of little things,” said Ceciliani, who was ranked as the 27th prospect in the Mets organization by Baseball America coming into 2013.

When Ceciliani headed to Savannah for the 2011 season, his focus shifted to establishing regularity on the field and at the plate while continuing to work on his mental approach.

“I was still down in the lower levels, and I wanted to improve every part of my game,” he recalled. “The main thing was just consistency.”

Now, the main thing for Ceciliani is staying healthy after five instances of hamstring pulls during the 2011 and 2012 campaigns.

“I have to stay healthy,” he declared. “My main goal is to be on the field for as many games and days as possible throughout the year.”

In the past, he had been more concerned about playing hard, working on his game, and competing.

“All that stuff is always a goal,” he said, “but my main goal is to play at least 130 games.”

During his injury-plagued 2012 season, he consulted with specialists in his home state of Oregon to introduce a new kind of consistency into his baseball routine.

“We figured out the root of the problem and got on a routine to maintain my hamstrings and health, and I’ve just been doing that ever since,” said Ceciliani.

His daily routine now includes the help of a trainer to stretch and perform exercises in an attempt to prevent missing even more playing time.

“I have a big ritual now. It takes me 30 or 40 minutes before each game to get ready to go,” he explained. “I just stick with that every day and try to stay off the DL with a lot of injury prevention, maintenance, and strengthening, mainly.”

While it may seem Ceciliani is under the stress of preventing another hamstring injury, he is just relieved to have the opportunity to play regularly with Binghamton.

“I don’t necessarily feel any pressure. I just go out and play every day and do what I do,” he said. “If there’s any pressure at all, it’s of staying healthy. That’s the biggest thing.”

Perhaps this season would be a little more stressful for the bouncing-back Ceciliani if the dynamic of Binghamton’s clubhouse didn’t include exceptional team chemistry.

“Oh, we get along great,” said Ceciliani with a smile. “We’re always having fun.”

The outfielder already has four stolen bases this season as the B-Mets are off to one of their better starts (10-8 in the Eastern League East) in recent history. And take it from Ceciliani – they are enjoying every moment thus far.

“When you’re winning, it’s a lot easier to have fun,” he added. “Right now we’re playing well and just having a good time doing it.”

Follow Nicole Sorce on Twitter @nicolesorce

Steve and I talk about the Boston Marathon bombing and the impact it will have on security at future sporting events. We discuss the career of the late Pat Summerall, the Yankees under-the-rader good start and the buzz at Citi Field this past Friday. Also hear our thoughts on the Jets trade of Derelle Revis and the new Islanders documentary by Kevin Connelly.

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LAKEWOOD, N.J. – The Lakewood Blue Claws may have found their fourth win of the season Thursday night, but that didn’t stop the spotlight from falling on Mets outfield prospect Brandon Nimmo.

Coming into the series with a .447 batting average, the Savannah Sand Gnats’ center fielder has been busy proving why he was the Mets’ first-round draft pick (and 13th overall) in 2011. A contract worth $2.1 million made the 20-year-old Nimmo, the highest-drafted native of Wyoming, a talked-about prospect. His process of forming a strong mental approach to the game began in southeast Wyoming.

“I grew up about two hours away from the [Colorado] Rockies, so that was on my television just about every night,” recalled Nimmo on his baseball roots in his hometown of Cheyenne, Wyo. His favorite players to watch included Todd Helton, Troy Tulowitzki, Carlos Gonzalez, and Larry Walker.

“We’d go and try to mimic their swings,” he said of childhood memories with his older brother, Bryce. “My dad and I would just talk about their approaches at the plate or how they played the game. It really influenced me.”

Nimmo also noted how much he loved the way Jim Edmonds played the game and how his brother’s favorite player was Ken Griffey, Jr. However, the biggest influences of his young career weren’t even major-leaguers.

“My brother had to go through a lot of failure at Nebraska where he went to college, and that taught me a lot about how to deal with baseball,” explained Nimmo, “and my dad set the foundations. He knows my game better than anyone else. My coach also taught me about everything in high school, so I think those people were obviously a big part of my life.”

Savannah outfielder Brandon Nimmo, a top Mets prospect, patrols center field in Lakewood, N.J., Thursday night.
(Photo by Nicole Sorce)

Wyoming is one of only three states in the country not offering high-school baseball, which forced the Mets to scout Nimmo at American Legion games among other showcases.

“It is what it is,” said Nimmo, who is one of 12 players selected from Wyoming high schools in the draft’s 45-year history. “Honestly, you don’t want to be playing baseball in January and February in Wyoming. It’s a lot colder than it was tonight out there!”

While it is slightly unusual to come across a minor-league prospect with no high school baseball background, the small fun fact about his upbringing definitely hasn’t set him back.

“I didn’t get burnt out on baseball. I got to play different sports in high school, which was good for me,” he said. “I got plenty of experience against really good competition.”In 70 games for his American Legion club in 2010, Nimmo hit .448 with 15 home runs and 34 stolen bases. Unfortunately, those numbers didn’t exactly translate over to his time with the Brooklyn Cyclones of the New York Penn League last season, when his average slumped to .248.

“I think I put a bit too much pressure on myself in the beginning,” he admitted, “and then when things didn’t go well, it was a bit pressing.”

Aside from working as hard as he could, he realized he just had to learn how to relax. Nimmo now constantly reminds himself that if he’s not enjoying what he’s doing, he’s not relaxing enough.

“There’s gonna be an adjustment level anywhere I go to, and I have to make sure to remind myself that it is just a game,” he said. “This is my job, but it’s not life and death. I just have to have fun with it and relax.”

After he got his mind on the right track, he also came to the realization that his physical approach needed tweaking, investing more time in seeing faster pitches in batting practice from both sides of the mound.

“I just needed a lot more reps,” Nimmo said of his old routine. “I think one of the biggest things that I learned was to take care of what you can on and off the field, and then things will take care of themselves on the field.”

Nimmo carried his intent of improvement into this past winter as he slimmed down from 10 percent body fat to just seven percent. With the addition of five pounds of muscle, he believes his off-season was a huge success.

“If you can make more muscle than fat, you’re going to be stronger and a little bit quicker and move better,” explained Nimmo. “I’m just controlling my body a little bit better, and I think the work in the off-season has paid off.”

It would certainly seem that way. Nimmo currently leads his Class-A squad of the South Atlantic League in hitting, sporting a .442 average with 23 hits in 13 games. He noted that his days in Brooklyn have enabled him to feel more comfortable coming into this season with Savannah since he knows more of what to expect.

“Last year was my first time playing this many games (69 in Brooklyn), and it was an adjustment,” said Nimmo, who is playing a full, 140-game South Atlantic League season for the first time in 2013.  “Now I know what I need to do to get myself ready. I feel like a new player and a better player.”

He currently has one home run and 10 runs batted in and aims to make his game a more consistent one, an attribute that is currently keeping him on Savannah’s roster.

“I think that’s what separates major-leaguers and minor-leaguers, just how consistent they are,” said Nimmo. “They can make guys pay when they make their one mistake. That’s what I want to do.”

Nimmo’s laundry list of things he’d like to improve on include stealing bases, base-running, defense, and hitting. In other words, there is nothing he cannot improve on.

“For me, I need to get better at everything, starting with getting to be consistent with my footwork in the outfield, my swing at the plate, and my approach at the plate,” he noted.

With hopes of a bright future in the Mets organization, Nimmo has recently found himself taking on more of a leadership position on Savannah’s roster. The reasons why have a lot more to do with the fact he is leading the Sand Gnats in hitting as he is carrying newly found wisdom with him from Brooklyn.

“It’s a nice role to take on, and it’s one that I was used to in high school,” he noted. “Right now I’m just riding it out and having fun. I don’t really feel too much pressure.”

A man of faith, Nimmo takes the fact that he struggled last season in stride, and it is evident how much the slumping experience did in fact teach him.

“I don’t really need to do anything more than what I can do and try to not go outside of myself,” Nimmo added, “because that makes you comfortable. I now understand that I’ve got great hitters behind me and in front of me, so that takes pressure off.”

With 2012 behind him and this season off to a promising start, Nimmo’s primary focus is to continue building his relationship with the Mets, who have been “nothing but help” to the young outfielder, by becoming a more consistent player.

“We’re just going to keep going with this and keep having fun,” said Nimmo, who obviously lives each day to the fullest. “They’re going to let me know what I need to work on and what I’m doing well, and I’ll respond to that.”

He also praised the organization’s coaching staff for always having something helpful to say when he needed to hear it. Such lessons have stuck in with him both on and off the field, and although he knows he has a long way to go, Nimmo stands proudly in Class-A with an idea of what the key is to making the pro’s.

“I’m not a major-leaguer yet,” he said, “but even then, I’ll work on being more consistent, both physically and mentally.”

You can guarantee that Nimmo will continue his pursuit to the major’s with his strong faith and a smile on his face. Follow him on Twitter, @You_Found_Nimmo

Follow Nicole Sorce on Twitter @nicolesorce

TRENTON, N.J. – Casey Stevenson knows what it’s like to be the last man standing – or added.

Stevenson, who will turn 25 May 18, was surprised to come north with the Trenton Thunder, the Yankees’ Double-A farm team. He wasn’t present at the team’s preseason Media Day, but was in uniform for Trenton’s opener at Portland April 4.

“I was on the Tampa (Class-A Advanced) roster the whole time in spring training,’’ the personable Stevenson, a native of Saugas, Calif., who played collegiately at the University of California-Irvine, known locally as UCI, in a beautiful part of Southern California.

“Yeah, I played against and with the Double-A and Triple-A guys a lot down there, but I was kind of surprised I ended in Trenton. I plan to make the most of it.’’

Stevenson has performed well. He’s batting a solid .333 (8-for-24) with seven RBIs in seven games. He was 2-for-5 in Wednesday’s 10-6 loss to Akron, which left Tony Franklin’s team with an 8-5 mark after a 5-2 homestand.  He passes the “eye test’’ at 6-foot-3, 200.

Selected by the Yankees in the 25^th round of the 2010 draft, Stevenson hit .300 (69-for-238) with the Class-A Charleston RiverDogs in 2012 after spending a pair of campaigns with the Staten Island Yankees in the Short-Season New York-Penn League, hitting .217 (43-for-198) in 2010 and .272 (43-for-158) in 2011,

A Second Team All-Big West All-Star in 2010 as a UCI senior, his first season at Staten Island might have been affected by his previous 60-game college season.

He began showing offensive potential in Charleston last season, and has held his own in the tougher Double-A Eastern League so far.

“He’s a good guy to have on our team,’’ said Franklin. “He puts the bat on the ball and is versatile. He can play all over the infield and fill in as an outfielder.’’

Part of the success of Franklin’s Trenton teams – the veteran skipper is in his seventh season with the Yankees’ Double-A charges, are having a few players – Kevin Mahoney is another on the present club – who can play a number of positions.  Addison Maruszak filled that role well in 2012.

Now, with starting shortstop Walter Ibarra sidelined with an abdominal injury, Stevenson will get a shot to play regularly for the next several games. The Thunder begin a seven-game road trip Thursday night in Erie, playing the SeaWolves three times before a four-game series with Akron.

“I feel the more my versatility is a key,’’ Stevenson said. “I just want to contribute any way I can. I feel real fortunate to get a chance here. I didn’t expect it.

“We have a great group of guys in Trenton. I can learn from the guys who were here last year. It’s a great clubhouse and we have an awesome manager. I can’t really ask for much more at this point.’’

Skipping a level is not easy. As the last man added, one might think Stevenson’s position with the Double-A Thunder is a bit precarious.

So far, however, the man from UCI has shown he certainly belongs.

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