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NOTES <|> Burns taking first big step <|> He will pitch in Twins finale

by TOM HAUDRICOURT, Staff, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel , Milwaukee Journal Sentinel


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Right-hander Mike Burns always wondered what would happen if given the opportunity to start in the major leagues.

He'll find out Thursday afternoon at Miller Park.

Burns, who has bounced around to five organizations over the last five years, will start for the Brewers in the interleague series finale against the Minnesota Twins. He was summoned from Class AAA Nashville when right-hander Dave Bush went on the disabled list with a micro-tear in the triceps of his pitching arm.

Burns was successful as a starter for Nashville, going 7-2 with a 2.55 earned-run average in 12 appearances. But his experience in the majors has come solely as a reliever, with 46 appearances for Houston, Cincinnati, Boston and the Brewers (four shutout innings June 2 in Florida).

"I like starting," said Burns. "The main difference is the preparation before the game. I'm anxious to get out there and make that first start. I'm excited."

In two starts with Nashville after being sent back down by the Brewers , Burns allowed only one earned run in 14 1/3 innings. He's not a strikeout pitcher (48 in 77 2/3 innings) but he doesn't walk many hitters (13), either.

"I've been throwing the ball fairly decent," said Burns. "It helped to get my feet wet a little bit a couple of weeks ago (with the outing in Florida). It had been a couple of years (since last pitching in the majors)."

Parra impresses: The Brewers were happy with the report they received from Manny Parra's outing Tuesday night for Nashville. In his second start since being demoted, Parra went seven innings against Albuquerque, allowing five hits and one run, with two walks and three strikeouts.

Manager Ken Macha said he received a telephone call from Sounds pitching coach Chris Bosio, who praised Parra's effort.

"He's very encouraged with how Manny threw the ball," said Macha. "One of the things he talked about was being able to command the far side of the plate. If you do that, your delivery is solid, you're not falling off, you're not overthrowing, your release point is consistent."

Macha, who tabbed Seth McClung to come out of the bullpen Saturday to start against San Francisco, said the decision was made to keep Parra at Nashville for a couple of additional starts to settle in.

"He needs to stay there and pitch a few more games," said Macha.

No Capuano in '09: Assistant general manager Gord Ash said it's becoming evident that the Brewers won't be getting a contribution from left-hander Chris Capuano this season. Capuano remains in Arizona, undergoing a throwing program after his second "Tommy John" reconstructive elbow surgery in May 2008.

"He threw a bullpen (session) the other day," said Ash. "It's been a long, slow grind. He gets full marks for grinding it out.

"(As for pitching for the Brewers ), probably not until next year, which probably isn't a bad thing."

Pitchers promoted: Left-hander Zach Braddock and right-hander Rob Wooten have been promoted from high Class A Brevard County to Class AA Huntsville. Braddock was 1-1 with a 1.09 ERA in 14 relief outings, with 12 hits and four walks allowed in 24 2/3 innings and 40 strikeouts.

Wooten closed games for Brevard, going 1-1 with a 1.20 ERA in 26 appearances, with 18 saves in 19 opportunities and 44 strikeouts in 30 innings.

Ash said that Braddock, a former starting pitcher, has the kind of stuff to move quickly to the big leagues. He has dealt with health problems and emotional issues in the past, and Ash said his routine is being "monitored closely."

Wooten, a 13th-round pick in 2008 out of North Carolina, is more of a command pitcher who succeeds by hitting spots. With Braddock and Wooten moving up, reliever Omar Aguilar was sent down from Huntsville to Brevard.

The Brewers also promoted reliever John Axford from Huntsville to Nashville and closer Jim Henderson from low Class A Wisconsin to Brevard. Henderson had a 1.06 ERA in 26 outings for the Timber Rattlers, with 17 saves in 17 chances.

Ash said right-hander R.J. Seidel, who suffered a serious knee injury over the winter, had begun a rehabilitation program in Arizona with hopes of pitching for Wisconsin in two or three weeks.

Copyright 2009, Journal Sentinel Inc. All rights reserved. (Note: This notice does not apply to those news items already copyrighted and received through wire services or other media.)

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