A Crock of Gunt: Salvador Bernal

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A Crock of Gunt: Salvador Bernal

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A Crock of Gunt: Salvador Bernal
KOA 850- Mark Gunter & George Crocker

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5/25/2011: Aurora, Colorado – Mark Gunter and George Crocker sit down with one of the original Borealis, outfielder Salvador Bernal, in an attempt to learn what makes this member of Aurora tick, their amazing start, and his role on the team.

Crock: (enthusiastically) Hey boys and girls and midnight pals, denizens of the deep, all my night people…

Gunt: (exhaustedly) George, please already? Folks, this is Mark Gunter with my partner George Crocker, and this is “A Crock of Gunt”.

Crock: Sorry Mark, I’m just really super-excited about tonight’s guest. Folks, hold onto your hats; tonight we have the “Rockin’ Ute”, the “Provo Hacker”. Yep, you guessed it: “Big Bernie” himself! Salvador Bernal… (feigning crowd noise) Haaaaaaaaaaaaaa…

Bernal: Thanks George, you sure are full of vim and vigor today. Mark, it’s great to be here tonight. I guess I should be sitting here with the same energy. We all are pretty excited in the clubhouse these days. It’s been a great ride so far.

Gunt: I bet. I think the best we did at Manchester was 72…

Crock: We won a “C” my first year at K’Zoo. It was the bomb! Playoffs, baby! Man, I hit this jack against the ‘Gnats. I think it’s still in orbit or something.

Gunt: I can’t imagine the pace you guys are on. 22 losses? What’s your secret?

Bernal: Well, I think we’re all just clicking. It’s weird. I mean, John, Jimmy and Wilson are just crazy good right now, but then Kiyo, Alex, Mark and I really aren’t hitting the ball all that well.

Crock: And yet y’all are first in virtually every offensive category. Man, I’d love to hit in the middle of this lineup! I’d have like 200 ree-bees already. Hitting like that is contagious and I’m a virus intake machine like that. How about it, Mark-o? Wouldn’t you love to be in this lineup?

Gunt: Indeed. Would it be fair to suggest that despite the offensive numbers, it is the pitching that has carried Aurora to there current record?

Bernal: Most definitely. Aside from the homer bug that has bit them, and even then, if the league is only hitting .225, the homers aren’t so painful. I want to give a shout out to the bullpen, which has been stellar. An ERA of 2.75, and there ain’t nobody even close in the Sovereign League. I think only the Coal Sox have a better mark.

Gunt: And that bullpen looks to get stronger with the recent acquisition of Héctor Pinto from London. Pinto arrives this week, toting a career 3.45 ERA in 33 PEBA games, and a 1.33 mark this season. A guy with a world of talent who hasn’t gotten much of a chance in short stints with Charleston, Tempe, Reno and San Antonio.

Crock: Rumor has it that Willie had a deal signed, sealed and delivered with San Antonio of Laredo Texans of Mexico, but a league technicality blocked the deal and The Underground snagged him on waivers before Aurora did, and then The Boy Wonder stepped in and got his man anyway.

Bernal: I like Héctor. He has a hard fastball and a huge curve, big 12-to-6 job that he just freezes guys with. He’ll complement Ángel and Bryant from the right side.

Gunt: It looks like Jorge Rivera is the odd man out. The team has gone with 11 pitchers so far this season, but currently is going with 12 with McDonald on the DL, an attempt to keep the ‘pen fresh. Do you think they’ll cut the staff back down to 11 when McDonald is healthy?

Bernal: Yeah… I’m not sure what the plan is, but it looks like a move needs to be made. Jorge is out of options. Too bad in a sense. Jorge is a good teammate. Funny guy. I call him my Mexican home boy. The guy tells the funniest jokes in Spanish. None of the guys understand him, but he’s a crack-up the way he tells them. He tries really hard out on the mound; it’s just too bad he hasn’t been able to translate his AAA success to the Major League level.

Crock: Speaking of success, tell us about your season. You’re second on the team in HRs with 7 and fourth in RBIs with 23. Can’t you do better than that? I mean, dude, you’re the second player ever drafted in the PEBA! Picked ahead of Pat Lilly! Oh man, is he a God! I wanted him on my fantasy team, but I took Kojima with the first pick.

Bernal: Well, I do the best I can. I may not end up with the most at bats of my career this season and my numbers may dip a bit, but if we continue to play the way we have and make the Rodriguez Cup this year, then it’s worth it. Sure, I would rather be playing more, I’d rather not hit 8th, but I won’t be the cancer on this team.

Gunt: Well, you have been swinging a hot bat, hitting in all six games last week; 9-for-21, a .428 clip. Do you envision continuing to be in the lineup for the remainder of the season?

Bernal: I hope so. It’s up to Toro, who’s done a juggling act. It’s weird. I may have been the #2 pick in the inaugural draft, but I have never felt that way. I hear my name bantered about in trade rumors, I still hear boos occasionally in the stands, “You’re no Pat Lilly!” if I fail in a key situation. I try not to take it to heart. I want to be successful here. I just wish I were appreciated by the fans for who I am. When I look at how (former #1 pick) Miyata has moved about, I figure that, despite the rumors, I must be doing something Aurora likes about me.

Crock: Dude, that sounds, like, totally depressing? What do you do? You have a subscription to Prozac or Lexapro or somethin’ like that?

Bernal: (chuckles) No George, no pills. I have my Mom, who has always been a source of strength…

Crock: So can we bottle her or something? Sell it out on the market? Better yet, the black market; more money! We could call it BernaPro! I like that: BernaPro!

Bernal: George, you’re talking about my Mom! No, we can’t do that. With the tough times in her life, I prefer to look to her for inspiration. Then there is my faith. Being Dominican, my faith is very important to me.

Crock: (standing, gesticulating with arms, pointing at his chest, spreading arms out, back and forth)

Gunt: What are you doing, George?

Crock: I knew he was a faithful dude. I’m trying to get a tryout with these guys (points at jersey again) because faith is so important to them, it’s even printed on their jersey.

Bernal: What is that you are wearing? Is that Arabic?

Crock: Yeah, the Amman Sheiks. It says “God”. How cool is that? Maybe we both can get a tryout. I understand they are in the market for a power hitter. Imagine you and I in the middle of that lineup. We’d rock Riyadh, Cairo, Jerusalem. Woo hoo!

Bernal: That’s not quite what I mean, George. I look to the Lord Jesus Christ to give me the strength to forgive those who don’t understand me, who look down on me, who criticize me, and even those who boo me.

Crock: How cool is that? When we play together in Amman, will you forgive them when they stone you for striking out? I hear that’s what they do to those who fail; a good, old-fashion Arabian stoning.

Gunt: George! Please, control yourself. I think Salvador is going to stay in the PEBA for years to come, and at 27 he still has two years left on his contract with Aurora. I understand that you have moved back to your childhood home of Provo.

Bernal: I have. I really enjoy the community; good Christian people. Plus it brings me close to the land that I love to travel through during the off-season. Utah has an amazingly beautiful landscape. I love camping in the Escalante Staircase during the late autumn. The colors of the rock combined with the changing trees. This is where I truly find my peace and balance in my life. Usually after our last game of the year I’ll travel back to Provo and within three days I’m out on the trail for two weeks. Two years ago when we won the Cup I got a late start and got snowed on. Fortunately I was prepared. It was very cool.

Crock: Wait, I get it! Utah, Christian folks… you’re Mormon! Do any wild Missionary work? Go someplace kooky and crazy? I went to this mission in… gee, where was it… just after I finished the 2010 season. Damn, I had a great year. There was this missionary-ess who was so cute. She would massage my back, my legs. She fed me, gosh… (looks upward in a quizzical manner) What was her name?

Gunt: George, I think you were in the hospital and she was a nurse (looks at Bernal and twirls his finger around his ear), maybe after your collision?

Bernal: I’m not a Mormon, although I have a lot of respect for their sense of family. Hey guys, I need to get going; it’s time for BP.

Crock: Collision? What are you talking about? I had a collision? What was it? A car? A meteor?

Gunt: Well, it’s been a pleasure having Borealis outfielder Salvador Bernal join us today on “A Crock of Gunt”. Good luck tonight, Salvador, and we hope that you guys continue your hot run.

Bernal: My pleasure, Mark, (looks at a perplexed Crocker) George… are you ok?

Crock: Yeah, I’m great! I was just remembering what a super time I had with that Mormon nurse. I think I must have had three or four of them helping me out. Talk about a par-tay!
Michael Topham, President Golden Entertainment & President-CEO of the Aurora Borealis
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