Jake Chapman took note of what George Brett had to say.

“He said when he was going for .400, it was side-armed lefties that gave him a lot of trouble,” said Chapman.

A Kansas City Royals farmhand at the time, the left-handed Chapman took the talk the Hall of Famer Brett gave to the organization’s pitchers during spring training in 1999 to heart.

He “dabbled” with the idea that season.

After being released by the Royals, the Indiana native decided to reinvent himself.

Signed by the Montreal Expos, Chapman began throwing exclusively side-armed with positive results.

In 2000, he posted a 3.80 earned run average for Harrisburg and earned a promotion to Triple-A Ottawa.

A year later, Chapman went 7-3 with a 2.39 ERA while allowing just 55 hits and striking out 69 in 67 2/3 innings for the Senators and was fifth in games pitched (53) in the Eastern League.

Then the wheels fell off.

The domino effect created when John Henry bought the Red Sox and Expos’ owner Jeffrey Loria bought the Florida Marlins claimed Chapman as one of its many victims.

With the Expos system being run by Major League Baseball, he was inexplicably released at the tail end of spring training under circumstances that will ring with a familiar refrain for Sea Dogs’ fans.

“I was real proud of the season I had (in 2001),” said Chapman. “But I was kind of at the mercy of the new regime. They didn’t know any of us.”

Chapman was unsuccessful in a brief Triple-A tryout with the eventual World Series champion Anaheim Angels.

So at 28, and with a wife and 5-month-old son (Camden) to support, he chose the only remaining option.

In April, he signed with Atlantic City of the independent Atlantic League, where he was managed by an infamous left-hander, former Philadelphia Phillies closer Mitch Williams.

“The Atlantic League made me a better pitcher,” said Chapman. “The parks, especially the one in Atlantic City, are more conducive to hitters. And Mitch was a good manager. He’s the kind of guy who, when you’re hot, he’ll give you the ball like crazy.”

Chapman went 6-3 with a 2.59 ERA for Atlantic City while appearing in at least 50 games for the fourth straight season.

That was enough to get the attention of the Red Sox, who with a shortage of minor league depth, seemed like a perfect fit.

“If you want to keep playing, you have to go to the right spring training,” said Chapman. “If I had gone to the wrong spring training, I’d have had no chance.”

Chapman’s success hinges on the illusion the unorthodox motion presents to hitters.

Against left-handed batters, he tries to create as much of an angle from his release point, which varies slightly, to the outside corner of the plate with a sweeping motion that makes it hard for the batter to not bail out. The different look gives hitters on both sides of the plate problems.

“It’s all about deception,” said Sea Dogs pitching coach Bob Kipper. “It creates some good action on the baseball.”

Chapman lost some velocity with the motion change.

“I don’t think I’ll ever sniff 90 (miles per hour) again,” he joked.

He also noticed his arm is a lot more resilient, although he had made just eight appearances heading into the weekend due mostly to the unusually high number of postponements the Sea Dogs have had.

“I’d like to be able to pitch every day,” he said, “whether it’s just to one batter or two innings.”

Whether it’s every day or not, Chapman’s happy to have a place where Camden, who is in Portland along with mom visiting this week, can see him pitch.

“Boston gave me a shot and I’m grateful,” said Chapman. “There are a lot of guys in the Atlantic League who put up good numbers and never get a chance. Once you’re out of the game, it’s hard to get back in.”

Prospects update

Manny Delcarmen, one of the Red Sox top pitching prospects, had Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery on Tuesday. The procedure was performed by Dr. James Andrews at HealthSouth in Birmingham, Ala. Delcarmen was 1-1 with a 3.13 ERA for Class-A Sarasota. The 21-year-old right-hander was projected to be in Portland by the second half of the season. Instead, he’ll miss 12-18 months.

Hanley Ramirez, the Red Sox top-rated prospect according to Baseball America, has been demoted from low Class A Augusta to extended spring training for disciplinary reasons. Ramirez is no stranger to behavioral problems. He was sent home from the instructional league last fall for cursing at a trainer. The 19-year-old shortstop was hitting .255 with two home runs and 14 RBI in 26 games.

Bronx bummer

Don’t expect to see Derek Jeter when the Trenton Thunder roll into Portland on Monday. The All-Star shortstop, who is rehabbing a shoulder injury suffered on Opening Day in Toronto, will play his last game with the Thunder today. Jeter will be back with the Yankees for Tuesday’s game against Anaheim in the Bronx.

Around the minor leagues

New Britain pitchers Beau Kemp and Ronnie Corona were arrested at 4 a.m. last Sunday and charged with assault and disturbing the peace as the result of a fight the pair had in a New Britain parking lot. The former roommates were immediately sent down to Class A by Minnesota general manager Terry Ryan, who was in Connecticut evaluating the team.Just a month after choosing not to broadcast their games on the radio, the New Haven Ravens have also pulled the plug on Internet broadcasts as a cost-cutting measure. Last Sunday’s game at Yale Field against the Sea Dogs was the last day on the job for veteran broadcaster Bill Schweizer, who joined the Ravens in 1998 after working for both CBS and ESPN radio. The Ravens plan to move to Manchester, N.H., next season.Think Eastern League pitchers are happy to see Justin Morneau gone? Morneau, who would have been in town with New Britain this weekend, hit .419 with five home runs and seven RBI in his first eight games with Triple-A Rochester after his April 30 promotion. The first baseman, who should be in a Minnesota Twins’ uniform this summer if not sooner, hit .329 in 20 games for the Rock Cats.

Bill Foley is assistant sports editor. He can be reached by-e-mail at [email protected]