The following summary is of transcribed material provided to Batter's Box by Ed Gonser (Contributing Writer, he covers the Syracuse SkyChiefs for the Associated Press and the Syracuse Post-standard as a freelance writer). Ed is fast becoming an invaluable source of information for our site (source photos also provided by Ed Gonser). Here's what members of the Skychiefs think of Gabe Gross's promotion to the majors and the acquisition of Eric Crozier from the Indians.

On Eric Crozier

Julius Matos, multi-position player:

"It's kind of weird that our last series was against Buffalo. We had a little bit of hot tempers going and it was with Eric (Crozier thought he was hit intentionally by Talley Haines). It will be weird to see him come in the clubhouse tomorrow. But that's baseball and everyone knows what happens on the field and what happens off aren't related ... I think he will be a good addition, and we'll welcome him to the team. We just lost Glenn Williams (to the Australian Olympic team) our biggest power source; Eric will come in and fill that hole well."

Russ Adams, shortstop:

"Eric obviously is a great player. He has hurt us (SkyChiefs) a little bit over in Buffalo (two home run game on July 2nd). I'm excited about getting a chance to play with him. ... I played against him in Akron last year in Double-A and of course this season in Triple-A. He seems like a real friendly guy, a good teammate and a good addition to the club."

Guillermo Quiroz, catcher:

"He's a pretty decent hitter. He's been around for a little bit. I've been playing against him the last couple of years - last year in Double-A and this year. ... He's another lefthander and he has power. It'll be good to have a bat like that here. He's a natural. He's a great (defensive) first baseman."

Quiroz also mentioned the recent incident in which Crozier was hit by a pitch thrown by Skychief Talley Haines:

"He thought we hit him on purpose when we didn't. That's all old news. It'll be great to have him here."

Syracuse manager Marty Pevey says that he hasn't heard from Dick Scott about Crozier's destination within the organisation. Pevey theorises that Crozier may go back to Buffalo to get his things before joining Syracuse (if, in fact, Crozier is assigned to Syracuse).

Pevey: "Losing Gabe was big. But Crozier is going to help us in the middle of the lineup, if he's coming here. We'll welcome him with open arms; we'll be glad to have him.

Ed Gonser notes that after playing games against Syracuse and then moving on to face Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Crozier will now face Buffalo twice when they visit Syracuse before the Skychiefs go to Scranton for a four-game set. That's a lot of Buffalo, Syracuse and Scranton on the menu.

On Gabe Gross's promotion

Matos:

"He tried to conceal his smile when he came back into the clubhouse from Marty's (Pevey) office. I was in the clubhouse at the time Marty called him in, we (the veterans in the clubhouse) knew. We said as soon as he walked through the door into Marty's office that he's gone. Gone to the big leagues."

Adams:

"I'm really excited for Gabe. He has been swinging the bat real well all year and deserves to be there right now. What a great place to get your debut ... in Yankee Stadium! I was in the clubhouse as he came back from Marty's office. It was hard to read the expression on his face. He was a little excited and a little rushed because he was in a hurry to get there. He had to get to the airport (for a 7:50 PM flight when he found out at approximately 6:00PM). It has to be a great feeling for him. (A debut at Yankee Stadium) would probably be how he would write it up."

Quiroz:

"Gabe's a great guy and he deserved it. He's been hitting the ball well all year. His arm was hurt for a while and he could only DH, but the last couple of games when he was in leftfield he was making the plays. He threw a couple of runners out at the plate. It's awesome - he's one of us and has been with us for the last couple of years and I feel great for him. Gabe was doing a good job of trying to keep his emotions in check but it looked as if he was going to cry"

As Ed put it - tears of joy, no doubt. Ed notes that Gabe Gross was riding a 15-game hitting steak going into tonight. The season high for a Skychief is 16 by Russ Adams, which ended in the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Bisons in Buffalo.

Pevey:

"(Gross) started the year off a little slow. He has made his own breaks. ... He is swinging the bat a lot better and that's partly due to getting healthy. ... The main thing was getting called up, making his debut at Yankee Stadium is something else. We had to hurry and get him out of here and catch a flight: he had to be at Yankee Stadium tonight. I'm sure he caught the end of the ballgame."