april april april???

maybe one of these days, the season will actually be under way, and the nice warm Texas sun will be roasting the visiting bullpen in Rangers Ballpark in Arlington...
I really do enjoy spring training, I mean, baseball is obviously my dream job- but compared to the actual games and grind of the season- it really does come up short. Being sidelined with a bit of tendonitis for the last 10 days or so has been a bit of a drag, but it's really given me a good chance to get all the goals, plans, and routines ready for the season. This is a big year for our franchise, and we've got a lot of responsibility to perform up to our personal expectations and those from the front office.

The real strange thing about spring training, is that you look around a full locker room on Day one, and by Day Thirty-two, there are less people. I think this year we invited about 60 guys to camp, and those in the know can tell you only 25 of them get to be on the big league team when the season starts...this creates some weird tensions and realities. There are always more than one or two guys who don't make the team but come up later in the year and really give a boost to the squad, but sometimes the AAA pill is hard to handle. I've been sent down 4 or 5 times so I remember how bummed I got each time, but eventually turned that around into a motivating tool.

It's a common misconception that baseball players are untouchable entities without emotions, tensions, or families. It's cool to be "on the team", but the reality is that some of your buddies don't get to play. Whether it's from injury or the old saying "we're gonna go with the other guy for now"- it's not easy to sit behind while the team leaves you in the dust, or the desert.

In 2004, I was recovering from Tommy John surgery, and had hopes of leaving camp at some point to join a squad 4 to 6 weeks after spring training. Due to normal complications, I didn't end up leaving, and didn't get to pitch at all until 2005. It was by far the longest spring training/april/may/june/july I've ever had in baseball. Nobody likes to sit out, especially pro athletes- we're trained to be in motion, or at least preparing for it...and for me it was a really difficult time. I had really next to nothing to do, other than read books and try to get my body as healthy as possible for the next season.

Willie Eyre was one of our bullpen guys last season, and eventually came down with "the not so good elbow", and this year he's rehabbing to get back to full strength as soon as possible. While I was on the shelf with my tendonitis last week, we played catch a few times at 75 feet and 90 feet. Just observing him and watching everyone ask "how's your arm bro?" reminds me a lot of my time in rehab...you get sick of answering the same question all the time, and develop strange coping mechanisms to avoid being repetetive (just like the Blue sniper on Red vs Blue episode one). It's funny because he likes to ask the pitching coaches if he can throw in a game, or "you need any extra guys today?"...

He's taking it all really well, and if you knew him, you'd expect it. His wife got him a T-shirt that says "rehab all-star" and he likes to wear it around all the time when he works out and stuff. There's a sense of pride that goes into being positive all the time, and all the other guys down here would do really well to follow his example. Your mind is a part of your body after all, and if you believe that you'll heal- you probably will. If you stay loose, laugh and joke, eat well, you're gonna be healthier and more capable of dealing with stresses and setbacks that are inevitable in the game.

I'm back to making progress now- the tendonitis is gone after a fortnight of posting up unwanted in my arm. But since Monday- I've thrown two bullpens, and get to pitch in a game on Saturday...so I can finally get back on the horse/bike/bull and get some competition under my belt- that's what it's all about!