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| Shelley Duncan, who had blood clots in his arm last November, is fully healthy and ready to resume his major league career, according to MLB.com. Duncan certainly won't be handed any playing time with Jason Giambi, Wilson Betemit and the newly acquired Morgan Ensberg on hand, but he will have a chance to make the team in spring training nonetheless. |
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| Andy Pettitte will report five days late to training camp, a result of his having to testify in front of Congress according to a report on Reuters. Pettitte likely needs the time just to decompress from the past week's worth of craziness, and given his illustrious career and dedication to training, this will likely have no effect on his ability to take the hill during the first week of the season. |
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| In his quest to bounce back from a disappointing season, Ramon Hernandez has shown up to camp in tremendous physical shape according to the Baltimore Sun. "I really concentrated this off-season on working out. Even when I went home, I was working out. I've been taking my vitamins and I need to help my body rebuild. You just have to keep working and hopefully you'll come in here and stay healthy." Hernandez lost about 10 pounds and he is eager to return to the 23 HR, 91 RBI form he posted in 2006 and not the disappointing player he was last season when he was limited to just nine HR and 62 RBI. |
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| Chad Gaudin, P, Oakland Athletics | Wednesday 2/13, 4:49 PM CT |
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| Chad Gaudin hopes to be able to take the hill by March 1st in his bid to gain a spot in the A's starting rotation according to the AP. Gaudin is coming off an off-season where he underwent two surgeries, one on his foot and another on his hip, which is the reason for his tardiness at the start of camp. Gaudin was 11-13 with a 4.42 ERA last season, though he slumped terribly in the second half going 3-10. He should only interest those in AL Only leagues, and then he should still be a very late pick. |
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| Erik Bedard, P, Seattle Mariners | Wednesday 2/13, 2:37 PM CT |
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| Manager John McLaren didn't take long to think about who his opening day starter will be. McLaren informed new acquisition Erik Bedard Wednesday that he would be getting the ball on March 31 against the Rangers, according to the AP. It had been expected that the lefty would compete with Felix Hernandez for the top spot in Seattle's rotation, but obviously that's not the case. |
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| The Red Sox plan to limit Clay Buchholz's innings this year. "We had a target number of innings before the season started last year, which we'll have this year," pitching coach John Farrell said in the Boston Globe. "It'll certainly be an increase over the 150 innings that we targeted last year. I think it's a reasonable number to think that Clay is going to be in line for 180-190 innings, in that range. I think he's ready certainly for a full season at the major league level and he's got the talent to back that up." Buchholz will battle Julian Tavarez for the last spot in the team's rotation. |
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| B.J. Ryan, P, Toronto Blue Jays | Wednesday 2/13, 9:14 AM CT |
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| B.J. Ryan, recovering from Tommy John surgery, has thrown two bullpen sessions with no physical problems and is slated to throw next from the mound Saturday. He is still three months away from reaching one year post-surgery, but Ryan is hoping to be ready by opening day. "I felt good coming into spring training with the same throwing routine," Ryan said in the Toronto Star. "I got hurt doing my job. I like to take the ball. I don't turn it down very often. But that's going to catch up with you some time. Guys pitch with aches and pains throughout their careers, but sometimes it's a little too much and you feel like you're taking away from your teammates. You try and grow and mature as a person and then just work hard to get back to where you were." |
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| Oft-injured outfielder Rocco Baldelli expects to be at full strength when camp opens. However, Baldelli will be paying close attention to how he feels every time he takes the field. "Managing my body's going to be very important for me this year, maybe taking it easy a little bit when I can," he said in the Tampa Tribune. "I think I just have to be smart and I have to put my body first and I'm going to and I plan on being out there the full year." |
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| A decision on whether Evan Longoria begins the year with the Rays or back at Triple-A likely won't be made for at least another month. "This is a big moment for us and we want to give it as much thought as we possibly could," manager Joe Maddon said in the Tampa Tribune. "We felt it best to keep it fluid and not really make a hard-and-fast decision or judgment at this point and just let spring training take its course." Executive VP Andrew Friedman had raised the possibility last month that the Rays might make a call one way or the other on Longoria's status before spring training began as a way to alleviate the pressure on the youngster. If the team determines Longoria isn't ready, Willy Aybar would be the most likely candidate for the third base job. Eric Hinske would also be given a shot. |
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| Hideki Matsui will meet with the Yankees medical staff today to determine what course of action will be taken with his surgically repaired right knee. The outfielder had surgery in November but has been experiencing some lingering soreness. He could be on a lighter program at the start of camp, according to the NY Post. |
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| Chien-Ming Wang is not going to get the long-term deal from the Yankees that he desires, and it appears he'll be unable to avoid going to arbitration with the club tomorrow. "I want to," Wang told the NY Post of inking a multi-year contract. "They told me it's not the time because for pitchers it's hard to stay healthy." Wang, who will turn 28 next month, has 19 wins each of the last two seasons. |
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| The NY Post is reporting that in Andy Pettitte's affidavit, the pitcher revealed a conversation he had with Roger Clemens nearly 10 years ago in which Clemens admitted to using human growth hormone. Pettitte also said Clemens backtracked when the subject of HGH came up again in conversation in 2005, and Clemens responded by saying Pettitte misunderstood the previous exchange and that he had been talking about HGH use by his wife in the original conversation. We should know more about how all of this will shake out after Clemens and his former trainer, Brian McNamee, appear before congress today. |
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| Last year, the Red Sox usually turned to Hideki Okajima on days where Jonathan Papelbon was unavailable. This year, Manny Delcarmen could get his shot at a few stray saves, as well. "We've had a number of conversations already this winter, to challenge him with an increased role, increased importance, not to think that last year's ERA or performance that he had is the Manny Delcarmen," pitching coach John Farrell told the Boston Globe. "I think there's still room for improvement, certainly with his fastball command, that can continue to improve. I'd like to think at some point we can begin to expose him in that closer's role. And I say that because we probably are going to take a similar approach with the use of Jonathan this year, so there are going to be opportunities that both Manny and Hideki will again assume." |
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| Luis Hernandez is the favorite to land the starting shortstop job for the Orioles as we head into spring training. "In the brief time [Hernandez] had the opportunity to be with us, he showed what he could do defensively and he did enough things with the bat to show that he could fit," manager Dave Trembley said in the Baltimore Sun. "I don't want to say at this point in time that Luis Hernandez is the shortstop on Opening Day. That's not fair to the other guys. But I want him to be confident and to know that he's going to get an opportunity." Hernandez impressed team officials with his defense in limited action last year and hit .290 in 69 at-bats. However, he's just a career .250 hitter in six minor league seasons. Freddie Bynum and Brandon Fahey are the other options at short, and the O's will also keep an eye on guys like Juan Uribe and Jack Wilson in case their respective teams decide to unload them. |
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