Springing Into Action

Hey everyone!  Some pretty rough weather yesterday, a bit windy and cloudy it was rough. I had to break out the sweatshirt last night. Oh did I mention I’m at Spring Training? No? You thought I was talking about the foot of snow and bitter cold you were dealing with? Hey, it was rough here too.  For some reason no one seems interested in extending me any sympathy.

Anyway I’ve made my way to a couple of games so far and I’ll be going to a couple more.  I thought I’d share some observations about what has been a terrific experience as always.  If you are interested here are some photos as well.

Pablo Sandoval - The most common request I got before leaving was “let me know how Panda looks.”  I have to say it is a decidedly mixed bag.  The pictures from this winter showed a guy in tremendous shape but were without context.  When you get him next to his peers he still looks a bit chunky but he is very clearly in better shape than he was a year ago.  On the field he is moving pretty well including a nice backhanded play yesterday, something that was a bit of a problem early in camp.

At the plate he is decidedly unmemorable.  He’s not overmatched at all nor is he red hot.  He looks no different from any other hitter.  For better or worse I haven’t seen anything that makes me expect anything more or less than some mix of the 2014/2015 version of Panda which would be a nice little upgrade at third base.

Oh one other thing.  This is probably overthinking but I noticed that when Sandoval did his pregame prep he did it solo.  While other players worked in groups Sandoval did his sprints and whatnot on his own.  It is probably nothing but as my father noted to me it wouldn’t be a shock if he lost the respect of a lot of players by being so out of shape last year.

Pitchers Rolling Along - I’ve seen Sale and Pomeranz start games.  Sale looked very sharp I thought while Pomeranz did not look so sharp giving up a series of rockets.  This was Pomeranz’ first start so just getting him out there and looking healthy was considerably more important than any results.

Among the relievers it has been the same.  Joe Kelly, Robby Scott and Matt Barnes pitched well and I thought Brandon Workman looked good in the game I saw him pitch.  The other guy I liked despite a rough outing was Jalen Beeks.  The southpaw seemed poised despite getting knocked around by Toronto.  He never seemed to change his demeanor or his pacing which I thought was a positive.

Other Hitters - There hasn’t been a lot to observe from the other position players.  Everyone looks healthy and solid.  Mitch Moreland is bigger than I realized and I don’t know if it is a conscious change but he seems like he is making a concerted effort to use the Wall.  Sam Travis also looks like he has bulked up a bit.  He had a throw to make on an attempted 3-6-1 DP and based on the throw he made there any hope he could play third base that I had is foolishly optimistic.  I haven’t seen anything from Hanley that makes me concern he is carrying any lingering injury.

Lastly, there was a very sweet moment when Jarrod Saltalamacchia left the field.  He crossed the Red Sox dugout (the only way out is past the Sox’ dugout) and Brian Butterfield called him over and gave him a warm hug and kiss on the cheek.

Minor Leagues - As always I think my favorite part of camp is strolling around the minor league fields and watching players do their thing. Just generally it is a very chatty camp.  There is always a lot of good natured ribbing among the players but this year it seems more widespread.  Every hit, every catch, every throw and the guys are chirping.  It just seems like there is a great camaraderie among the minor leaguers.

Rafael Devers - First a caveat, the ball seems to be carrying better at the minor league fields than usual.  With that said Devers was destroying some baseballs.  If you have ever been you’ll know the batting cages that are about 425 feet from home plate on Field #5 and in the span of four swings Devers put three onto the roof of the cages.  He still has a bit of baby fat to him but not so much that he looks immobile.

Bobby Dalbec - The fourth round pick a year ago impressed me.  Like Devers he was shocking exceptional power.  He is a big kid who reminds me a lot of Will Middlebrooks at the same stage of his career.  He just looks the part of a big league player and the ball explodes off his bat.  He was regularly hitting the ball 25 feet further than the other players in his hitting group.

Others - Jagger Rusconi has impressed me.  He was hitting the ball well and seems more fluid defensively.  I haven’t seen last year’s first two picks; Jason Groome or C.J. Chatham.  Groome is no surprise, pitchers are kind of in their own orbit but Chatham has been noticeably absent.  Have there been any reports of him being injured?  It’s possible I am just missing him among all the players running around.  Trey Ball may not be able to pitch but the dude has some great hair.