American League Capsules: Holland throws bullpen session
SURPRISE, Ariz. — Texas Rangers left-hander Derek Holland threw a lengthy bullpen session on Saturday, his first work from the mound since spraining a knee last week.
"I had a little bit of adrenaline flowing," said Holland, who sprained his right knee during an agility drill on Feb. 20. "Nobody likes to be on the tables in the training room."
Holland threw from a full windup and the stretch in the bullpen under the supervision of Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux.
The 23-year-old said he expects to throw live batting practice Monday.
"I wanted to keep going but they want me to take it day to day," Holland said.
Holland was 8-13 in 33 appearances — 21 starts — with a 6.12 ERA last season.
Rays’ Burrell eyes big turnaround
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — When Pat Burrell finally had an opportunity to sit down and reflect on one the least productive years of his career, the Tampa Bay Rays slugger concluded he had no one to blame but himself.
Sure, a "slight herniation" of two discs in his neck contributed to a slow start in 2009, but the 33-year-old designated hitter also said he let the problem linger too long before getting the injury checked out.
A less-than-smooth transition from everyday player to DH was a factor, too, in his first American League season. Burrell again claimed responsibility for not making adjustments necessary to be successful.
"You can’t spend a whole lot of time thinking about the past," said Burrell, who batted .221 with 14 home runs and 64 RBIs in 122 games after averaging .262 with 31 homers and 99 RBIs over the previous four seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies.
"You want to put it behind you, but you also want to be able to build from it," he added. "I’ve had bad seasons before, and it is extra motivation for you to come in and give it that much more focus and determination to turn things around."
The Rays signed Burrell to a $16 million, two-year deal in January 2009 with expectations of adding a potent right-handed bat to the middle of a lineup that lost to Burrell’s Phillies in the 2008 World Series.
He missed 29 games from May 11 to June 11 with what was described at the time as a neck strain and continued to struggle after returning to the lineup.
Despite hitting .299 with six homers and 18 RBI’s during a 27-game stretch from July 31-Sept. 2, he never really provided the Rays the punch they desired. He fizzled down the stretch, homering twice in his last 38 games.
"I’m sure his pride was injured a bit," manager Joe Maddon said, citing a lack of familiarity with the DH role and AL pitching as factors in Burrell’s worst numbers since 2003, when he batted .209 with 21 homers and 64 RBIs in 146 games with Philadelphia.
"I talk to him often, and this guy expects to play at a much higher level. He expects to be part of a winning team and he expects his team to be a winning team," Maddon added. "He’s pretty much always been that."
After winning 97 games and winning the AL East 2008, the Rays won 84 and finished third in the division last season.
Burrell reported to spring training, looking fit and eager to rebound.
"I had a lot more time this offseason to get in shape, think about the year and make some adjustments," said Burrell, who also worked with new Rays batting coach Derek Shelton this winter.
"That’s no excuse or anything like that, it’s just the way it was," he added. "I’m a lot more prepared this year as far as physically, and definitely mentally. It’s not a new team any more. There’s not all the adjustments that come along with it. I know what I need to do and how to go about it."
Burrell discounted how much being a primary DH for the first time in his career impacted his performance.
"It was an adjustment, but when you get in that batter’s box you have a job to do. ... Some of the down time in between (at bats) is an adjustment, but I don’t think that was as big of an issue," he said.
Nor does he believe a lack of familiarity with AL pitching caused his struggles.
"It was 100 percent me more than anything else," Burrell said. "There are some tendencies you can learn about pitchers throughout the season, but I’ve played long enough to know that it’s still got to go across the plate."
Maddon is encouraged by what he’s seen in camp and likes the chances of Burrell, a .254 career hitter with 265 homers and 891 RBIs, improving on last year’s performance.
"He’s a young man, and normally the track record of success sustains itself or maintains itself at that particular age," the manager said.
"I think there were a lot of reasons last year wasn’t that good, but I believe he’s going to bounce back well this year."
-- Fred Goodall
Henderson to lead base stealing seminar
PHOENIX — Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson arrived at the Oakland Athletics’ spring training facilities Saturday and at least a two dozen A’s were listening intently as he spoke on stealing bases, among other subjects.
A’s manager Bob Geren said Henderson’s focus will be on the basepath, but he won’t be limited. That’s fine with A’s outfielder Rajai Davis, who led the team with 41 steals last year.
"He has a wealth of knowledge and just to know what he knows is beneficial in any way," Davis said. "I want to know what he has to say about stealing bases, playing defense and situational at-bats."
Davis and Henderson even held an impromptu session during batting practice. Henderson gave him a couple of exercises to improve his balance and hip strength. It looked as though the two were skiing standing still.
"It’s a speed skating technique I use to build my hips and legs," Henderson said. "In baseball you train the whole body, except for the hip and eyes. It’s not just speed but the ability to concentrate on pitchers, how to get a good jump and explode out of the jump."
Henderson, who set major league career records for stolen bases (1,406) and runs scored (2,295), said Davis was capable of stealing 75-80 bases.
"I had to get him on his toes to get his balance," Henderson said. "The biggest thing is getting rid of his fear to get thrown out. He has the heart to be a base stealer and I want him to accept failure. Once you can accept failure, you can have fun and success."
Coco Crisp, signed as a free agent over the offseason, was another attentive student.
"He has a great idea of what he’s doing," Henderson said. "I talked to him about sliding head first and how the closer you get to the dirt before you start your slide, the better it is. I’ve seen guys bouncing once or twice going head first."
Henderson, a member of the 1989 World Champion A’s, enthusiastically embraced a multitude of subjects.
"I love talking about baserunning," Henderson said. "Even the slowest guy can go from first to third and help win a ballgame. I’m glad baseball is showing some interest. There’s not as much success with home runs these days so it’s good to get back to the fundamentals — go out and create runs instead of waiting for one big hit."
Henderson worked with the A’s in their instructional league team and Oakland GM Billy Beane thought it was a natural progression to invite him to spring training.
"Over the summer we talked about getting him more involved, particularly with some of our young guys," Beane said. "It’s great to have him around, just his personality. Guys gravitate toward him. Speed was one of the bright spots of our offense last year. You have to have power to win in this league but you need guys with speed who can create opportunities."
Several of the A’s best prospects — Michael Taylor, Chris Carter, Eric Patterson — were on hand to glean whatever they could.
"I just want to ask, ‘How do you do it and how can I do it?"’ said Taylor, who stole over 20 bases in the minors last year. "I’d like to know how he got his jumps and what to look for. Even if I learn one thing, it’s worth it."
More established players like Ryan Sweeney, Cliff Pennington and Mark Ellis were also interested in what Henderson had to say.
"I watched him on the MLB Network talking about stealing third and looking at the pitcher’s elbow," Pennington said. "If I can pick his brain it would be great."
Henderson said he’d like to stay more involved.
"It’s a great feeling just to be back with kids and give something back that I got from the generation before me," he said. "I still enjoy the game."
Notes: C Joel Galarraga arrived in camp after solving his visa issues. He sustained an arm injury last summer and is working his way back. ... The A’s pushed back Sunday’s workout time in an attempt to avoid rain that is expected in the area. ... IF Eric Chavez took grounders at every position in the infield and Geren said he was impressive.
Detroit’s Inge expects to bounce back from surgery
LAKELAND, Fla. — Tigers third baseman Brandon Inge thought that shortly after undergoing surgery in November to repair the tendons in both knees he’d be well enough to fly to his offseason home in South Carolina.
No chance.
"Two days (after the procedure), I couldn’t bend my legs," Inge said Saturday. "I thought, ‘Well, I’ll just put that off."’
Nearly four months later, the 2009 All-Star pick appears well on his way to making a full recovery in time for the Tigers’ April 5 season opener at Kansas City.
"He’s doing fine," Detroit manager Jim Leyland said. "He’s ahead of schedule, by his own admission. Exactly how far ahead of schedule I don’t know."
The 32-year-old Inge, who set a career high with 84 RBIs last season and tied his career best with 27 homers, has participated in spring workouts with the team, but won’t begin playing until the latter part of spring training.
However, "I could play right now," Inge said.
A year ago, Inge had his best start in the majors, hitting .275 with 18 homers and 52 RBIs through June. He credited that success to a revamped swing that allowed him to stay on the ball better, use all fields and, at long last, stop getting "wrapped up" on inside pitches.
"The swing changes really allowed me to take it to the next level," Inge said. "It freed me up to be able to hit everything."
Even during his start, though, Inge’s knees didn’t feel great.
"Last year in spring training I started to feel it," Inge said. "It wasn’t bad, but it was worse than it had been in the past. I would feel it every now and then, but then it progressively got worse."
By the season’s second half, Inge, who had patella tendinitis in both knees, was playing in pain every day.
It showed in his numbers.
After July 1, Inge batted .189 and struck out 99 times.
"When I’d bend my leg to drive the ball it felt like someone was stabbing me with a knife," Inge said.
Inge, however, kept on playing (he saw action in 161 games), and contributing to a team that came within a win of reaching the playoffs.
"A lot of guys wouldn’t have been playing," Leyland said. "I felt kind of bad about it, but he’s bullheaded. He wanted to be out there."
On Nov. 4, Inge had surgery in Michigan.
The tendon in his left knee was "shredded," he said. His right knee had a bone chip.
"The (doctor) said if he didn’t know who it was, he would have assumed the guy would have been crippled," Inge said.
After surgery, Inge wore braces on both legs that stretched from his ankles to his thighs for six weeks. When removed, he barely recognized his legs.
Saturday, Inge said he wasn’t quite back to 100 percent, but was progressing each day and getting close. He not only is anxious to start playing again, but to return to the form he displayed before the All-Star break in 2009.
Asked if duplicating those numbers were possible, Inge didn’t hesitate.
"Without a doubt," he said.
NOTES: Closer Jose Valverde flew to the Dominican Republic and missed Saturday’s workouts because of a death in the family. Leyland said he would be out a "couple days." Thus far, the manager likes what he sees from Valverde, whom the team signed to a two-year, $14 million deal in January. "He’s a big, strong, outstanding-stuff guy with a lot of personality," Leyland said. "He’s got a great arm." ... With a competition brewing for the final two spots in the starting rotation, former Detroit starters Jeremy Bonderman, Armando Galarraga, Nate Robertson and Dontrelle Willis are among those in the mix. "I don’t know how that’s going to play out," Leyland said. He added that "filling out the rotation" is the No. 1 thing on his mind.
Career minor leaguer Ruiz hopes to stick with Jays
DUNEDIN, Fla. — Randy Ruiz had bounced around the minors for 10 years before getting his first taste of the majors. This year he hopes to stick with one club: the Toronto Blue Jays.
He knows from experience, though, not to get his hopes up too high.
"I put no pressure on myself," Ruiz said Saturday. "I would love to be up there with the club but right now I’m just going to have fun and try to do what I can do."
Beginning in 1999, Ruiz was signed and released by the Reds, Orioles, Cardinals, Phillies (twice), Royals, Yankees and Giants before latching on with the Minnesota Twins after the 2007 season.
In 2008 he got his first taste of the big leagues, if only for 22 games.
In 11 minor league seasons he batted .304, averaged 73 RBIs and was a four-time batting champion, two-time All-Star, International League Rookie of the Year at age 30 in 2008 and Pacific Coast Player of the Year last season.
"Everywhere I’ve been I’ve done well but it was a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time," Ruiz said. "I was behind (Cincinnati’s) Ben Broussard at one point when he was a big prospect. I was behind (Philadelphia’s) Ryan Howard. When I was with the Yankees they had Jason Giambi.
"These guys are superstars making multimillion dollars," he added. "All you can do is sit and wait and not worry about what happens up there."
By then, Ruiz finally learned a lesson that might have served him well: stay put.
"I was a free agent every year, and when I didn’t get promoted to the next level I felt like I had to try somewhere else," he said. "But I learned that it’s always good to stay in one organization because they know who you are, they know what kind of person you are, know what kind of player."
He spent most of 2008 at Triple-A Rochester before the Twins summoned him on Aug. 1, and released him on Dec. 5. Twelve days later Toronto signed him. He hit .320 with 43 doubles, 15 home runs and 106 at Triple-A Las Vegas before being called up by the Blue Jays, with whom he hit .313 with 10 homers in 33 games.
"I think he deserves a chance," Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said. "The kid’s hit everywhere he’s went. You put him in there day in and day out, DH him day and day out, I believe he’d hit you over 20 home runs. I think he’d drive you in close to 80-90 runs and hit .280 or so in the big leagues."
As before, Ruiz may have to wait his turn. For starters, he’s in competition with Brian Dopirak for a roster spot. And ahead of them on the roster are first baseman Lyle Overbay, in the final year of his contract, and DH Adam Lind.
"I like playing the field. I feel like I’m into the game that way," Ruiz said of his preference for first base. "But if it’s DH or (as a pinch-hitter) off the bench, that’s just as good. Right now I’m just happy to have a uniform on."
NOTES: Rain washed out Saturday’s outdoor workouts. The Blue Jays spent the day in the batting cages and in meetings. ... The Phillies and Blue Jays will play two B games this spring, Friday at Clearwater and March 10 in Dunedin.
