Notes: Bagwell nearing field action
03/08/2006
KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Jeff Bagwell now has a better idea of when he'll take the field and test his surgically repaired right shoulder for the first time this Spring Training.
The way the 37-year-old Bagwell sees it, he should get into the lineup as more than a designated hitter at some point this weekend.
At this point, the decision is mostly in Bagwell's hands, manager Phil Garner has said. The Astros aren't about to rush Bagwell, who threw between innings Wednesday, back into action before he's ready. He's surely earned that right to decide his future.
"We'll sit down and have a game plan and decide when I'm going to go out there in the field," Bagwell said. "This'll be a decision made by Dave [Labossiere, head athletic trainer], Garner and myself."
Bagwell was quick to say that the shoulder doesn't affect his hitting. His bat is fine, no different than it's been in past Spring Trainings.
"I'm not very good in Spring Training," he said. "But as long as I'm seeing the ball and picking the spin up and things like that, then that's great.
"As I've said all along, the key here is can I throw and hit. Only time will tell that."
Talking labor: Third baseman Morgan Ensberg spoke for the masses Wednesday.
Morgan, the team's player rep, and his teammates had just met with union president Donald Fehr, and they came away from the talks enthused about the state of baseball. The consensus was this: All is good in the game.
But that doesn't mean it'll stay that way, he said. Soon enough, the Collective Bargaining Agreement will be back for discussion at year's end, which could mean good might not stay good for long.
Ensberg made clear that labor peace is the aim.
"Those things we never know," he said. "You're prepared for the worst, but we have to make sure that we're covered in case anything comes up. You have to be prepared.
"We're prepared, I think, to face this early. If there's going to be a deal done, it's just way too early."
He pointed out that the players did have concerns, though he didn't mention those concerns in specific terms. Ensberg did say that professional athletes have problems that are similar to union members elsewhere.
"We just happen to be in a high profile, high salary industry," he said. "But the actual job concerns, basically, remain the same."
Jokes on the side: Team Italy manager Matt Galante, fresh from a 10-0 win Tuesday night over Australia, was in Astros camp Wednesday. Galante, on leave from the Astros as a special assistant, took some good-natured ribbing.
At one point, his cell phone rang, and someone nearby asked, "Is that the president of Italy?"
The remark drew laughs. So did another one.
"I hear there's a stamp in Italy with your picture on it," someone else said.
Galante laughed.
"They'll be stomping on it soon enough," he said.
The question is: How many times were the Astros shut out last season?
Quote 'em: "You know how you just don't like guys on the other team sometimes? It's funny because growing up I loved Roger [Clemens], loved to watch Roger pitch. Then, when I was first in the big leagues and he was for the other team, I hated him." -- Andy Pettitte, in an article from Newsday
Did you know: It took Craig Biggio 18 seasons and 2,564 games to get to the World Series. His late-career appearance in the Series is the longest span for any player in baseball history.
And the answer: The Astros lost 17 times to pitchers who threw shut outs, a total that was the most in the Majors last season.
Feel-good outing: Maybe Wandy Rodriguez's performance Wednesday didn't draw many raves. He gave up three runs, three hits and four walks. Still, Rodriguez, a candidate for one of two open spots in the Astros rotation, wasn't too unhappy with the outing.
"I really, really feel good," he said after his three innings against the Blue Jays. "But I'm missing in my location and my spots."
He said his problem, mainly, was with his two-seam fastball. When he wanted it to sink outside, the pitch sank too far outside for a ball.
Odds and ends: The Astros passed out "Cat in the Hat" caps as part of a National Education Association event called "Read Across America" at Osceola County Stadium. ... Astros broadcaster Milo Hamilton will have a book signing at the ballpark Saturday. ... Willy Taveras started in center field for the Dominican Republic in its win Tuesday over Venezuela. He went 0-for-4. ... Astros right-handers Dan Wheeler and Brad Lidge each pitched a scoreless inning for the United States in its 2-0 win over Mexico. ... Jason Lane, who sat out the game Wednesday, is hitting .545 with two homers and six RBIs in Grapefruit League play.
Source: http://houston.astros.mlb.com/
KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Jeff Bagwell now has a better idea of when he'll take the field and test his surgically repaired right shoulder for the first time this Spring Training.
The way the 37-year-old Bagwell sees it, he should get into the lineup as more than a designated hitter at some point this weekend.
At this point, the decision is mostly in Bagwell's hands, manager Phil Garner has said. The Astros aren't about to rush Bagwell, who threw between innings Wednesday, back into action before he's ready. He's surely earned that right to decide his future.
"We'll sit down and have a game plan and decide when I'm going to go out there in the field," Bagwell said. "This'll be a decision made by Dave [Labossiere, head athletic trainer], Garner and myself."
Bagwell was quick to say that the shoulder doesn't affect his hitting. His bat is fine, no different than it's been in past Spring Trainings.
"I'm not very good in Spring Training," he said. "But as long as I'm seeing the ball and picking the spin up and things like that, then that's great.
"As I've said all along, the key here is can I throw and hit. Only time will tell that."
Talking labor: Third baseman Morgan Ensberg spoke for the masses Wednesday.
Morgan, the team's player rep, and his teammates had just met with union president Donald Fehr, and they came away from the talks enthused about the state of baseball. The consensus was this: All is good in the game.
But that doesn't mean it'll stay that way, he said. Soon enough, the Collective Bargaining Agreement will be back for discussion at year's end, which could mean good might not stay good for long.
Ensberg made clear that labor peace is the aim.
"Those things we never know," he said. "You're prepared for the worst, but we have to make sure that we're covered in case anything comes up. You have to be prepared.
"We're prepared, I think, to face this early. If there's going to be a deal done, it's just way too early."
He pointed out that the players did have concerns, though he didn't mention those concerns in specific terms. Ensberg did say that professional athletes have problems that are similar to union members elsewhere.
"We just happen to be in a high profile, high salary industry," he said. "But the actual job concerns, basically, remain the same."
Jokes on the side: Team Italy manager Matt Galante, fresh from a 10-0 win Tuesday night over Australia, was in Astros camp Wednesday. Galante, on leave from the Astros as a special assistant, took some good-natured ribbing.
At one point, his cell phone rang, and someone nearby asked, "Is that the president of Italy?"
The remark drew laughs. So did another one.
"I hear there's a stamp in Italy with your picture on it," someone else said.
Galante laughed.
"They'll be stomping on it soon enough," he said.
The question is: How many times were the Astros shut out last season?
Quote 'em: "You know how you just don't like guys on the other team sometimes? It's funny because growing up I loved Roger [Clemens], loved to watch Roger pitch. Then, when I was first in the big leagues and he was for the other team, I hated him." -- Andy Pettitte, in an article from Newsday
Did you know: It took Craig Biggio 18 seasons and 2,564 games to get to the World Series. His late-career appearance in the Series is the longest span for any player in baseball history.
And the answer: The Astros lost 17 times to pitchers who threw shut outs, a total that was the most in the Majors last season.
Feel-good outing: Maybe Wandy Rodriguez's performance Wednesday didn't draw many raves. He gave up three runs, three hits and four walks. Still, Rodriguez, a candidate for one of two open spots in the Astros rotation, wasn't too unhappy with the outing.
"I really, really feel good," he said after his three innings against the Blue Jays. "But I'm missing in my location and my spots."
He said his problem, mainly, was with his two-seam fastball. When he wanted it to sink outside, the pitch sank too far outside for a ball.
Odds and ends: The Astros passed out "Cat in the Hat" caps as part of a National Education Association event called "Read Across America" at Osceola County Stadium. ... Astros broadcaster Milo Hamilton will have a book signing at the ballpark Saturday. ... Willy Taveras started in center field for the Dominican Republic in its win Tuesday over Venezuela. He went 0-for-4. ... Astros right-handers Dan Wheeler and Brad Lidge each pitched a scoreless inning for the United States in its 2-0 win over Mexico. ... Jason Lane, who sat out the game Wednesday, is hitting .545 with two homers and six RBIs in Grapefruit League play.
Source: http://houston.astros.mlb.com/
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