Dodgers glad to be back at work, away from World Series talk
February 19, 2018
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) Justin Turner heard about it for weeks. He couldn't get away from talk about the Dodgers' seven-game loss to the Houston Astros in the 2017 World Series.
Waiters asked Turner about it when he tried to order a meal. The Los Angeles third baseman even heard about it at a wedding. Of course, the wedding also happened to be in Houston about a week after a 5-1 loss in Game 7.
Nevertheless, Turner began to think there was just no escape from the noise. Or the disappointment.
Turner remembered that he just wanted the season to continue as he watched the Astros pour onto the field at Dodger Stadium to celebrate their dramatic victory on Nov. 1.
''I didn't want to stop playing,'' Turner said. ''It's so disappointing. That never really goes away.''
But the game always resumes. For Turner and his teammates, there was relief in that as they began to play again Monday in their first full-squad practice at Camelback Ranch.
''Everybody has been talking about the World Series and that's OK,'' Turner said.
Turner batted .322, third best in the National League last season, and went on to share co-MVP with teammate Chris Taylor in the NL Championship Series victory over the Chicago Cubs. Yet Turner struggled in the World Series with only four hits in 25 at-bats.
''There's not a lot left to talk about. We all dealt with it in our own way. It's just really good to get back to work,'' he said.
Still, manager Dave Roberts couldn't ignore it in his address to the Dodgers before they went to work on a windy day in the Arizona desert.
''I told them to be aware of what happened and to be resilient,'' Roberts said. ''I also told them to be focused on each day and to work at putting ourselves in the same position this season that we were in last season.''
''It's pretty clear that the mood is good among the guys - 26 guys from last year's club and 26 guys who weren't here last year.''
Roberts expressed confidence the Dodgers could get back to the World Series and perhaps win one more game for the championship that eluded them last fall. The key pieces - pitcher Clayton Kershaw, closer Kenley Jansen, shortstop Corey Seager, infielder and 2017 NL Rookie of the Year Cody Bellinger, outfielder Yasiel Puig and Turner - are back.
''We've got young guys who are only going to get better and veteran guys who are really performing at a high level,'' said Roberts, whose club plays its first spring game Friday against the Chicago White Sox. ''So, we've just got to continue to stay the course.''
As always, however, there are questions. Seager, 23, arrived in camp after an offseason of rehabilitation for back and elbow injuries. He sprained his back sliding into second base against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the NL Division Series.
An injury to his right elbow sidelined him for a week late last season. The Dodgers decided against surgery. Instead, Seager was prescribed rehab and rest.
''I feel good,'' said Seager, who is confident he'll be ready for opening day on March 29 against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium. ''I did all the rehab, all that stuff. I began a throwing program in January, so I will be a little delayed with just the throwing. But the back feels good.''
''I've still got to throw to bases, get to a certain distance. I've only thrown 100 feet. Then we'll mix in the games. I've tried to strengthen everything around it. Everything is all right,'' he said.
NOTES: LHP Alex Wood worked through a scheduled bullpen Monday. A sprained right ankle, sustained Thursday, had limited him. X-rays were negative. . Pitching prospect Walker Buehler, a 23-year-old right-hander, threw his first bullpen this spring Monday. Buehler, the No. 24 pick in the 2015 draft, had been feeling discomfort in his back. He's considered a potential starter. After working 88 2/3 innings in the minors last season, he joined the Dodgers on Sept 7. He appeared in eight games, allowing eight runs in 9 1/3 innings with 12 strikeouts and eight walks. . Dodgers great Maury Wills arrived in camp Monday. Wills, 85, is the club's bunting coach.
***********************
AP source: Nats, Benoit agree in principle for $1M, 1 year
February 19, 2018
Joaquin Benoit and the Washington Nationals have agreed in principle to a major league contract that will pay the 40-year-old reliever $1 million for the 2018 season, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.
The person told The Associated Press about the free-agent agreement, which is pending the successful completion of a physical exam, on condition of anonymity on Monday because it was not yet official.
Benoit is a right-hander who first got to the big leagues in 2001, when he pitched in one game as a starter. He has gone on to make a total of 764 career appearances, with 709 out of the bullpen, mostly in middle relief.
In all, Benoit is 58-49 with a 3.83 ERA, 53 saves and 1,058 strikeouts in 1,068 2-3 innings. He has spent time with eight teams in the majors, including eight years with the Texas Rangers, three with the Detroit Tigers and, most recently, a brief stint at the end of last season with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
He began the year with the Philadelphia Phillies and went a combined 1-6 with a 4.65 ERA across 50 1/3 innings in 52 appearances with the two clubs in 2017.
Benoit adds some playoff experience to the bullpen for the Nationals, who have won four of the past six NL East titles but then lost in the NL Division Series each time. He has pitched in 20 postseason games with the Tampa Bay Rays and Detroit Tigers, going 1-0 with a 2.82 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 22 1/3 innings.
The Nationals' first official spring training workout for pitchers and catchers in West Palm Beach, Florida, was Friday.
ESPN.com first reported that Benoit and the Nationals had an agreement in place.
***********************
Garcia aims to build on All-Star season for White Sox
February 19, 2018
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) Avisail Garcia is trying to pick up where he left off last year. So far, so good.
The Chicago White Sox All-Star right fielder arrived early in camp to deal with his salary arbitration case, which he won. Since he was at spring training anyway, he stuck around and got some extra work in.
''Nothing changes. I've been doing my workouts, my routines. Hopefully I can stay healthy,'' Garcia said Monday on the first official reporting day for the full squad at Camelback Ranch. ''We play (Friday), so I got to be ready.''
At 26, Garcia is coming off his best season, batting .330 with 18 homers and 80 RBIs. Only MVP Jose Altuve had a higher batting average in the American League.
And an arbitration panel ruled in his favor last Wednesday. Garcia will get a raise to $6.7 million; the White Sox offered $5.85 million. He made $3 million in 2017.
''I'm excited,'' Garcia said of the arbitration victory. ''Nobody likes to go through it, but it's part of the business.''
Part of the reason for his success last season was attributed to his arriving in camp in better condition. He lost 18 pounds through a combination of early workouts and changing his diet from red meat to more fish.
Garcia says he has stayed with his routine, and wants to take his game even higher this season.
''I just try to improve myself, have better numbers every year,'' he said. ''You got to test yourself.''
Since arriving from the Detroit Tigers in 2013, Garcia had been projected to be a star, but injuries and slumps kept him from realizing his potential until last season.
Manager Rick Renteria, in his second year at the White Sox helm following one season as bench coach under Robin Ventura, has noticed how Garcia has improved.
''I think everybody was hopeful that at some point in his career that might happen,'' Renteria said of Garcia's breakthrough.
''He's come into camp full of confidence and obviously his routines have remained consistent. He has to just go out there and try not to do too much. Let the numbers take care of themselves and trust the work that he puts in, and he'll have an opportunity to continue good output and have a positive result.''
Garcia, for his part, never lost the faith despite entering last season as a career .258 hitter.
''I believed,'' he said. ''I put in a lot of sacrifice. Play hard every single day.''
As Renteria said, Garcia continued his offseason routine after experiencing his best season. The 6-foot-4 Venezuelan said he weighs 251 right now, down from 258 at this time a year ago.
''I lost seven more pounds. I don't get tired so fast. I feel better, sleep better, everything.''
Garcia, along with first baseman Jose Abreu, had been mentioned in some trade rumors in the offseason as the White Sox continue to seek deals for younger players. So far nothing has come about, and as he did with the arbitration case, Garcia said he didn't let that affect his approach.
''I don't worry about that. I just worry about day by day,'' Garcia said.
''I just prepare myself for the season because rumors are always going to be there. You never know what's going to happen,'' he said.
Perhaps even stealing more bases, as Abreu has hinted he might do this season? Abreu had three steals last year while Garcia had five.
''Maybe. He can do it, I can do it too. Let's see what we can do,'' Garcia said.
**********************
Yo is into yoga: Cespeds tries to improve flexibility
February 19, 2018
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) Yo is into yoga.
Trying to stay off the disabled list after he was hobbled by leg injuries last season, New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes took to yoga this winter.
''This year I did three things differently,'' Cespedes said through a translator Monday following the team's first full workout. ''I ran. Then I did weightlifting, but not so much heavy weights. And then I did yoga trying to get ready for this.''
A two-time All-Star, Cespedes signed a $110 million, four-year contract before the 2017 season and bulked up in the weight room. He wound up on the disabled list with a left hamstring strain from April 28 until June 10 and then with a right hamstring strain from Aug. 26 through the end of the season. Cespedes hit .292 with 17 homers and 42 RBIs in 81 games.
''With yoga, my muscles are more flexible right now,'' he said. ''I used to work out with heavy weightlifting. I had strength, but I wasn't flexible. Now I'm flexible because of the yoga. ... The yoga has been working for me. When I showed up in the last couple of seasons down here, the lower back of my body was very tight. I haven't felt that yet.''
The 32-year-old Cespedes is noticeably trimmer.
''He's had a great offseason,'' new Mets manager Mickey Callaway said. ''He's done a lot more running than he's done in the past. Everybody identified that he needed that.''
Cespedes played a career-high 159 games in 2015 with Detroit and the Mets, helping New York reach the World Series for the first time since 2000.
''I want to be an MVP. That hasn't changed. Last season I was unlucky because I was hurt,'' he said. ''Injuries are unpreventable, but what I learned is to prepare more to avoid those kinds of things this season.''
NOTES: Callaway approached Wilmer Flores about possibly playing the outfield some starting this week, and the Venezuelan infielder welcomed the opportunity. ''I learned how to play first base to be in the lineup,'' Flores said. ''If I have to do it in the outfield to get just one more game, I'll do it.'' . LHP P.J. Conlon, among the young pitchers seeking a bullpen spot, impressed when he threw changeups to lefty-hitting Jay Bruce in batting practice. ''It's kind of been my pitch for the last two seasons,'' Conlon said. ''When I started to come out of the `pen last year, I made it a goal of mine to start throwing it against lefties more.''
February 19, 2018
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) Justin Turner heard about it for weeks. He couldn't get away from talk about the Dodgers' seven-game loss to the Houston Astros in the 2017 World Series.
Waiters asked Turner about it when he tried to order a meal. The Los Angeles third baseman even heard about it at a wedding. Of course, the wedding also happened to be in Houston about a week after a 5-1 loss in Game 7.
Nevertheless, Turner began to think there was just no escape from the noise. Or the disappointment.
Turner remembered that he just wanted the season to continue as he watched the Astros pour onto the field at Dodger Stadium to celebrate their dramatic victory on Nov. 1.
''I didn't want to stop playing,'' Turner said. ''It's so disappointing. That never really goes away.''
But the game always resumes. For Turner and his teammates, there was relief in that as they began to play again Monday in their first full-squad practice at Camelback Ranch.
''Everybody has been talking about the World Series and that's OK,'' Turner said.
Turner batted .322, third best in the National League last season, and went on to share co-MVP with teammate Chris Taylor in the NL Championship Series victory over the Chicago Cubs. Yet Turner struggled in the World Series with only four hits in 25 at-bats.
''There's not a lot left to talk about. We all dealt with it in our own way. It's just really good to get back to work,'' he said.
Still, manager Dave Roberts couldn't ignore it in his address to the Dodgers before they went to work on a windy day in the Arizona desert.
''I told them to be aware of what happened and to be resilient,'' Roberts said. ''I also told them to be focused on each day and to work at putting ourselves in the same position this season that we were in last season.''
''It's pretty clear that the mood is good among the guys - 26 guys from last year's club and 26 guys who weren't here last year.''
Roberts expressed confidence the Dodgers could get back to the World Series and perhaps win one more game for the championship that eluded them last fall. The key pieces - pitcher Clayton Kershaw, closer Kenley Jansen, shortstop Corey Seager, infielder and 2017 NL Rookie of the Year Cody Bellinger, outfielder Yasiel Puig and Turner - are back.
''We've got young guys who are only going to get better and veteran guys who are really performing at a high level,'' said Roberts, whose club plays its first spring game Friday against the Chicago White Sox. ''So, we've just got to continue to stay the course.''
As always, however, there are questions. Seager, 23, arrived in camp after an offseason of rehabilitation for back and elbow injuries. He sprained his back sliding into second base against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the NL Division Series.
An injury to his right elbow sidelined him for a week late last season. The Dodgers decided against surgery. Instead, Seager was prescribed rehab and rest.
''I feel good,'' said Seager, who is confident he'll be ready for opening day on March 29 against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium. ''I did all the rehab, all that stuff. I began a throwing program in January, so I will be a little delayed with just the throwing. But the back feels good.''
''I've still got to throw to bases, get to a certain distance. I've only thrown 100 feet. Then we'll mix in the games. I've tried to strengthen everything around it. Everything is all right,'' he said.
NOTES: LHP Alex Wood worked through a scheduled bullpen Monday. A sprained right ankle, sustained Thursday, had limited him. X-rays were negative. . Pitching prospect Walker Buehler, a 23-year-old right-hander, threw his first bullpen this spring Monday. Buehler, the No. 24 pick in the 2015 draft, had been feeling discomfort in his back. He's considered a potential starter. After working 88 2/3 innings in the minors last season, he joined the Dodgers on Sept 7. He appeared in eight games, allowing eight runs in 9 1/3 innings with 12 strikeouts and eight walks. . Dodgers great Maury Wills arrived in camp Monday. Wills, 85, is the club's bunting coach.
***********************
AP source: Nats, Benoit agree in principle for $1M, 1 year
February 19, 2018
Joaquin Benoit and the Washington Nationals have agreed in principle to a major league contract that will pay the 40-year-old reliever $1 million for the 2018 season, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.
The person told The Associated Press about the free-agent agreement, which is pending the successful completion of a physical exam, on condition of anonymity on Monday because it was not yet official.
Benoit is a right-hander who first got to the big leagues in 2001, when he pitched in one game as a starter. He has gone on to make a total of 764 career appearances, with 709 out of the bullpen, mostly in middle relief.
In all, Benoit is 58-49 with a 3.83 ERA, 53 saves and 1,058 strikeouts in 1,068 2-3 innings. He has spent time with eight teams in the majors, including eight years with the Texas Rangers, three with the Detroit Tigers and, most recently, a brief stint at the end of last season with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
He began the year with the Philadelphia Phillies and went a combined 1-6 with a 4.65 ERA across 50 1/3 innings in 52 appearances with the two clubs in 2017.
Benoit adds some playoff experience to the bullpen for the Nationals, who have won four of the past six NL East titles but then lost in the NL Division Series each time. He has pitched in 20 postseason games with the Tampa Bay Rays and Detroit Tigers, going 1-0 with a 2.82 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 22 1/3 innings.
The Nationals' first official spring training workout for pitchers and catchers in West Palm Beach, Florida, was Friday.
ESPN.com first reported that Benoit and the Nationals had an agreement in place.
***********************
Garcia aims to build on All-Star season for White Sox
February 19, 2018
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) Avisail Garcia is trying to pick up where he left off last year. So far, so good.
The Chicago White Sox All-Star right fielder arrived early in camp to deal with his salary arbitration case, which he won. Since he was at spring training anyway, he stuck around and got some extra work in.
''Nothing changes. I've been doing my workouts, my routines. Hopefully I can stay healthy,'' Garcia said Monday on the first official reporting day for the full squad at Camelback Ranch. ''We play (Friday), so I got to be ready.''
At 26, Garcia is coming off his best season, batting .330 with 18 homers and 80 RBIs. Only MVP Jose Altuve had a higher batting average in the American League.
And an arbitration panel ruled in his favor last Wednesday. Garcia will get a raise to $6.7 million; the White Sox offered $5.85 million. He made $3 million in 2017.
''I'm excited,'' Garcia said of the arbitration victory. ''Nobody likes to go through it, but it's part of the business.''
Part of the reason for his success last season was attributed to his arriving in camp in better condition. He lost 18 pounds through a combination of early workouts and changing his diet from red meat to more fish.
Garcia says he has stayed with his routine, and wants to take his game even higher this season.
''I just try to improve myself, have better numbers every year,'' he said. ''You got to test yourself.''
Since arriving from the Detroit Tigers in 2013, Garcia had been projected to be a star, but injuries and slumps kept him from realizing his potential until last season.
Manager Rick Renteria, in his second year at the White Sox helm following one season as bench coach under Robin Ventura, has noticed how Garcia has improved.
''I think everybody was hopeful that at some point in his career that might happen,'' Renteria said of Garcia's breakthrough.
''He's come into camp full of confidence and obviously his routines have remained consistent. He has to just go out there and try not to do too much. Let the numbers take care of themselves and trust the work that he puts in, and he'll have an opportunity to continue good output and have a positive result.''
Garcia, for his part, never lost the faith despite entering last season as a career .258 hitter.
''I believed,'' he said. ''I put in a lot of sacrifice. Play hard every single day.''
As Renteria said, Garcia continued his offseason routine after experiencing his best season. The 6-foot-4 Venezuelan said he weighs 251 right now, down from 258 at this time a year ago.
''I lost seven more pounds. I don't get tired so fast. I feel better, sleep better, everything.''
Garcia, along with first baseman Jose Abreu, had been mentioned in some trade rumors in the offseason as the White Sox continue to seek deals for younger players. So far nothing has come about, and as he did with the arbitration case, Garcia said he didn't let that affect his approach.
''I don't worry about that. I just worry about day by day,'' Garcia said.
''I just prepare myself for the season because rumors are always going to be there. You never know what's going to happen,'' he said.
Perhaps even stealing more bases, as Abreu has hinted he might do this season? Abreu had three steals last year while Garcia had five.
''Maybe. He can do it, I can do it too. Let's see what we can do,'' Garcia said.
**********************
Yo is into yoga: Cespeds tries to improve flexibility
February 19, 2018
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) Yo is into yoga.
Trying to stay off the disabled list after he was hobbled by leg injuries last season, New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes took to yoga this winter.
''This year I did three things differently,'' Cespedes said through a translator Monday following the team's first full workout. ''I ran. Then I did weightlifting, but not so much heavy weights. And then I did yoga trying to get ready for this.''
A two-time All-Star, Cespedes signed a $110 million, four-year contract before the 2017 season and bulked up in the weight room. He wound up on the disabled list with a left hamstring strain from April 28 until June 10 and then with a right hamstring strain from Aug. 26 through the end of the season. Cespedes hit .292 with 17 homers and 42 RBIs in 81 games.
''With yoga, my muscles are more flexible right now,'' he said. ''I used to work out with heavy weightlifting. I had strength, but I wasn't flexible. Now I'm flexible because of the yoga. ... The yoga has been working for me. When I showed up in the last couple of seasons down here, the lower back of my body was very tight. I haven't felt that yet.''
The 32-year-old Cespedes is noticeably trimmer.
''He's had a great offseason,'' new Mets manager Mickey Callaway said. ''He's done a lot more running than he's done in the past. Everybody identified that he needed that.''
Cespedes played a career-high 159 games in 2015 with Detroit and the Mets, helping New York reach the World Series for the first time since 2000.
''I want to be an MVP. That hasn't changed. Last season I was unlucky because I was hurt,'' he said. ''Injuries are unpreventable, but what I learned is to prepare more to avoid those kinds of things this season.''
NOTES: Callaway approached Wilmer Flores about possibly playing the outfield some starting this week, and the Venezuelan infielder welcomed the opportunity. ''I learned how to play first base to be in the lineup,'' Flores said. ''If I have to do it in the outfield to get just one more game, I'll do it.'' . LHP P.J. Conlon, among the young pitchers seeking a bullpen spot, impressed when he threw changeups to lefty-hitting Jay Bruce in batting practice. ''It's kind of been my pitch for the last two seasons,'' Conlon said. ''When I started to come out of the `pen last year, I made it a goal of mine to start throwing it against lefties more.''