Sunday, April 02, 2006
Notes: Giles weathers turbulent month
03/22/2006
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- As stressful as March has been for Marcus Giles, he's got plenty of reason to head into its final days with his usual youthful exuberance.
With his right shoulder rested and his healthy newborn in attendance at Disney's Wide World of Sports complex on Wednesday afternoon, Giles returned to the Braves lineup for the first time in eight days.
Serving as the leadoff hitter in a 10-inning game against the Phillies that ended in a 4-4 tie, Giles struck out, drew a walk and got picked off of first base. But he was back on the field, and more importantly, his wife, Tracy, was there behind home plate watching their 1-month old daughter, Sawyur Rae, sleep soundly.
"It's been quite a roller coaster," Tracy said of the past few weeks. "She's healthy, and we're all healthy, and thank goodness for all of that."
Giles rushed back to Atlanta for the Feb. 23 premature birth of his new daughter and remained there 10 days, until he was assured she'd overcome her respiratory problems. When he arrived back in camp, he made up for lost time and may have pushed himself too hard.
When his ailing shoulder prevented him from taking a full swing in the first inning against the Astros on March 14, he left the game and then spent the next few days resting and rehabbing.
"If we were in the regular season, I would have been playing last week sometime," Giles said. "It was never too bad, except for Tuesday night, when I came out."
Giles admits he was rather concerned before the medical staff assured him there wasn't anything structurally wrong with his shoulder. He also feels fortunate that the injury occurred during Spring Training, when he had the luxury of taking a few days of extra rest.
"I'd still be sore now, and I might feel completely healthy in three or four weeks," Giles said. "But now that I've taken four or five extra days, because we can during Spring Training, I feel fine. I feel no pain. I think that was big taking a few extra days."
With the move into the leadoff spot, this might not have been the best year for Giles to have missed so much time. He has just one hit in 13 Grapefruit League at-bats. But the Braves aren't too concerned because he has always proven he can get ready for the season much quicker than most players.
"Marcus is always ready," said Braves manager Bobby Cox, who indicated he would get Giles extra at-bats in Minor League games if he felt it were necessary.
Francoeur flexes muscles again: Speaking of getting ready for the season quickly, it doesn't appear those limited at-bats Jeff Francoeur got while playing for Team USA have affected him. His fifth-inning homer off Wayne Franklin on Wednesday gave him three homers in the four games he's played since coming back from the World Baseball Classic.
For those keeping score, it's taken him all of four games to tie for the team lead in home runs. Andruw Jones, who hit 10 in Spring Training last year, hit his first of this spring off Franklin in the fourth inning.
"He's on fire," Cox said of Francoeur, who had just nine at-bats while away with Team USA. "He's had a good at-bat every at-bat he's had."
Francoeur, who has six hits in 10 Grapefruit League at-bats, has been focusing on being more selective and forcing pitchers to throw him strikes. The homer he hit off Franklin came on a 2-0 count.
"I'm forcing [pitchers] to throw strikes, and when you do that, it makes baseball a lot easier," said Francoeur, who has been known to be a free-swinger. "I felt like too many times last year I didn't put any pressure on the pitcher."
Rusty Sosa: Having pitched just six innings while with the Dominican team that advanced to the semifinal round of the World Baseball Classic, Jorge Sosa came back to Braves camp looking forward to seeing live hitters again.
Making his first appearance for the Braves since March 2, Sosa allowed the Phillies to score four runs in the sixth inning. But he held them scoreless the next two innings and ended his three-inning stint with five strikeouts.
"I was completely lost in that first inning but felt good after that," Sosa said with Eddie Perez serving as his interpreter.
Sosa made two appearances for the Dominicans, including one in which he threw 40 pitches, and completed four innings. He's confident that he'll be able to throw at least five innings in his first start of the season.
Injury report: Wilson Betemit's strained right rib cage has improved, and he and Kelly Johnson (sore right elbow) could return to game action on Friday. Both are able to swing relatively pain-free.
The Braves aren't going to rush Macay McBride back to the mound any time soon, and it looks like he'll join fellow left-handed reliever John Foster on the disabled list to begin the year. Because the discomfort is around McBride's wrist, the club isn't too concerned about it possibly being a severe injury. He hasn't pitched since March 6.
Right-handed reliever Blaine Boyer will make his first start of the spring in a Minor League game on Thursday. Confident the inflammation in his right shoulder will no longer be a problem, he anxiously awaits his first game action since Oct. 2, when he was unable to retire a single Marlins player.
"I probably will not sleep tonight," Boyer said. "It's almost guaranteed I won't sleep. I can't wait. You don't understand. The last time I threw in a game was [October], and I didn't get an out. So I'll go up against some eighth graders if they want me to."
Source: http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- As stressful as March has been for Marcus Giles, he's got plenty of reason to head into its final days with his usual youthful exuberance.
With his right shoulder rested and his healthy newborn in attendance at Disney's Wide World of Sports complex on Wednesday afternoon, Giles returned to the Braves lineup for the first time in eight days.
Serving as the leadoff hitter in a 10-inning game against the Phillies that ended in a 4-4 tie, Giles struck out, drew a walk and got picked off of first base. But he was back on the field, and more importantly, his wife, Tracy, was there behind home plate watching their 1-month old daughter, Sawyur Rae, sleep soundly.
"It's been quite a roller coaster," Tracy said of the past few weeks. "She's healthy, and we're all healthy, and thank goodness for all of that."
Giles rushed back to Atlanta for the Feb. 23 premature birth of his new daughter and remained there 10 days, until he was assured she'd overcome her respiratory problems. When he arrived back in camp, he made up for lost time and may have pushed himself too hard.
When his ailing shoulder prevented him from taking a full swing in the first inning against the Astros on March 14, he left the game and then spent the next few days resting and rehabbing.
"If we were in the regular season, I would have been playing last week sometime," Giles said. "It was never too bad, except for Tuesday night, when I came out."
Giles admits he was rather concerned before the medical staff assured him there wasn't anything structurally wrong with his shoulder. He also feels fortunate that the injury occurred during Spring Training, when he had the luxury of taking a few days of extra rest.
"I'd still be sore now, and I might feel completely healthy in three or four weeks," Giles said. "But now that I've taken four or five extra days, because we can during Spring Training, I feel fine. I feel no pain. I think that was big taking a few extra days."
With the move into the leadoff spot, this might not have been the best year for Giles to have missed so much time. He has just one hit in 13 Grapefruit League at-bats. But the Braves aren't too concerned because he has always proven he can get ready for the season much quicker than most players.
"Marcus is always ready," said Braves manager Bobby Cox, who indicated he would get Giles extra at-bats in Minor League games if he felt it were necessary.
Francoeur flexes muscles again: Speaking of getting ready for the season quickly, it doesn't appear those limited at-bats Jeff Francoeur got while playing for Team USA have affected him. His fifth-inning homer off Wayne Franklin on Wednesday gave him three homers in the four games he's played since coming back from the World Baseball Classic.
For those keeping score, it's taken him all of four games to tie for the team lead in home runs. Andruw Jones, who hit 10 in Spring Training last year, hit his first of this spring off Franklin in the fourth inning.
"He's on fire," Cox said of Francoeur, who had just nine at-bats while away with Team USA. "He's had a good at-bat every at-bat he's had."
Francoeur, who has six hits in 10 Grapefruit League at-bats, has been focusing on being more selective and forcing pitchers to throw him strikes. The homer he hit off Franklin came on a 2-0 count.
"I'm forcing [pitchers] to throw strikes, and when you do that, it makes baseball a lot easier," said Francoeur, who has been known to be a free-swinger. "I felt like too many times last year I didn't put any pressure on the pitcher."
Rusty Sosa: Having pitched just six innings while with the Dominican team that advanced to the semifinal round of the World Baseball Classic, Jorge Sosa came back to Braves camp looking forward to seeing live hitters again.
Making his first appearance for the Braves since March 2, Sosa allowed the Phillies to score four runs in the sixth inning. But he held them scoreless the next two innings and ended his three-inning stint with five strikeouts.
"I was completely lost in that first inning but felt good after that," Sosa said with Eddie Perez serving as his interpreter.
Sosa made two appearances for the Dominicans, including one in which he threw 40 pitches, and completed four innings. He's confident that he'll be able to throw at least five innings in his first start of the season.
Injury report: Wilson Betemit's strained right rib cage has improved, and he and Kelly Johnson (sore right elbow) could return to game action on Friday. Both are able to swing relatively pain-free.
The Braves aren't going to rush Macay McBride back to the mound any time soon, and it looks like he'll join fellow left-handed reliever John Foster on the disabled list to begin the year. Because the discomfort is around McBride's wrist, the club isn't too concerned about it possibly being a severe injury. He hasn't pitched since March 6.
Right-handed reliever Blaine Boyer will make his first start of the spring in a Minor League game on Thursday. Confident the inflammation in his right shoulder will no longer be a problem, he anxiously awaits his first game action since Oct. 2, when he was unable to retire a single Marlins player.
"I probably will not sleep tonight," Boyer said. "It's almost guaranteed I won't sleep. I can't wait. You don't understand. The last time I threw in a game was [October], and I didn't get an out. So I'll go up against some eighth graders if they want me to."
Source: http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/
