Another day, another thumb injury, this one to infielder Rex Hudler. He returned to Baltimore for an examination and surgery similar to what outfielder Mike Young had last week. Hudler was injured Sunday. Last year, utility man Floyd Rayford chipped a thumb bone. Two years ago, outfielder Lee Lacy had the same injury as Young and Hudler.
— BOSTON RED SOX
DATELINE: WINTER HAVEN, FLA.
Wade Boggs, the AL batting champ, is batting third. But manager John McNamara remains unconvinced that Boggs, with his .453 on-base average, won`t help more batting leadoff. ”We feel we were very successful with the lineup we had last year,” McNamara said. ”We really started clicking offensively when we moved Boggs into the leadoff spot last year.” A lot depends on injured players Bill Buckner and Dave Henderson, either of whom could bat third. ”I`d like to hit third, but somebody has to lead off,” Boggs said.
”I just think I`m more suited to driving in runs. Everybody says I don`t drive in runs, and you can`t drive in 100 runs leading off.”
— CALIFORNIA ANGELS
DATELINE: MESA, ARIZ.
Last July, John Candelaria returned to the mound less than three months after elbow surgery. The Angels, in a tight race for the AL West title, needed his left arm. He went 10-2 with a 2.55 ERA in 16 starts. Candelaria said manager Gene Mauch ”felt that even at 60 percent I`d be better than someone else at 100 percent. I couldn`t blame him for that. I understand the bottom line is winning. I didn`t think I`d hurt myself seriously, just that the joint might get inflamed, and it did.” He rested this winter and didn`t pick up a baseball until February. Now, his arm is healthy, Candelaria said. ”I know it`s early, but it feels like I could throw 130-135 pitches a game, no problem.”
— CLEVELAND INDIANS
DATELINE: TUCSON
Manager Pat Corrales has hinted this spring that designated hitter Andre Thornton must produce or he`ll sit on the bench. Thornton, 37, has batted little better than .200 all spring with no extra-base hits, though he had a hit and an RBI Wednesday in a 14-4 victory over the Mariners. ”Andre has to hit,” Corrales said. ”We need his bat and leadership in the lineup, but we need runs, too. And in April.” Said Thornton: ”I expect to contribute.”
Corrales` lineup is far from set: Tony Bernazard and Brett Butler would bat first and second, Julio Franco third and Joe Carter fourth. The fifth spot, Thornton`s, is unsettled. Perhaps Cory Snyder would bat sixth, Pat Tabler or Mel Hall seventh, Brook Jacoby eighth and catchers Rick Dempsey or Chris Bando ninth.
— DETROIT TIGERS
DATELINE: LAKELAND, FLA.
Bad day for Jack Morris. The White Sox socked him for five runs on seven hits in five innings, four runs in the fourth. During that inning, Morris got in a shouting match with plate umpire John Shulock. Morris went 21-8 last year but gave up 40 home runs; this spring, he has given up six home runs in four outings. . . . John Grubb, 38, continues to hit well as the Tigers designated hitter. He has a .280 average in the majors and the respect of every manager he`s played for. ”I think a lot of it has to do with attitude, your mental outlook,” Grubb said. ”Now, I`m not going to say I`ve never complained. But I learned from it that it doesn`t help any.”
— KANSAS CITY ROYALS
DATELINE: FT. MYERS, FLA.
One has to wonder about the shape of the Royals` bullpen. Dan Quisenberry, the undisputed closer until last season, gave up the winning run in a 2-1 loss Wednesday to the Rangers. With two out in the ninth, Quisenberry hit Cecil Espy with a pitch. Espy stole second and scored on Geno Petralli`s pinch-hit single. Quisenberry is 0-2 with an ERA of 18.00–and that`s down from 21.00 before the game. Steve Farr was expected to become the closer, but he has a sore arm and may not pitch for another week.
— MILWAUKEE BREWERS
DATELINE: CHANDLER, ARIZ.
Glenn Braggs, Greg Brock and Rob Deer hit home runs Wednesday in a 10-4 victory over the Cubs. Braggs and Deer also homered Tuesday. ”That`s the way it goes for those guys,” said manager Tom Trebelhorn. ”They get in a groove, and they can hit them out and look like world beaters.” . . . Bill Schroeder, 4-for-4 with two doubles Wednesday, has a .500 average. . . . Cubs` pitching coach Herm Starrette filled the same role last spring with the Brewers. He was burned when a heater exploded in the locker room at Compadre Stadium. ”I`ve handled the accident pretty well except for being able to go into that room again,” Starrette said. ”I`ll never walk in there again.”
— MINNESOTA TWINS
DATELINE: ORLANDO
Billy Beane explains his image problem this way: ”Everyone thinks all guys from southern California are easygoing guys with surf boards and without a care in the world. But my father is a retired Navy commander and he kept me on my toes. I`m a high-strung guy who doesn`t relax very easily.” Beane has little time to relax this spring; he and four others are battling for a job in right field. ”If I play well enough, I`ll be in the big leagues. If not, I`ll take it as it comes.”
— NEW YORK YANKEES
DATELINE: FT. LAUDERDALE, FLA.
Rick Rhoden has a strained muscle in his left side and probably will miss his next start. Dr. Dan Kanell did the examination. ”He told me I should be fine in a week or so,” Rhoden said. He came to the Yankees last November from Pittsburgh, where he won 15 games in 1986. . . . Tommy John and Joe Niekro, with a combined 1,308 major-league starts between them, held the University of Florida to two runs in six innings Wednesday. Ron Kittle had three hits, and the Yanks won 14-2.
— OAKLAND ATHLETICS
DATELINE: PHOENIX
Rookie first baseman Rob Nelson hit his third homer of the spring Wednesday in a 10-8 loss to the Padres. He had two other hits and drove in two runs. Even so, he said he`ll leave the slugging to Jose Canseco. ”I just try to hit line drives,” Nelson said. ”That`s how you have to hit to survive in Oakland.” Nelson hit 20 homers with a .276 average and 108 RBIs in Triple A ball last season. Manager Tony LaRussa said: ”We just want him to make hard contact.”
— SEATTLE MARINERS
DATELINE: TEMPE, ARIZ.
The Yankees and White Sox didn`t want Scott Bradley last season, but he has found a home in Seattle. He hit .302 in 68 games last season after the Sox traded him to the Mariners on June 26. ”I feel pretty secure now,” he said. ”I think I give the Mariners a lot of flexibility.” Bradley, a left-handed hitter, catches and plays the outfield and third base. He struck out only seven times in 199 at-bats, a rare skill on a team that struck out 1,148 times in 1986. He`ll probably back up Dave Valle at catcher this season.
— TEXAS RANGERS
DATELINE: PORT CHARLOTTE, FLA.
After last season, Scott Fletcher was ranked fifth among AL shortstops by the Elias Sports Bureau, based on the last two seasons. Those ahead of him were Cal Ripken of Baltimore, Tony Fernandez of Toronto, Julio Franco of Cleveland and Alan Trammell of Detroit. Manager Bobby Valentine calls Fletcher –a player both the Cubs and Sox traded–the Rangers` most valuable player.
”When I wasn`t playing, I was spending hours in the batting cage,”
Fletcher said.
— TORONTO BLUE JAYS
DATELINE: DUNEDIN, FLA.
The Blue Jays played a split-squad game after two rainy days in Puerto Rico. . . . Matt Stark, a muscular rookie trying to become the Jay`s back-up catcher, spent the off-season in the ”WYE” program at Camp Pendleton. Asked what the intials stood for, Stark said, ”Waste Your Enemy.” Stark, 6-4 and 225 pounds, hit .295 with 17 homers last season at Double A Knoxville.
