Rangers spring break: Rain gives players extra time to unwind
Consistent rain showers Monday washed away much of the Rangers’ planned spring training practice, including their second and final intrasquad game.
It didn’t prevent hitters from taking cuts in the batting cages, or a group of pitchers, mostly relievers, from getting in some throwing in the rain.
For the majority of the clubhouse, however, the short day provided a chance to run errands, relax or get in extra work.
Catcher Carlos Corporan planned to take advantage of the free time by spending it with his 2-year old daughter. She’s starting to talk and Corporan his helping her speak both English and Spanish. The only way Corporan gets a nap is if Tiffany feels like taking a nap.
“In my off time I try to give it to her as much as I can because during the season it will be hard,” he said.
Outfielder Jake Smolinski will catch up on laundry (it was a popular theme) but he’s also getting a massage. He’s used Massage Envy before, but says its therapist don’t get as deep as the Rangers’ massage therapist, Raul Cardenas.
Picture day
Rangers players had their annual picture day about 7:15 a.m. Monday. Not only does the club shoot still shots and film video board material for Globe Life Park, but newspapers, including the Star-Telegram, also set up stations to take mug shots of the entire team. The whole process of moving from station to station takes a player close to an hour.
Key stat
May 22, 2005 The date of the last trade the Rangers made with the St. Louis Cardinals, which is the longest period of time among the 29 other clubs Texas has traded with. The Rangers traded right-handed pitcher Vladimir Nunez for a player to be named later.
Quotable
“I’d say pitchers [have an advantage]. We had two days of live batting practice before yesterday. We haven’t seen a whole lot of pitches yet. It’s hard to say how much work they’ve done but I feel like their stuff should be a little bit ahead of the hitters at this point.” — Outfielder Nate Schierholtz on who has a leg up early in spring training
Stefan Stevenson
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Twitter: @StevensonFWST
This story was originally published March 2, 2015 at 6:55 PM with the headline "Rangers spring break: Rain gives players extra time to unwind."