BY SCOTT LAUBERCLEARWATER, Fla. -- Over the past several days in The News Journal, we have presented stories about Kyle Kendrick and J.A. Happ (you can read them here and here). So, yesterday, I thought I would continue my tour of the Phillies' wannabee fifth-starters by profiling Chan Ho Park, and during a 20-minute, one-on-one interview, I found the 35-year-old Korean right-hander to be fascinating.
First, he's in tremendous shape, and he has been spending extra time in the weight room before and after the Phillies' on-field workouts to try to stay that way. Also, he really wants to be a starter, but we already knew that when he tearfully declined to pitch for his beloved Korea in the World Baseball Classic in order to maximize his spring-training starts for the Phillies. (By the way, top prospect Carlos Carrasco also has decided not to play for his native Venezuela; more on that later.)
But I built my story around the events of August 2006 when Park sustained a rare blood disorder that afflicts only about 2 percent of the population. He overcame that, revived his career in the Dodgers' bullpen last season, and although his greatest value to the Phillies may be as a reliever, he'll have a chance to win a starting job this spring.
***
Within the notebook, we examined some adjustments Geoff Jenkins has made to his batting stance. We also heard from Chase Utley and looked briefly at first-round pick Anthony Hewitt.
***
In the tradition of "Hardball" host (and big Phillies fan) Chris Matthews, here's today's BIG number: The Phillies sold 50,000 tickets yesterday on the first day of individual game sales. That's up from last year, when the first-day sales totaled about 35,000.
More big numbers: Now that Kendrick ($475,000), Ronny Paulino ($440,000) and Happ ($405,000) have signed contracts, the Phillies' payroll has topped $132 million. It'll probably reach $133 million after Carlos Ruiz and Mike Zagurski reached contract agreements.
***
On tap today, my favorite early spring-training event: Live batting practice. It figures to be a long morning for the hitters, who usually aren't as tuned up as the pitchers in mid-February. Plus, it's chilly here (50 degrees on the Bright House Field scoreboard). Not exactly "hittin' season," as Charlie Manuel would say.
More in a bit.
2 comments:
Scott --
May I make a suggestion? When you write about Jenkins new stance or Hewitt's power, it gets me curious to see it. Would it be possible for you to make a video of those and other curiosities?
Doc: Thanks for the note. I'll do my best, but primarily, my job is still to report/write articles for The News Journal and delawareonline.com. So, for most of the day here, I'm observing the workouts, interviewing players/coaches, making notes, and of course, writing. I'm still a novice with the video camera, but as I become more familiar it, I'll try to incorporate some other features for Philled In.
Thanks again, and please keep reading (and watching)!
Post a Comment