DUNEDIN, Fla. (AP) -Blue Jays center fielder Vernon Wells made an offseason investment he hopes will pay off when the pennant race heats up.
He got in shape.
After missing 54 games in 2008 because of hamstring problems and other injuries, Wells hired Noah Scott, a certified strength and conditioning coach who has worked with Manny Ramirez.
Scott put Wells through workouts at a gym near Wells’ home in Arlington, Texas, doing “exercises you don’t think about doing, stretches you’ve never heard of,” Wells said. “My body is in a better place than it ever has been. It’ll allow everything else to fall into place.”
Wells started flexing his muscles right away at the Bobby Mattick Training Center, hitting a few home runs in batting practice without even trying, he said.
So it’s probably weight that I could afford to lose.”
Scott will be with Wells during spring training, live in Toronto, conduct morning workouts with Wells before Blue Jays home games and accompany him on some long road trips. Wells will pay Scott out of his $1.5 million salary this season – Wells also gets an $8.5 million bonus payment from the $126 million, seven-year extension he signed in December 2006.
“It’s a pretty penny,” Wells said with a smile while declining to reveal what it will cost him. “But it’s a matter of investing in your body. We invest in so many different things. One of the most important things you can invest in is your body, especially in the position that I’m in. It was a pretty easy decision on my part.
I’ve never done so much work in an offseason as I did this offseason. I haven’t been big on working out during the season, but that’s going to change this year. Hopefully, when we get into August, I’ll still be as strong as I was on opening day.
e Maroth’s left knee locked up during a workout. The result of an examination was not complete. Maroth is trying to come back from shoulder surgery in July 2008.
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