GOODYEAR, Ariz. (AP) -At times last year Travis Hafner’s right shoulder hurt when he lifted a fork. On Sunday, he raised a bat and swung it with all his might.
When he connected, the baseball soared into the Arizona sky.
“I was happy with the flight of the ball,” he said. “It was a good first day.”
Working his way back after a disastrous 2008 ended with offseason shoulder surgery, Hafner took part in batting practice with his teammates for the first time this spring Sunday. With general manager Mark Shapiro and assistant GM Chris Antonetti watching from behind the backstop, Hafner completed three rounds of BP as important as any in his career.
“It feels good to get back on the field and hang out with your teammates,” Hafner said. “It was fun. Everything feels good. There will be a little soreness in there for a little while, but everything feels close to normal.”
The Indians are hoping Hafner returns to normal. They need the Pronk – his nickname – with pop.
designated sitter last season. Hafner’s weak shoulder limited him to 57 games, and he batted just .197 with five homers and 24 RBIs. Months of rehab failed strengthen his shoulder and the 31-year-old remembers dinner being a painful chore.
“You’d go out to have a meal and your shoulder would burn just from eating,” he said. “If you’d do it a few times, it would wear your shoulder out. Some days it would feel better than others.”
Eventually, Hafner needed famed orthopedist Dr. James Andrews to clean out his shoulder joint. Then came more rehab, the loneliest time for any ballplayer. Hafner lives in Cleveland year-round, and as any Northeast Ohio resident can attest, the winters can be long and dreary.
But Hafner made the most of his offseason. Along with lifting weights and conditioning, he worked on improving his diet. He stayed away from fatty foods, cut down on the occasional cold beers and hired a personal chef. Hafner had his meals delivered to his home, and ended up dropping 10 pounds – he’s listed at 240 – before coming to camp looking trim.
“More ripped,” he said with a laugh.
So can the Indians count on him for 30 steals?
“I don’t want to set a limit or a bar,” he cracked. “But I’d say 30, minimum.”
hings got for him last season, and there were some difficult moments, Hafner remained upbeat that better days were ahead.
“You’re going to face adversity throughout your life,” Hafner said. “You’ve got to stay the same person and remain positive. Just because you’re hurt doesn’t mean you’re not the same guy. You’ve still got to keep a presence in the clubhouse and be a guy that’s fun to be around. You can’t just sit around and mope all the time because nobody wants to hear it.”
Indians manager Eric Wedge hopes Hafner can maintain that carefree attitude. While it would great for Hafner to get back to his 30-homer, 100-RBI form, it’s not imperative for Cleveland to contend this season.
“The last thing we want, and the last thing he should even think about, is feeling the pressure of the world. That’s just silly,” Wedge said. “We don’t need him to be great. We just need him to have a nice, solid year for us. If everybody does their part, we don’t need to rely on any one person.
“We’re adding him to the mix. He’s not filling a void. He needs to understand that, too.”
Hafner also knows there have been whispers about him using steroids.
Because of his size, his injury, his sudden drop in production and the fact that he played for the Texas Rangers in 2002 – with Alex Rodriguez – some suspect him of using performance enhancers before baseball began testing.
did steroids, and that he was never tempted to experiment with them.
“I know what they do to your body down the road, all the health concerns,” he said. “I didn’t want to deal with that, and my dad probably would have beaten the crap out of me if he had ever found out about it. There’s also the moral issues, right and wrong and respecting the game. I was always a pretty big guy, so I didn’t want to tie myself up as well.”
The Indians are being extra cautious with Hafner. He’s on his own program and probably won’t begin playing in Cactus League games for several more weeks. It’s a slow and steady approach, but just getting back into the outdoor batting cage was a nice first step for Hafner, who can’t imagine going through another season like 2008.
“You miss the competition,” he said. “That’s the big thing. I felt like I rehabbed all summer. You don’t feel like a baseball player. It’s definitely exciting to get back at things here.”
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