February 24, 1998|By Roch Kubatko | Roch Kubatko,SUN STAFF
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Saying he was ahead of schedule, Orioles second baseman Roberto Alomar yesterday took his first swings against live pitching since the end of last season, batting left-handed and driving the ball into the gaps and over the fence.
Alomar had been restricted to hitting off a tee and off soft tosses from hitting coach Rick Down since having surgery over the winter to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder. He didn't bat right-handed last season after May 31, and hit exclusively from the left side yesterday against spring training coach Marv Foley.
"I feel much better right now. It felt good to hit the ball," Alomar said.
"He looked very good," said Down, who watched Alomar from behind the cage with manager Ray Miller. "He swung free and easy, he had good pop, he didn't favor it and he had good extension."
Down had expressed concern over the possibility of Alomar aggravating the injury by swinging hard and missing, but left the decision to the All-Star. "It's up to him. That's how good he's feeling," Down said.
Down also said Alomar was "very close" to hitting right-handed against live pitching. "But it would be foolish to rush it," he said.
Anderson pounds fences
Center fielder Brady Anderson didn't show any signs of being hurt yesterday as he drove one ball after another into the empty bleachers in right field during a batting practice session that had fans cheering.
Anderson turned on the ball fine despite being bothered by soreness in his lower abdomen and right knee, injuries that could limit his work leading up to Opening Day.
"Brady put on a show," Miller said.
At one point, as Anderson left the cage to loud applause, he raised his arms, then looked toward some fans with a smile. Referring to the spring training coach who was on the mound, Anderson said, "He's throwing it 60 miles an hour. It's hard not to hit a homer."
Miller is aware of Anderson's stubbornness toward injuries, knowing how the All-Star played with diagnosed appendicitis and a cracked rib the past two seasons, but said getting him to rest in the spring shouldn't be difficult.
"But when the season starts up, there's concern because he's going to want to play," Miller said.
"You always worry about Brady because he plays so hard. Brady's a lot like Eric [Davis]. There's no dimmer switch. About 99.9 percent of the time, he's wide-open."
Million-dollar lesson
Miller offered some advice to outfielder Darnell McDonald, one of the club's first-round draft picks last season who probably will begin the season at Single-A Delmarva.
"I told him this is a great experience and I'd try to get him in some games," Miller said. "I also told him to watch B. J. [Surhoff] and Brady, how hard they work out there, the number of ground balls they take, the number of swings.
"There's a lot of money to be made in this game if you go about your job the right way. He seemed to like hearing that."
Cal Ripken also set an example for the younger players yesterday by running laps around the back fields. "I just smiled when I saw that," Miller said.
"It just amazes me -- I guess it's just a societal thing -- that you have guys 35 to 40 years old who come out and can run gap to gap, and they're the ones making all the money. They can run 20 laps gap to gap. And you have 22-year-olds, 25-year-olds, 26-year-olds who can't pull the load. And they're the ones who don't have anything.
"If you think about it, the whole world's turned upside down because you would think the guy you would have to push is the guy with all the money who's getting older. But it's turned around the other way. The guy who's younger and doesn't have anything, the only thing he's hungry for is food. It doesn't make sense. And I'm not picking on the heavy guys, either."
Miller usually leaves the ballpark around 5: 30 p.m., in no hurry to get back to the hotel with his wife still not here. What he usually finds on his way to the parking lot are veterans like Surhoff, Ripken and Jeff Reboulet working out.
"At noon, I've got four 20-year-olds who are stiff and sore," Miller said. "The world's upside down."
Miller frequently is asked what roles his relievers will fill this season. Other than Armando Benitez coming in late and left-hander Jesse Orsoco matching up against tough left-handed hitters, there isn't a firm answer.
"Jimmy Leyland, every time somebody mentioned roles, would say, 'That's something you get with dinner and you put butter on them,' " Miller said, referring to the Florida Marlins manager who Miller teamed with in Pittsburgh. "I don't want to establish anybody. Obviously, I'm going to pitch Armando late. The first game I've probably got [Arthur] Rhodes late, which has nothing to do with whether he closes or not. I just want to have him toward the end of the game. Roles establish themselves."
Around the horn
One of the club's minor-league infielders, Carlos Casimiro, told Miller yesterday morning that he's bothered by a sore hand. Casimiro, who batted .243 and stole 20 bases at Single-A Delmarva, hurt the hand while lifting weights in the Dominican Republic and aggravated it on a checked swing. Orosco returned to the club after flying to California to be with his mother. She's back home after heart surgery. Cal Ripken Sr. and wife Vi were at the ballpark yesterday.
Pub Date: 2/24/98
