Q&A with Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts

BR: I’ve learned even more since then for sure, I think last year, because I wasn’t with the team, it was very different for me. I think the last couple months, I think I've learned a lot about hopefully being a good teammate, even when things may not be going the way you want around you, to try to help those around you and encourage them and enjoy the good times with other people, too. This has been bittersweet in some ways because I would love after 12 years to be going through the great times again on the field. But at the same time, I’m having as much fun as I would if I was playing because I see the guys having that much fun. And this is all a part of my family. To see that, it has been great.

EAE: I’ve noticed on a few occasions you’re next to Buck in the dugout during the game. You mentioned a few weeks ago that you wanted to use your experience to help your teammates – you talked to Adam Jones and Robert Andino about base-stealing. How important is that for you and does that help your recovery?

BR: I feel like if you don’t use your experiences in life to affect others in a positive way, what did you go through them for? The organization has put a lot of trust in me in some ways because, as you can see, there’s no other DL guys here. So I feel fortunate to be with the team and do the things that I’m doing, even though it’s necessary from what my doctor has prescribed. I don’t want to be just taking and taking and taking off time from these guys and the coaching staff and the trainers and everyone who’s taken the time in with me. I want to be able to bring something beneficial and not just take, so that’s what I’ve tried to do, share some wisdom and if nothing else, just be an encourager. I know what it’s like to go through this game every day. I feel like that’s something I hopefully can bring to this locker room every day.

EAE: After you and your doctor feel comfortable with how you've progressed with the diving drills, are there any more hurdles before playing in a game?

BR: I would say, based on what my doctor and I have talked about, it’s probably the last real big hurdle. I think we’d like for me to get more comfortable with that. I think he really wanted me to go through one more road trip like this where we got in late at night, quick turnaround, things like that. Quick schedule changes are also difficult through this process, recovery time, stuff like that. So that’s another step he wanted me to get more comfortable with and get through some of that and have some real good days, so we’ll see how we are with the physical and the travel and hopefully in the next week, or soon, and start to circle some dates maybe.