FanPost

Link Dump 02/19: Politics only!

Ha! Just kidding. After this weekend's snoozefest of political talk, how about some spring training fluff from the reg'lars...

Swisher:

Swisher faces some uncertainty this season. He's likely to juggle between first base and left field, and Geren gave no indication where he might bat him in the order.

Swisher unselfishly said he'd play whatever position he's needed at. And he's hopeful he won't bounce around the batting order like last year. On that last topic, Swisher took a little jab at former manager Ken Macha without mentioning him by name.

"A lot of that had to do with the guy that's not here anymore," Swisher said. "But I'm really excited about Geren. And hey, he'll put me where he thinks I need to be and we'll just roll from there."

Also included is a facial hair update on Street and Haren.  I've said before that I think Haren's upside is Roy Halladay, but if he's ever going to get there he will need a beard...

Swisher's offseason consisted of horticulture and auto repair:

Swisher stuck with the weight lifting, but he also added what he described as "functional training.'' He went to workout sessions in a barn in New Albany, Ohio, in "the middle of nowhere,'' Swisher said.

It wasn't light gardening. One of the exercises included taking a sledge hammer to monster-truck tires, and, he said, "It was all, like, in 20-degree weather.''

The results are obvious. Swisher, who lost 15 pounds to 195 because of a devastating bout of mononucleosis last summer, has added 20 or so pounds of muscle. He's up to 220 pounds, and he appears stronger than ever.

Mark Mulder is going to be converted from a pitcher to a designated fielder.  Little-known fact: DFs specialize only in fielding, not in throwing:

Okay, joking aside, Mulder opened up a little about his arm troubles, although the quotes in the paper are contradictory:

"I guess I could look back at the end of '04 as when things started to change," recalled Mulder, who cost the Cardinals three players -- starting pitcher Dan Haren, reliever Kiko Calero and prized catching prospect Daric Barton.

"I can look at that June as when things started to change. I didn't think anything was wrong at the time. I thought things were different."

A stress fracture near his right hip abbreviated Mulder's 2003 season. He won 17 games in 2004 but endured a difficult second half, leading to rumors that he was pitching hurt. Mulder, however, says that he felt "completely normal" in 2004 and that any connection now is mere second-guessing."

Things started changing in '04, but he felt completely normal?  Any connection is now second-guessing?  Don't get it.

Bullpen report:

Jay Marshall, one of Oakland's two Rule 5 draftees, is a 6-foot-5 reliever who has a shot at making the roster if the team decides to keep a situational left-hander. His near-submarine style, side-arming from below belt-level, surprised catcher Jason Kendall.
I miss Chadford.  We could use another funky delivery reliever in the 'pen, and Marshall is a lefty to boot!  But the surprises don't stop there...
the Eephus is a true baseball oddity. Triple-A Sacramento closer Kaz Tadano has thrown the pitch -- which he calls his "slow ball" -- in major-league games when he was with Cleveland. He got Alex Rodriguez to ground to third on the looping pitch late in 2004, a highlight that still can be found on mlb.com.
Not mentioned is that El Duque fooled A-Rod on an eephus pitch in 2002.  Duque tried it again, but A-Rod waited on it and belted it for a home run.

Video can be found at Tadano's MLB.com player page.