Molina Returns to Camp

(Jupiter, FL) Welcome back cheers greeted Yadier Molina has entered the St. Louis Cardinals clubhouse this morning. The catcher had been excused to return to Puerto Rico as his family was honored in his hometown of Dorado.

“The mayor of the city wanted to dedicate their baseball season there to my dad,” shared Molina.

Benjamin Molina was a long-time Little League coach in the town, where Yadi and brothers Bengie and Jose began careers that eventually led them to the Major Leagues.

Along with some friends, he turned a vacant lot into a baseball field for the neighborhood and continued to coach and work on the field until he passed away in October of 2008.

“Yeah, we got the field–a team too,” added Molina. “It was a good moment.”

Molina will reunite with Puerto Rico again in the near future, as he joins his teammates to open play in the World Baseball Classic on Friday, March 10th against Venezuela.

PITCHING PRACTICE BEGINS

–Molina was among those to catch and hit during “Pitching Practice” today in camp. Formerly known as batting practice, the Cardinals have re-named the session.

“It really is for the pitchers to take that next step towards being on the mound,” explained Mike Matheny. “I think we get enough at-bats for all our guys during Spring Training games that that will take care of itself. Many of the guys who are trying to get that point, we’re not necessarily wanting them 100% timed up the day they walk in that first game–that’s not the goal. It’s to slowly have this build where you’re locked in for Opening Day.”

Adam Wainwright, Brett Cecil, Seung Hwan Oh, John Gant, Sam Tuivailala, and Jordan Schafer were among those who took the mound. Molina, Matt Carpenter, Dexter Fowler, Jhonny Peralta, Matt Adams, Randal Grichuk, and Stephen Piscotty were among those who volunteered to get some at-bats against the pitchers.

The terminology has also been changed for the base running stations and drills.

“Run production,” stated Matheny. “Just changing kid of the mentality of what we need to do to maximize our ability on the bases.”

Besides conversations with coaches about a daily initiative, players take first base during the pitching sessions to get live looks at the pitchers and the ball coming off the bat.

MUSIC MIX

–Another change this Spring Training is the inclusion of music while players are taking batting practice. This is a regular occurrence when the Cardinals are at Busch Stadium or on the road during the regular season, but a first for camp.

“It’s not that big a deal,” said Matheny. “People were asking me what I thought about it and I had to stop, it’s different. But every stadium we go to all season long, the guys are stretching and hitting and there’s music going. So what’s the difference? It’s not one of those things that’s not going to get in the way of getting our work done.

“I think we’re always trying to push the envelope, ok–what can we do around here, if it makes sense, makes it a better environment for guys to get their work done. As long as they’re getting their work done and they’re getting better, we’ll consider it.”

The inclusion of music has been very well-received by the players, with the first two days being made up of hip-hop and then country music. A collection of Michael Jackson songs kickeed off the stretching today.

photo credit: STLBaseballWeekly.com