Pitchers and catchers reported to camp for the San Francisco Giants Saturday, and skipper Bruce Bochy was on hand to answer a few burning questions heading into Spring Training. Bochy touched on the health of some of his most notable players, but also the status of some positional battles heading into opening day as well:
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WHAT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING?
"All of it....Freddy [Sanchez], we'll try to get him at-bats early. But we're probably looking at him starting around the second week of spring, playing second base. He's come along with the throwing, but he probably won't be in a game the first few games. I don't want you all to be alarmed if you don't see him out there.
"You've got [Aubrey] Huff and [Brandon] Belt and [Brett] Pill - those three will be playing first base and left field. We'll mix that up. We'll see how the outfield shapes up. We've got some questions to answer here, but we've got some good candidates. It's going to be competitive, more so probably than some earlier years. I look forward to seeing how it shapes up."
IS HUFF FIRST IN LINE BECAUSE OF HIS CONTRACT?
"Not the contract. I think you have to look at what Huff has accomplished, his track record and what he did in 2010 for us. You've got a very highly thought of player like Brandon Belt, and of course Pill has fought his way into the mix, too. He's a right-handed bat that we're going to look at. I'll be trying to mix it up at first base and left field, and of course Cabrera is going to get a lot of playing time in left field, too."
WHERE IS BRIAN WILSON AT IN TERMS OF THROWING?
"I saw him a couple of days ago, watching him throw his ‘pen. He threw 20 pitches, sat down, threw 20 more. Felt fine. Threw some breaking balls. He's coming along just fine. You probably won't see him the first few games of action, but you'll see him out there the second week.
"He was throwing fairly well. Probably 80 percent. He wasn't favoring anything or changing his delivery. He didn't feel any aches or pains, and like I said he threw some breaking balls and cutters - mixed it up."
ON THIS SPRING BEING MORE COMPETITIVE:
"We've got to make a decision behind the plate, whether we go with two or three catchers. Normally you go with two, but there's Whiteside and Stew, and of course Sanchez. There will be the last spot on the pitching staff, and whether we go with an extra outfielder or infielder. All these things will be competitive."
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