Daisuke Matsuzaka tinkers with routine schedule in Spring Training
The Boston Red Sox are hard at work in Bradenton, Florida to hone and prepare their players for the upcoming challenge in the 2011 Major League Baseball season. One of the top hurlers in the club is going through a schedule tweak at the moment, and it happens
to be none other than Daisuke Matsuzaka. The veteran hurler has been part of the squad for the past five years and the need to fix his training calendar has never been greater.
Daisuke featured in a six-man rotation in Japan, and is renowned to be unacquainted with the American time zone even after five years of service with the Red Sox. The player is looking to alter his previous in-between training schedules during games. The
player usually starts his long toss and side session workouts, two days after a game. The club is now putting Dice - K on a long toss session on the same timeline.
However, the only change is going to come in the side workout session which will be pushed to the third day, after the long toss program. The player started for the Red Sox on Thursday and pushed on to side session in Fort Myers on Sunday.
"[Pitching coach] Curt [Young] is trying to get him where he doesn't do it on the same day," said manager Terry Francona. "We asked him, 'Hey, just try it.' That's what we're attempting to do."
Daisuke has been involved in two outings in Grapefruit League so far, and has largely been ineffective. Fans will be curious to ask whether this change will make an impact or not. Terry Francona commented on the situation.
"I don't know about carryover," Francona said. "I think what Curt felt like was two times in one day, you're kind of tearing down your arm. Long tossing, then you're coming right back with a side, it's a lot in one day. So in trying to maybe understand what
Dice-K feels he needs, we're trying to maybe do it a little more economically."
With the Major League Baseball season right around the corner, Francona wants all the Red Sox players on top of their game.
Tags: