Aaron Rowand Making Good Use Of Spring Training
By Michael Williams (4/2/2007)
After having a surgery on his left ankle, Aaron Rowand is insisting that his ankle is perfectly alright and has healed. But the ankle is least of Rowand’s problems at the moment.
This spring, Rowand has already had a couple of accidents. Rowand accidentally stubbed his toe which left him limping for two days. The second incident involved Rowand skinning his finger when slicing an onion and as result he could not take batting practice for 2 days.
Rowand feels stupid about the incidents now. He feels that things like this only happen to him because of his clumsiness. Now his teammates are making fun of him. In fact Chris Cote suggested keeping Rowand at a safe distance so that he does not injure himself or others.
This season Rowand wants to play 155 to 162 games for the Phillies. He should be able to do so if he does not injure himself. Even after having his ankle surgically repaired and insisting that his ankle is fine, Rowand still wraps his ankle after practice and spends half hour every day in the hot tub and on the treadmill. He also wears cleats rather than turf shoes while working out.
Rowand justified wearing cleats. He said that turf shoes had spikes which sink into the dirt and grass, putting extra pressure on the ankle. He is wearing cleats to get readjusted. Though Rowand does admit that the first day he wore cleats, his ankle ended up being tender and stiff.
Many people think that Rowand injuries are because of carelessness, but Rowand denies this. He says that he plays hard and is not reckless at all. Now at Spring Training he is one of the Phillies’ player who is practicing the hardest. He starts his morning at 7:15 a.m. and is usually the last one to leave the clubhouse.
Rowand would like to forget the last season when he was plagued with injuries during his time on field and resulted in his averages falling. He averaged just .262, hitting 12 home runs and 47 RBIs.
Now, Rowand is concentrating on getting back in shape and is looking forward to the Opening Day. |