Bell aiming to bounce back strong
For veteran players just trying to get ready for the season, results in spring-training games can sometimes matter less than being able to finish the daily crossword puzzle.
But for Diamondbacks reliever Heath Bell, his first appearance with his new team in Saturday afternoon’s Cactus League opener was anything but trivial.
“Oh, yeah,” he said. “After a year you suck? Yeah, definitely a lot of nerves.”
Coming off a difficult season with the Miami Marlins — a year he’s still reluctant to discuss with reporters — Bell saw Saturday as a chance to make a good first impression.
That’s what he ended up doing thanks to a double-play ball and a strikeout. Bell gave up singles to the first two batters he faced but wiggled out of the jam to work a scoreless third inning.
“Coming into an organization and feeling like I had such a bad year, I wanted to show that I’m completely fine,” Bell said. “Every great athlete has bad years, and they bounce right back. I feel like I’m going to bounce back. I need to keep working hard and not let up.”
Since his first appearance as a member of the Diamondbacks during a charity golf outing, Bell has refused to talk in depth about his struggles last season, when he posted a 5.09 ERAwith the Marlins and lost his closer’s job in the process. He again tiptoed around the topic Saturday.
“I’m just trying to pitch the way I know how to pitch,” he said. “I think last year I got away from little things. Just — you know, yeah, I’m not going to talk about last year, but I got away from a little bit of things and this year I’m really focusing on certain things and taking the bull by the horn a little bit more than relying on people.
“If I go out there and rely on myself and I go out there and fall, and I fail, then I’ve got nobody to blame but myself. If I rely on somebody else, then I’ve got somebody to blame.”
Short hops
Outfielder A.J. Pollock was scratched from the lineup due to abdominal tightness and is day to day. Adam Eaton replaced him as the starting left fielder.
Bloomquist’s role
Even with additions throughout the Diamondbacks roster, manager Kirk Gibson envisions Willie Bloomquist having a significant role on this year’s team.
Assuming, that is, that he’s healthy. Bloomquist’s back kept him from action for most of last season’s final two months, and he already has had one day in camp when “he was a little slow,” Gibson said, prompting the Diamondbacks to give him a lighter workday.
But Bloomquist was in the lineup at shortstop Saturday, leading off the bottom of the first with a double to right field.
“If he’s healthy, he’s certainly going to be a part of our team and play quite a bit,” Gibson said.
Bloomquist was working in the outfield before Saturday’s game. According to Gibson, United States manager Joe Torre said Bloomquist could see time in the outfield during the World Baseball Classic. Gibson said Bloomquist could play there occasionally during the regular season, too.