So I have been in Tampa for 2 1/2 weeks and it hasn't been as glorious as Vancouver. Everyday is up at 6:30 and at the field ready to start rehab at 7. We get 3 good meals a day from the chefs still but its just not the same. No fans at these games and the weather is hotter than hell. But hey, if that hot weather is the worst thing, life aint that bad. Rehab is coming along alright, I'm throwing now on the rehab program, I go back to 90 ft soon and then keep moving quicker from there. We have off every Sunday and games every other day, I just go and watch them. It is weird watching the games, because every team wears the same jerseys that all the big league teams wear at spring training. When we play the Phillies, I have to catch myself rooting for them and realizing, wait a sec we are playing them. I still root for the Big League team of course, but I have to root for the Blue Jays everywhere else, after all they do pay the bills. I live with a couple Spanish guys, my spanish is getting better everyday, I really am getting pretty good at it. The Dominican guys look to me for help with their english because they have class twice a week at the Complex, but it just benefits my Spanish. My arm feels pretty good, it hurt early in the week when throwing but with the help of a good old English breakfast consisting of eggs and advil, it gets the job done. I'm hoping I am back to Vancouver by August 13th, that would be perfect because that is when my family and Kelsey are supposed to visit.
This week a got packages from my parents and Kelsey. It was great to see that because it reminds me of home. They are the best. My parents sent some books and other things, and Kelsey sent me a box full of my favorite snacks and candies along with a brand new pair of Oakleys that I can wear at the complex and during the games. Its great stuff for sure.
My most recent adventure was last week in Tampa. Saturday night we (and by we I mean myself, and 3 dominican buddies) went to a place called Round Up, a country bar in Tampa where the dress code is some sort of jean bottom (and even top sometimes) and cowboy boots for most. Well none of us own much other than sneakers or flip flops so we made due. We arrived and well I can't say we stuck out like sore thumbs...no no...we stuck out like a fart in church. Nonetheless, after a few drinks everyone is always friends and we had a good time. We took to the dance floor in an attempt to line dance and square dance...epic failure, it didnt stop us from having a good time (especially the dominican guys), but if I were to describe the scene I would say it closely resembled the bar scene from the movie Cool Runnings where the Jamaican bobsled team heads to the bar in Canada. If you havent seen it, you should, I'm sure it is probably on Youtube. Anyway, we had a great time, one thing about the Dominican culture or really any of the Caribbean cultures is that happiness is never ending, and fun is always to be had, naturally, it is easy to have it rub off on you. It is especially easy for some of the guys to have fun when they have $2.8 million hanging out in the bank. Now I'm not saying everyone does but a few have that kind of chunk of change, even more incredible is some of these kids are 17 or so. The guys I was with are all 21 or older, but money isnt generally a thing...must be nice, but kudos to them, they are all great dudes and you would never know it by the way they live life.
Life is good though, no complaints, I'm living my dream and love every second of it. I'm working hard and am going to keep doing it so I can get back on the field ASAP. Keep looking up.
-Ben
Friday, July 22, 2011
Saturday, July 9, 2011
On the DL...back to Tampa
I know it has been a while since I have updated this but I have been pretty busy, not to say I have had a lot going on, just had bigger fish to fry. Since my last post, the Canadians have struggled mightily and I have left Vancouver to go to Tampa Bay to meet with doctors about my shoulder. Like I discussed in my last post, my shoulder was really sore and they were having trouble finding my post, the fear being that I could have a blocked artery to my shoulder. Before I left to come to Tampa Bay the Canadians hit a 4 game losing streak, our first real road block this season, we had been motoring through the league and ran into the other top team in league, Eugene, and they spanked us. Not much else had been going on in Vancouver, we went downtown a couple times as a team and had a good time and celebrated Canada Day, basically the 4th of July for Canada.
I flew out on Monday at 10 am in Vancouver and landed in Tampa at 1030 pm with a brief layover in Dallas. I went to the baggage claim and waited for my bags only to be disappointed to find out that they had been left in Dallas, wonderful start to my stay in Florida. I got the shuttle to my hotel and went to my room at 1230 getting ready to wake up at 530 to go to the complex. However, I couldn't fall asleep because of the jet lag factor and moving 3 hours ahead, I fell asleep at 3 and woke up to my phone ringing at 515 letting me know that my bags had arrived at the hotel, what a relief. I went to the complex early tuesday after i got my bags at the hotel and just did some stuff in the training room and hung out consulting the trainers about my shoulder. That night I met a couple guys from the Lansing, Michigan team that are down here rehabbing too, Matt Fields and Daniel Webb. We went to wing night, had few drinks and came back to the hotel and hung out by the pool over a couple of beers, solid first night in Florida. My appointment with the vascular specialist was set for friday so everyday until then I would just workout and do some light shoulder rehab stuff. I'm currently living in the hotel that I originally came too after the draft and my roommate is from the Dominican Republic his name is Misaul Diaz. He speaks english about the same that I can speak spanish so i talk to him in spanish and he talks to me in english, we are both getting better every day. Friday came yesterday and I had my appointment with the specialist. I went to USF for the appointment and they ran all kinds of tests on my arm and shoulder checking my blood flow and pulse. At the end, the doctor came back with the results and everything was clear, thank goodness, I did not want surgery on my shoulder for something like that. Since that box was checked, now we had to get to the bottom of this shoulder problem. Jeff, one of the trainers for us, called ahead to the head orthopedic doctor for the jays and we drove over there. I walked into the office, went to the front of the line and he saw me right away, pretty sweet. I got xrays and he came in to see me. He is considered to be one of the best in the business so its comforting to hear that. He started moving me around, was pretty confident that it was almost like a really bad case of tendinitis in my AC joint (shoulder joint where your collar bone meets you arm bone) and prescribed me a heavy duty anti-inflammatory and gave me a rehab program that should go pretty quick. I was happy to hear it and started my meds today as well as the rehab program. I'm hoping to be in Vancouver by the end of the month, that would be ideal. Other than that, that is all on the home front, going to keep looking up. I will post how things are going soon. Until then.
-Ben
I flew out on Monday at 10 am in Vancouver and landed in Tampa at 1030 pm with a brief layover in Dallas. I went to the baggage claim and waited for my bags only to be disappointed to find out that they had been left in Dallas, wonderful start to my stay in Florida. I got the shuttle to my hotel and went to my room at 1230 getting ready to wake up at 530 to go to the complex. However, I couldn't fall asleep because of the jet lag factor and moving 3 hours ahead, I fell asleep at 3 and woke up to my phone ringing at 515 letting me know that my bags had arrived at the hotel, what a relief. I went to the complex early tuesday after i got my bags at the hotel and just did some stuff in the training room and hung out consulting the trainers about my shoulder. That night I met a couple guys from the Lansing, Michigan team that are down here rehabbing too, Matt Fields and Daniel Webb. We went to wing night, had few drinks and came back to the hotel and hung out by the pool over a couple of beers, solid first night in Florida. My appointment with the vascular specialist was set for friday so everyday until then I would just workout and do some light shoulder rehab stuff. I'm currently living in the hotel that I originally came too after the draft and my roommate is from the Dominican Republic his name is Misaul Diaz. He speaks english about the same that I can speak spanish so i talk to him in spanish and he talks to me in english, we are both getting better every day. Friday came yesterday and I had my appointment with the specialist. I went to USF for the appointment and they ran all kinds of tests on my arm and shoulder checking my blood flow and pulse. At the end, the doctor came back with the results and everything was clear, thank goodness, I did not want surgery on my shoulder for something like that. Since that box was checked, now we had to get to the bottom of this shoulder problem. Jeff, one of the trainers for us, called ahead to the head orthopedic doctor for the jays and we drove over there. I walked into the office, went to the front of the line and he saw me right away, pretty sweet. I got xrays and he came in to see me. He is considered to be one of the best in the business so its comforting to hear that. He started moving me around, was pretty confident that it was almost like a really bad case of tendinitis in my AC joint (shoulder joint where your collar bone meets you arm bone) and prescribed me a heavy duty anti-inflammatory and gave me a rehab program that should go pretty quick. I was happy to hear it and started my meds today as well as the rehab program. I'm hoping to be in Vancouver by the end of the month, that would be ideal. Other than that, that is all on the home front, going to keep looking up. I will post how things are going soon. Until then.
-Ben
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