High road
Mike Trout is taking the high road about his salary and his position in the outfield, one day after his agent directed a statement at the Los Angeles Angels about both of them.
Trout said that he just wants to be in the lineup every day and that his time to make big money will come if he keeps producing the way he did last season, when he was voted AL Rookie of the Year and just missed out on winning the MVP.
The Angels renewed his contract Saturday for $510,000, just $20,000 above the league minimum, prompting his agent Craig Landis to call it well short of a “fair contract.”
Landis went on to say that Trout would put the disappointment behind him, just as he had when he learned that he would not be the Angels’ primary center fielder this season.
Cubs starter
Jeff Samardzija will be the opening-day starter for the Chicago Cubs, who said Matt Garza will start the season on the disabled list because of an injured muscle in his side that is preventing the right-hander from throwing.
Cubs manager Dale Sveum said Samardzija will start at Pittsburgh April 1. He was 9-13 with a 3.81 ERA last season, when he had a 2.39 ERA in his last seven starts. He will be joined in the rotation by Travis Wood, Carlos Villanueva, Edwin Jackson and Scott Feldman.
Ruptured disc
St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny has a ruptured disc in his back.
Matheny, a major league catcher from 1994-06, is scheduled to have an epidural injection today to reduce inflammation and get a particle off a nerve. If the injection doesn’t help alleviate pain, he says surgery would “have to be something we would consider.”
Starting his second season as the Cardinals’ manager, Matheny has had back issues for several years.
Furcal injury
Rafael Furcal had hoped to make his spring training debut Sunday. Instead, the 35-year-old shortstop was told to stop baseball activities. Trying to come back from a torn ligament in his right elbow, the three-time All-Star must have additional medical tests.
Suzuki accident
Yankees outfielder Ichiro Suzuki is fine and has no soreness one day after being involved in a traffic accident.
Suzuki was on his way home after Saturday’s spring training game against Detroit when the accident occurred a few miles from Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.
Suzuki said his SUV was totaled in the accident. He had a green light when he was hit by another vehicle in an intersection. The driver of the second vehicle was cited by police. Suzuki says he’s grateful that no one was hurt in the incident.
New York manager Joe Girardi expects Suzuki to play in Tuesday night’s game against Atlanta.
