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Before he teed off on the golf course last Friday, Diamondbacks reliever Ryan Thompson said he and his teammates were pleasantly caught off guard when news broke in late December that Arizona had signed free-agent pitcher Corbin Burnes to a six-year, $210 million contract.

¡°We were all very surprised,¡± Thompson said. ¡°It¡¯s really cool to see the all-in mentality [of ownership]. I really love that.¡±

While some of the discussion was via various text chains the players have, they also got to discuss the news in person, because a good number of players are already working out at Salt River Fields even though the first pitcher/catcher workout of the spring is not until Feb. 12.

¡°It's really unique to me to be there and to have the staff basically take, what, a couple weeks off and they're there,¡± Thompson said. ¡°They're there ready for us to come in whenever we feel like it and be there to provide us with whatever we need. It's just a good feeling. We don't have to go around and try to find a place to train.¡±

That, of course was one of the big reasons that Burnes wanted to sign with the Diamondbacks -- it allowed him to live year-round in his home in Scottsdale.

That is a big selling point for the Diamondbacks when it comes to free agency, and it is also a bonus when it comes to team building.

Usually, if a player doesn¡¯t live in the same city where his team has Spring Training, they will go to a workout facility somewhere that has other players working out there, but not usually teammates.

¡°It's been really awesome this offseason just being around the guys,¡± Thompson said. ¡°I'm not with two guys from the Orioles, two guys from the Blue Jays, two guys from the Tigers and that's my training group. My training group is the Diamondbacks, so it's been pretty awesome.¡±

That¡¯s why there are not a lot of introductions when pitchers and catchers finally report. For instance, Burnes has already begun working out over at the facility and getting to know his new teammates.

¡°We have in the offseason the same resources that we have in season,¡± Thompson said. ¡°So it's a very smooth transition into Spring Training. Like I feel like I've been doing Spring Training for three months already. I've been at Salt River with the trainers, I've been with the strength coaches.¡±