New A's lefty has 'Springs' in his step after 1st healthy offseason in 2 years
A's honor Rickey before spring home opener with shirt, moment of silence
Mart¨ªn Gallegos
@MartinJGallegosMESA, Ariz. ¨C The last time Jeffrey Springs had a normal offseason to work with was 2023, when he dazzled for the Rays shortly after signing a four-year, $31 million contract extension by carrying a streak of 14 scoreless innings in the Grapefruit League over to the regular season with 13 frames without allowing a run through his first two starts.
That ¡®23 campaign ultimately ended in disaster. During his third start, Springs was pulled with discomfort in his left forearm that an MRI later revealed as a tear in his ulnar collateral ligament, an injury which required Tommy John surgery and sidelined him from game action until July 2024.
Despite a solid seven starts in which he posted a 3.27 ERA last year with Tampa Bay, Springs said he felt hindered. His fastball velocity dipped to an average of 89.8 mph, and his overall pitch mix lacked the crispness of his pre-surgery form.
Acquired by the Athletics in December and having an offseason free of restrictions for the first time in two years, Springs is looking to recapture that feeling he experienced entering 2023, which came on the heels of an impressive final 24 starts of 2022 in which he posted a 2.65 ERA and 130 strikeouts in 122 1/3 innings.
¡°The spring of ¡®23, I was able to fine-tune things, and I felt like I was in a good spot mechanically and with my stuff,¡± Springs said. ¡°That season started out pretty good. Hopefully, I can recreate that.¡±
Springs has a new mini scoreless streak going after his first Cactus League outing. Drawing the start for the A¡¯s in a 4-0 win over the Rockies on Sunday at Hohokam Stadium, the left-hander shut down Colorado across two scoreless frames on two hits and no walks with two strikeouts.
¡°He looked good,¡± manager Mark Kotsay said of Springs. ¡°He¡¯s the type of pitcher that is probably pretty hard on himself, but it was good to get him out there and see what his stuff looks like. He¡¯s a strike thrower. I like his pace. He works quick, which is great.¡±
Springs threw 18 of his 32 pitches for strikes. More importantly, his fastball velocity sat around 91-92 mph throughout the two innings, looking more like what he was accustomed to before that seven-game stretch in his return last season.
¡°Coming back last year, everything was definitely a tick down across the board,¡± Springs said. ¡°I was pushing to get back as quickly as I can at the end, and I was able to do OK with what I had. Now, I¡¯m starting to feel like myself. If I can be low 90s with the heater and move it around to all quadrants, that¡¯s me. Obviously, I always want to throw harder. But I know who I am. If I can be right around the 93 [mph] mark, I¡¯ll be in a good spot.¡±
Now a co-veteran of the staff along with fellow newcomer Luis Severino, Springs is also looking forward to using the experiences and knowledge he¡¯s gained as a seven-year Major League veteran to lend some advice to the younger pitchers on the roster whenever needed.
¡°I¡¯d love to help any way I can,¡± Springs said. ¡°I¡¯m going to do anything that¡¯s asked of me, whether that¡¯s a teammate asking questions or Kotsay asking me to do something. ¡ That¡¯s what good clubhouses do. Whatever I can do to help us win.¡±
Honoring Rickey
With Sunday marking their first home game of the spring, the A¡¯s honored Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson, who died on Dec. 20 at age 65. Before the game, every A¡¯s player, coach and staff member wore a T-shirt with an image of Henderson¡¯s smiling face on the front. There was also a moment of silence prior to the national anthem at Hohokam Stadium, which now features a large gold circle with a green "Rickey 24" adorning the left-field wall.
¡°We wanted to do something to show our love and how much we miss him,¡± Kotsay said. ¡°This shirt, the smile is really the memory of Rickey. I don¡¯t know if he ever had a bad day. He was always smiling.¡±
The absence of Henderson is felt inside the A¡¯s clubhouse this spring, where his presence became routine over the past few years as he would frequently visit and hang out with the current group of players.
¡°When he was in Spring Training around the guys, you could tell the joy it brought him,¡± Kotsay said. ¡°This is our simple way of just honoring him.¡±