Diamondbacks Spring Training Round-Up: Kennedy and Kubel Koncerns?

Quotes of the Day

• "I felt like I left a lot of pitches over the plate. I'm not saying my command felt that great but after I had to run the bases, Eaton behind me, I had to go from zero to 100 with Eaton behind me, so I got a little tired... You ask a lot of us, we're ready to go play at Chase, get the real games going. But for me, I want to get one more start in to get my pitch count up to know I'm happy and feeling ready."
  -- Ian Kennedy
• "He struggled, obviously left some balls out over the plate and I didn't think he got his off-speed stuff over early, got behind, left a few fast balls out over the plate and they beat on him pretty good. He got a little frustrated as well, but overall his arm is good, he's throwing the ball good, his velocity is good today."
  -- Kirk Gibson
• "He’s the type of guy that doesn’t need a second or third pitch on a day when he doesn’t have everything right. As long as he has that sinker, he’s always got a shot. Then the days when he does have the change-up working and the curveball working and the little cutter that he’s developed working — when he has those, then something special can happen."
  -- Cliff Pennington on Trevor Cahill

Hudson recovering well

Derrick Hall told KTAR that Daniel Hudson's recovery from Tommy John surgery is going well, with no apparent issues to date. The main problem appears to be making sure he doesn't get ahead of himself, and undo the good progress so far. Said Hall, "There's no reason to force him along or rush him, and we've had to convince him of that. Because he feels so good he wants to get out there and speed up his rehabilitation." Having good depth in the rotation means there's no need to rush. "Tight now, when you don't need him you want to slow him down and get him back on the timing of a normal rehab for Tommy John surgery." He'd be on track to return for the second half.

May the Kubel be with you

It hasn't been the best of springs for Jason Kubel. So far, Brad Snyder has seen more playing time in the outfield, in part due to a balky knee, but Kubel has also struggled at the plate, with a line to date of .143/.211/.171. Kirk Gibson reckons the two things are connected. "I think he just may have favored that a little bit. Kind of drifting on it and not putting a lot of pressure on it. He's very mechanical right now, thinking about his weight and where his hands go and swing path, so he's got a little too much on his mind. I just want him to be healthy and feeling good. I'm not worried about the other at all. I know he'll hit."

Didi update

Didi Gregorius begins throwing this weekend. Kirk Gibson thinks he'll be at shortstop by mid-April

— Peter Gammons (@pgammo) March 21, 2013

Around baseball

• In Cactus League action, 10-9 was the score of the day, with the Athletics and Rangers winning, over the Reds and Angels respectively, by the odd run in nineteen. The Rangers blew a seven-run lead before scoring three in the ninth to win. They got 17 hits, three from Elvis Andrus who is hitting .417 this spring. It was a hitter-friendly day:of the 14 teams in action, only the Brewers (3) scored fewer than four runs.
  
• Meanwhile, as the Biogenesis mess rumbles on, "Limited by their inability to compel people to cooperate with their investigators, Major League Baseball officials will open a new front in their battle against doping. They plan to file a lawsuit on Friday against a number of people connected to a South Florida anti-aging clinic, alleging that the individuals damaged the sport by providing some of the game’s biggest stars with performance-enhancing drugs."
• Brandon McCarthy asks, and verily, he does receive...