Looking to put a turbulent offseason behind him, Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig was among the several position players who reported early to Camelback Ranch for the start of Spring Training.
Pitchers and catchers have been in camp since Feb. 19, with all position players expected to arrive by Wednesday. The Dodgers will hold their first full-squad workout on Thursday.
Puig made headlines last November over a fight with a Miami bouncer outside a bar, which sparked a Major League Baseball investigation that remains ongoing.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred is expected to hand down a ruling on two of the league’s three domestic violence cases in the coming days.
As for on-the-field matters, Puig was instructed by Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman to weight over the winter.
The hope is a trimmed-down Puig will put him in better position to remain healthy after suffering multiple hamstring injuries last season. Puig is expected to work with Dodgers legend Maury Wills, who said he hopes to also have the opportunity to imrpove the club’s baserunning.
On Tuesday, Wills combined his two initiatives, according to Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com:
First team workout is Thursday & Yasiel Puig has been in camp for a few days. He spent Tues morning running bases for Maury Wills. #Dodgers
— Jesse Sanchez (@JesseSanchezMLB) February 23, 2016
Puig stole 11 bases in 2013 and 2014, but just five last season. However, beyond not swiping a prolific number of bags over the early stages of his career, Puig has lost focuses on the bases and run into outs.
In effort to improve on the bases last season, the Dodgers replaced third base coach Lorenzo Bundy with former Milwaukee Brewers manager Ron Roenicke in August. Bundy followed Don Mattingly to Miami, while Roenicke is now the third base coach for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
