Freddie Freeman made a name for himself around Major League Baseball with his reliable presence in a lineup and never wanting to take a day off. That same mindset goes for how he likes to prepare for the regular season, finding a way to get reps in wherever possible.
Freeman joined the Los Angeles Dodgers in their hot start this spring, homering on the first pitch he saw in Cactus League play. He powered a fastball over the left-field wall that provided the Dodgers with a 1-0 lead before going on to win 4-1 over the San Diego Padres.
“It feels good, obviously,” Freeman said. “It’s just nice to play a game. It feels like we’ve been here for a couple weeks just practicing. The first few games you’re just trying to see strikes and swing at the right pitches. I was able to do that.”
The veteran is entering his 15th MLB season, and third with the Dodgers. Freeman explained that his plan this spring is to get his body as ready as he can, with a rough number of at-bats in mind.
“Just around 40 is about what I typically go for,” Freeman said. “So I’ll take [Saturday] off and then I’m going three straight days to get the legs going, feel the soreness and get that out.
“I like to play a lot in spring. I feel good at the beginning and then it always feels like there’s a week where you can’t get a hit. You’ve got to get rid of that and then hopefully feel good by the end of Spring Training.”
Because the Dodgers are on an accelerated timeline due to opening the Seoul Series in South Korea, they play fewer games in spring than other MLB clubs. Freeman dismissed the notion that the series adds any stress to their ramp up.
“No. I just kind of treat it like the WBC,” Freeman said. “The last two times I’ve done that, I just started hitting earlier in the offseason than I normally do. That’s about it. I’m trying to treat live BPs as game-like as much as you can and extra ABs as well. Feel pretty good right now.”
Freddie Freeman focused on preparation for Seoul Series
When other clubs are still going to be playing Spring Training games, the Dodgers and Padres will open the regular season with the Seoul Series that counts toward their regular season records.
Freeman is playing in his first international series with the Dodgers, and doesn’t see the interruption in a normal schedule as a problem.
“There’s no burden,” Freeman said. “We get to play baseball. Baseball is not a burden at all. We’re just trying to get as many ABs as we possibly can as fast as we can, so that we are ready for March 20.”
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