DUNEDIN, Fla. – Mentally, Josh Donaldson feels great, and physically he does, too, save for the spot in his right calf that grabbed during some sprint work. For that reason, an off-season of work aimed at prepping the all-star third baseman is on hold as the Toronto Blue Jays preach caution at the moment.
“I’m ready to get out there right now but the fact is that my body is not letting me,” Donaldson said Sunday of the right calf strain he suffered Friday. “I’m hoping it’s just a couple of weeks to get out there. But it’s something we don’t want to push too much just for the simple fact that we have a little extra time with spring training right now, and just making sure when I step back on the field it’s ready to go and I’m ready to be able to push it.”
Having played in 629 of a possible 648 regular-season games over the past four years, Donaldson is certainly one to push it. Four games into the 2016 season, he tweaked his left calf and fought through issues there all year. He had to overcome thumb and hip troubles as well.
Much of his off-season work focused on his core and hips, restoring balance to areas of his body that absorb much of the torque generated by his powerful swing. The issue to his right calf is a hiccup that must be overcome.
“I’m sore, but overall the rest of my body feels great, I felt like I had a pretty great off-season,” said Donaldson. “Most of my off-season was to hopefully prevent things like this but it kind of shows up every now and again and we’re getting it taken care of and hopefully be strong for opening day.”
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