Penny Enjoying His Quiet Time
Brad Penny plopped in front of his locker, not another soul within 20 feet, and appreciated the serenity.
One year ago, he was the biggest story of spring training because he hadn’t pitched since suffering a biceps nerve injury five months earlier. Reporters hounded him constantly, and he dodged them whenever possible because he didn’t have an answer to their central question: Was his arm OK?
It turned out to be fine. He pitched the entire 2005 season without incident, signed a three-year extension at midseason, and this spring reporters have moved on to other stories.
That’s no problem with Penny.
“I didn’t know if I could pitch,” he said. “I was worried, and I didn’t know what to say. That was a weird time. I remember the first time I threw off a mound. They took me over to where nobody could see me.”
The Dodgers dispatched him to a minor league field in the far reaches of Dodgertown so there would be no witnesses if he jumped off the mound crying in pain as he had when the nerve acted up during the 2004 season.
Penny’s first bullpen session this spring had far less fanfare and zero secrecy. He was just another pitcher getting his work in.
“I can appreciate blending in,” he said. “I have no problem with that.”
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Reliever Franquelis Osoria arrived from the Dominican Republic and took his physical, and a Dodger official said reliever Yhency Brazoban was expected to arrive today.
Brazoban was in Los Angeles a week before the Feb. 15 reporting date, and it was thought he would go directly to Dodgertown from there. However, because Brazoban used a visitor’s visa to get to L.A., he had to return to the Dominican Republic and apply for a P-1 visa, which is required for athletes from other countries to work in the U.S.
The U.S. consulate was closed on Feb. 13 for Lincoln’s Birthday, and Brazoban missed an appointment the next day. The paperwork was not completed until Friday.
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One year at $8.325 million? General Manager Ned Colletti gladly would have signed Jeff Weaver for that. The Dodger starting rotation lacks depth, and Colletti has money to spend, evidenced by his (unsuccessful) pursuit of free-agent catcher Bengie Molina in the waning days of the off-season.
Weaver took the one-year deal from the Angels after spending months seeking a multiyear contract. He wanted to return to the Dodgers -- he was 14-11 last season -- but a deal couldn’t be reached by a Jan. 8 deadline. . If both sides knew then what they know now?
“Maybe we could have gotten something done,” Colletti said.
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The Dodgers will divide their local telecasts between KCAL (49 games) and FSN West 2 (100 games). The team will also appear on at least nine national or regional telecasts -- eight Saturday games on the Fox network, and one Sunday evening game on ESPN, April 16 against the San Francisco Giants.
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Times staff writer Larry Stewart contributed to this report.
