2021 Instructs started yesterday.  I waited until today to go over to the Complex.  The first day can be tedious with early and on-time arrivals mixing with rehabbers all at once.  Yesterday players hit the field around 9:00AM, but I think that those guys were most likely the rehabbers who had already been on site. 

Anyway, players didn’t start today until 10:00 AM.  My “office” is outside the fence, so I have to walk the perimeter to see what is happening on each field.  Ashburn and Carlton Fields are on either side of the main gate and the easiest to watch.  So, of course, morning action began on Roberts and Schmidt.  Until then, I had waited in the parking lot and seen Erik Miller, JoJo Romero, Ethan Evanko, and Christian McGowan enter the Complex.

I made a cursory effort to view Schmidt.  Looked like 4-5 infielders taking ground balls at first base.  The only name I could make out was Matt Goodheart.  Another player might have been Jamari Baylor, but I couldn’t be sure.  So, I traversed back to Roberts and watched from beyond the centerfield fence.  Four outfielders ran through some drills – charging balls, going back to the fence, and laterally.  They were Tonkel, Radcliff, Yhoswar Garcia, and Viars.

A group of pitchers threw an object at a target on a wall down the left field line.  Afterward, they went over to right field on Carlton for short and longish toss.  The group included McCollum, Hughes, Ottenbreit, Osterberg, Mayer, Blake Brown, Garrido, McKenney, McKenna, Painter, McGarry, and Victror Vargas.  They took a break after throwing and then did PFPs on Carlton.

I went back to Ashburn where activity had picked up.  I saw Ben Brown in game pants as well as Pena, Garbrick, Garnett, Russell, Binns, Soriano, and Betancourt.  Game pants are a sign that the pitcher will throw from the mound.  A larger group was exercising in left field and was comprised of the rehabbers, some of whom were – Antle, Jacobsak, Lindow, Fanti, Zarbnisky, Killgore, and more.  Some of this group was allowed to throw, the others watched.

I went back to Roberts and caught the end of three pitchers throwing off the mound.  I think they were Bell, Baker, and maybe Segovia.  I didn’t get a real good look.  Ben Brown, Tristan Garnett, and Carlos Betancourt threw from the mound on Carlton.

Cerny, Carr, Ortiz, Lee Sang, and Wilson joined the outfielders on Roberts.

At some point, I noticed a coach standing up on the half-field outside BayCare Park.  I didn’t see any players with him but I was moving around a lot for an old guy.  It’s possible that some middle infielders and/or catchers were up there for infield drills.

In addition, random guys spotted either as they walked around the complex include Ruffcorn, Wynne, Collins, Woodward, Marcano, McKay, Dyar, Flores, Ibarra, Schultz (throwing from the stretch on flat ground), maybe Wetherbee, Castillo, and Nava (he was the only catcher I saw at the Complex).

Word is that there will be 70 young men here for Instructs including rehabbers and six or seven DSL players who will report when their season ends Saturday.  There are a few additional guys here who don’t count against the seventy. I’ll address them as I see them.

As I left, the lunch truck had arrived as guys were finishing batting practice back on Schmidt.

I don’t have a schedule, but if things run as they did last year, the players will have camp days all week until an off day on Sunday.  They’ll continue with camp days in the mornings and games in the afternoons next week.  Wednesdays and Saturdays are camp days with intrasquad games.  I will be permitted to attend the scheduled games which would be on Monday/Tuesday and Thursday/Friday, so two days each week.  No admittance to intrasquad games.

Here’s a more orderly list of participants, so far.

1. Erik Miller
2. JoJo Romero
3. Ethan Evanko
4. Christian McGowan
5. Matt Goodheart
6. Jamari Baylor (?)
7. Gavin Tonkel
8. Baron Radcliff
9. Yhoswar Garcia
10. Jordan Viars
11. Tommy McCollum
12. Jonathan Hughes
13. Micah Ottenbreit
14. Matt Osterberg
15. Gunner Mayer
16. Blake Brown
17. Maikel Garrido
18. Alex McKenney
19. Jake McKenna
20. Andrew Painter
21. Griff McGarry
22. Victror Vargas
23. Ben Brown
24. Jose Pena
25. Alex Garbrick
26. Tristan Garnett
27. Matt Russell
28. Malik Binns
29. Cristian Soriano
30. Carlos Betancourt
31. Chase Antle
32. Sam Jacobsak
33. Ethan Lindow
34. Nick Fanti
35. Braden Zarbnisky
36. Keylan Killgore
37. Brendan Bell
38. Drew Baker
39. Eduar Segovia
40. Tristan Garnett
41. Carlos Betancourt
42. Logan Cerny
43. Jared Carr
44. Jhailyn Ortiz
45. Marcus Lee Sang
46. Ethan Wilson
47. Jason  Ruffcorn
48. Cam Wynne
49. Ty Collins
50. JP Woodward
51. Jared Wetherbee (?)
52. Rafael Marcano
53. Tyler McKay
54. Dallas Dyar
55. Wilfredo Flores
56. Neyker Ibarra
57. Andrew Schultz
58. Starlyn Castillo
59. Andrick Nava

That’s 59.  Plus the 6-7 from the DSL.  And, there has to be more than one catcher who went on the 60-day IL on August 22nd (Nava) here.  That leads me to believe that there may be a couple players above who aren’t official participants in Instructs.  Flores and Ibarra for instance have their arms in slings.  I’ve heard that Rixon Wingrove and Chris Burke are here but not official.

On a more interesting note, Miller offered without my asking that he’s here to build up strength for Arizona.  I have to assume AFL.