Sun: Ponson less fat, Julio needs MRI

[TheDoyler23]

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/b...orts-headlines

Ponson fit for duty; Julio to undergo MRI

Reliever battling arm soreness; Weaver, D. Martinez join spring staff

By David Ginsburg
The Associated Press
Originally published February 20, 2005, 8:09 PM EST
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Sidney Ponson's jersey hung loosely on his body Sunday during the Baltimore Orioles' first workout of spring training, a good indication that the right-hander worked hard this winter to trim his rather broad waistline.

More concrete proof came when he stepped on the scale. Ponson weighed 253, which looked a lot better on his 6-foot-1 frame than the 266 pounds he carried into camp a year ago.

"I feel more fit. I'm in better condition than I was last year," said Ponson, who went 3-12 in the first half before rebounding to finish 11-15. "I want to start the season good."

Ponson said he cut down on his weightlifting this winter and worked more on his cardiovascular conditioning.

"I think he looks great. It's a very noticeable difference," Orioles manager Lee Mazzilli said. "I expect to see Sidney Ponson like I did the second half of last year. There's no question about his arm and the stuff that he has."

Ponson's workout program was interrupted by a Christmas Day brawl in his native country of Aruba, which resulted in an 11-day jail stay. He faces a hearing next month.

Ponson refused to address the subject Sunday.

Julio shelved

Orioles reliever Jorge Julio will undergo an MRI on his right arm this week after complaining of soreness while pitching winter ball in Venezuela.

Julio said his arm felt fine Sunday, but the Orioles don't want him pitching off a mound again until the MRI results are in.

"Doctors want to get it done as a precaution," team trainer Richie Bancells said, adding that the pain is centered in the forearm.

Julio spent much of last season as Baltimore's closer, but lost the job in September to B.J. Ryan. Both are expected to compete for the job this spring, with Ryan as the early favorite.

D. Martinez, Weaver join staff

Earl Weaver and Dennis Martinez will lend their knowledge to the team this spring as special instructors.

Weaver, who managed the team to four AL titles and one world championship, will take an occasional break from retirement to talk with the players. Martinez, who ranks eighth on the Orioles' career list with 108 wins, was on hand Sunday to work with the pitching staff.

Both are members of the Orioles Hall of Fame.

"Maybe not that many guys in here know what I did. They have too much going on in their minds to think about anybody else," said Martinez, the winningest Latino in baseball history. "Maybe they will look up and say, 'Who the heck is this guy?' They might start checking the media guide and say OK, this man knows what he's talking about."

Parrish impresses

The Orioles expect to get their money's worth out of reliever John Parrish, who last week avoided arbitration by signing for $612,500 -- nearly twice what he made in 2004.

The left-handed reliever went 6-3 with a 3.46 ERA last season, and if first impressions mean anything, Parrish could be even better this year.

"I think we kind of tweaked him a little bit," Mazzilli said. "We changed him to full windup instead of the stretch all the time. It was a noticeable difference; I liked what I saw out there."

[Skins4SB]

Oh please, no Julio..

[aejm1400]

Well, now that he has 2.5 mil is the time to speak up. Hopefully it's nothing.

[aejm1400]

Looks like he has a strained forearm that they will be working with him on over the course of spring training. At least he did let the O's know about it back in Jan. when he was in the winter league.

Looks like BJ is one step closer to being the closer.