As many of you know, Jordan Comadena has become an honorary citizen of Astros County thanks to his willingness to answer questions for us in the past. I know how excited I get about the approach of Spring Training, which made me wonder about how excited players get about Spring Training. Jordan was kind enough to fill us in on the emotions of someone who participates.
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AC: What are the weeks leading up to ST like for you?
JC: The weeks leading up to leaving for spring training are filled with a number of different emotions. I am very excited to get going again with another season, and it is always great to get back into some warmer weather when you are coming from a northern state. The days leading up to departure are also stressful because there is always so much to do in terms of organizing, packing, and making sure nothing is left behind. As a minor league player, you need to get your life for 6 months into a suitcase. I have a lot of clothes and shoes, so I always struggle with trying to condense down what all I actually take. Another difficult part of leaving for camp is
leaving behind loved ones. I am engaged to be married next fall, and we do not have the money for my fiancé to come with me during the season so she stays home and has to work. It is always very emotional having to leave her behind when I go to spring training. I hope down the line that she will be able to come with me during the season.
AC: Let's say that it's the night before you leave for ST. Can you sleep? What's running through your mind?
JC: The night before I leave I am actually very relaxed; I treat it like any other night. I will want to spend as much time with my fiancé as I can and get a good night sleep. I will put the finishing touches on my packing and double check to make sure that I have everything that I will need. I really have never had any nerves when it comes to sleeping the night before a big game or a big trip. It’s just another day.
AC: What are the essential items you pack as you head off?
JC: The thing that I stress out about the most would have to be what clothes I am going to take. Like I stated earlier I have a lot of clothes, shoes, watches and deciding what to take is always tough. Once I get all that squared away, the other essentials are my iPod, my laptop and my headphones. I love listening to music so those are all items that I have to have during the season.
AC: What are the types of items the Astros provide while in Kissimmee?
JC: The Astros will provide me with some new catchers gear, workout gear, and all the uniform stuff that I will need. They also provide some additional bats if needed.
AC: How are you getting there? Driving? What's your itinerary?
JC: I am driving to spring training. I am leaving Illinois on Tuesday February 21. I will arrive in Florida on Wednesday. I will drive to Stockbridge, Georgia the first day and spend the night there. Wednesday morning I will get an early start and drive to Port Saint Lucie, Florida where I will be staying with Robert Donovan. I will stay there with him for a few days and he will throw a couple bullpens to me. On Saturday the 25th I am going to Kissimmee. I will be staying with Brandon Barnes until I am able to get into the team hotel on March 3.
AC: What kind of communication do you get from the Astros about ST during the off-season?
JC: Throughout the off-season I would get some emails regarding some different workouts and some dietary information. I got my packet with all my report information in January.
AC: What's the first day like? Meetings? Workouts?
JC: As a catcher there are two separate first days. We have the first day of pitchers and catchers and we have the first day with the whole squad. Both days are very similar. We have some introductory meetings with a number of front office personnel as well as some meetings with our different rovers and coordinators. Once that is all done we will go through our normal workouts. As a catcher, a day consists of taking some batting practice and catching a number of bullpens. There are always a lot of pitchers in camp which means the catchers are always busy. Once the position players join us, the morning routine stays the same and we will play a game in the
afternoon.
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Big thanks to Jordan for the time he took to answer these. Be sure to follow him on Twitter for tweets on Steelers love and Tebow hate.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
