Yesterday was the first full-squad workout day and everyone's so happy.
*Alex Bregman says there's a "good energy" in Astros camp.
In that link we also find that Garrett Stubbs is going to play a little OF and 2B in order to be versatile enough to make the Opening Day roster.
*Chandler Rome: Carlos Correa is expecting a big season out of himself (and also indicated that he's open to moving to 3B, a first in the time Correa's been with the Astros that he's said that). Correa:
I've never been more excited to show up to Spring Training in my career than this year. I'm super excited to be here. I'm happy that baseball is back. I feel something special in this clubhouse. The way everybody showed up today really told me a lot of how everybody put in the work to make sure they're ready - ready to compete and ready to win another championship.
Jake Kaplan says that the fact that the Astros and Carlos Correa haven't opened negotiations on an extension isn't that big of a deal, and lays out what's really important for both sides. Correa:
I know what I'm worth. If the season happens, I'm expecting to have a great, healthy season, which will help my case for free agency, being the youngest shortstop out there.
Here's a Brian McTaggart piece on Correa that's not paywalled.
Let's not forget that the Astros have $65.17m coming off the books at the end of the season with the impending free agency of Justin Verlander, Zack Greinke, Joe Smith, and Martin Maldonado. That's plenty of money for Correa and McCullers to re-sign.
*Alex Bregman says he feels like himself again.
*Correa said Yordan Alvarez looks "really sexy."
*Myles Straw knows that he needs to keep things simple this Spring Training: Get on base. Straw:
Just being ready to hit and staying aggressive and coming back to it and just getting on base for those guys is going to be the key thing for me this year.
*Ken Rosenthal wrote about, among other things, why the Astros won't sign Jackie Bradley, Jr. and it has to do with the draft picks that come with staying under the salary cap luxury tax threshold.
*Brian McTaggart ranked the five best team seasons in Astros history, and I would flip a couple of the choices, but can't disagree with #1.
*Jim Crane and the Astros Foundation donated 42,000 pounds of water to three locations at Texas Children's Hospitals.
*Mariners CEO Kevin Mather has resigned after getting blowed tf up over his comments to the [shuffles papers] Rotary Club went nationwide, which included openly discussing delaying prospects' service time and denigrating the English of Hisashi Iwakuma and Julio Rodriguez. Imagine losing your role as an MLB CEO because you overshared with the Rotary Club. Jeff Passan on the 45 minutes that sunk Kevin Mather.
*There are reasons for Leeds United fans to be excited about the possibility of extending Marcelo Bielsa. Leeds play Southampton at 12pm Central today on NBCSN. [Shouts in American] The Premier League should really take its Central Time Zone supporters into account more.
*Vox: What you're feeling is grief.
*The Atlantic: The most likely timeline for life to return to normal.
*An audience with the robots: An NME writer's encounter with Daft Punk.
*A Musical Selection: