That’s instantly what I thought when Johnson was brought up.

Maybe he’s playing his way onto the team, and once Berkman is back if he’s tearing the cover off the ball Feliz ends up as utility.

Or perhaps it indicates that they don’t intend on DL’ing Berkman, even if he can’t make the opening game. They can always call someone up if they find that he will be out long enough for the DL. I also would expect to see Feliz at 1st base at some point in the spring if they are looking at that approach. So I guess we’ll see.

Yeah, that was my other thought as well, clack. Hmm.

I’m remembering something Justice said during the off-season. I usually don’t put much stock in anything that comes off his keyboard, so take this with a bucket of salt, but he did mention something about Feliz being a good signing in part because he wouldn’t block CJ from playing his way onto the big league team.

I just really don’t like relievers who can’t consistently strike out more than a batter per two innings, whether they get lots of groundballs or not. It’s too many balls in play, and requires otherworldly control to find any success whatsoever.

To Sampson’s credit, he does historically have good groundball rates and good control, and that’s why he hasn’t been knocked flat out of the majors by now.

Still, I can’t get over my reaction when I look at his stats and see that two out of the last four years he struck out less than four batters per nine innings. A 4.39 career K/9 is just asking for seasons like the last one, where poor BABIP luck wrecks your ERA.