A Few Words From Lopez

MLB.com reporter Thomas Harding, who covers the Rockies, caught up recently with Rodrigo Lopez, who signed a minor-league deal with the Phillies. He passed along some of what he had to say:

“There’s not an invitation to big-league camp and I won’t be in big-league camp unless they need me to pitch a game or something,” Lopez said. “But I’m going to take my chances with the Phillies and see if during the season they’ll have an open spot for me. I’ll try to get back to the big leagues. I just want to prove that I’m healthy, and I’m able to pitch every five days.”

“I’ve been having a hard time finding my breaking ball, but I just think it’s a matter of getting into games. I’ve been working in Mexico and now here [in the World Baseball Classic]. My breaking ball is finally coming back, but I still need to get into games to use it. My arm, velocity, location are getting back to normal. I feel pretty strong. I’ve been working the last 18 months, concentrating on my shoulder, elbow, whole body basically. during the season I think I’ll have more strength.”