Floyd all right in right

ST. PETERSBURG – Cliff Floyd played right field Saturday for the first time as a Tampa Bay Ray, and guess what? He liked it.
Part of the Right Field Triangle with Rocco Baldelli and Jonny Gomes, Floyd is thought to be the one who would receive the least amount of time in right field. But Floyd, who figured he would be the designated hitter when he signed with the Rays, wouldn’t mind more time in the outfield.
“With the way I felt (Saturday), I want to go out there more,” he said. “The way I see it, if Rocco can't go, you're going to want to spare Jonny Gomes in the outfield a little bit. I have to be ready for that.”
Given Floyd’s age (35) and history of leg injuries, Maddon said he wants to limit Floyd’s time in the outfield.
“I know he doesn't want to put me out there that much,” Floyd said. “My job is to make him feel very comfortable whenever he needs me out there.”
Floyd made his Rays debut Saturday in their 5-2 victory against Toronto at Al Lang Field. While this is his fifth organization and Saturday was his fifth debut with a new team, Floyd said he was a little nervous despite the practice.
That went away when he flied out during his first at-bat.
“He was not happy,” Maddon said. “That just indicated what’s going on here. I really appreciated it.”
What went on was Floyd wasn’t simply going through the motions. He bounced back in his next at-bat with a single up the middle and lobbied for a third at-bat, but was removed for a pinch-runner.

Let’s go to the video
James Shields made his first start of the spring, working the first two innings Saturday.
He breezed through the first, retiring the side in order.
He began the second by hitting leadoff batter Aaron Hill. He walked another batter, failed to field a slow roller and allowed a run on a sacrifice fly.
“Spring training, it’s one of those things where you feel great one inning and not so great the next,” Shields said.
How many innings Shields pitched Saturday was up to him, and after the easy first, he asked to return for the second. Turns out he wasn’t ready to go two.
“I was tired,” he said. “I was throwing with my body. I don’t hit guys with my change-up very often.”
Shields said he approached the start as if it was the first game of the season, and is concerned with his breakdown in mechanics.
“I’m going to watch the video and see what I did wrong,” he said.

Evan does it again
Evan Longoria’s two-run, pinch-hit triple in the sixth inning scored what proved to be the winning run. It was his second run-scoring, extra-base hit in as many games this spring for the rookie trying to prove he can open the season at third base.
“He had two good at-bats, one was very critical,” Maddon said. “He’s swinging the bat really well. I know he’s not a pinch-hitter, but he came off the bench and did a nice job.”
Maddon knows how much Longoria wants to make the club this spring.
“I believe every time he walks on the baseball field, he wants to do the best he can,” Maddon said. “He did a nice job of preparation. That was a nice at-bat for us.”

Baldelli’s speed
Rocco Baldelli will not push himself while running the bases, at least not for the first few weeks of spring training.
“It’s his call,” Maddon said. “We’re just encouraging him not to try to beat anything out. Just to stay in a steady gait throughout, like he’s going from second to home. Not try to push it. Then of course, here comes the moment, here comes the game, the competitive nature. He’s going to actually have to fight it. This is uncharted territory for us, but we have spoken to him about that and we’re going to have to monitor it.”
The idea is to keep Baldelli’s hamstrings healthy, even if it means given himself up on the bases. Maddon said the Rays have no other choice.
“Even when Rocco is running easily it’s better than most,” Maddon said. “I was watching him the other day doing his glide down to first base and it is a better gait than most people can do full gorilla. So, he even runs well when he’s not running well.”

Getting the big outs
Mitch Talbot pitched the ninth inning and, after retiring the first batter he faced, allowed two singles. But Talbot avoided the late-inning meltdown that felled fellow reliever Jake McGee on Friday at Sarasota by getting Pedro Lopez to bounce into a game-ending double play.

This and That

Second baseman Elliot Johnson turned some heads with a double off the right-center field fence in the seventh inning and again in the ninth when he started the game-ending double play … Joel Guzman drove Johnson home with a two-strike single … Mike DiFelice played his first game as a Ray since he was traded July 25, 2001 … Carl Crawford made a long run to catch a sinking line drive in the second inning with the bases loaded and one out. Though Aaron Hill tagged from third and scored, Crawford saved at least another run with that catch … Ben Zobrist tripled home Longoria in the sixth inning … Outfielder Fernando Perez’s best asset is his speed, and he put that on display by reaching first on a drag bunt and later advancing to third on a fly ball to right field by Crawford.

- Roger Mooney, Herald Staff Writer