Oswalt feels OK after being hit by liner
Roy Oswalt was in good spirits the day after taking a line drive under the right ear while pitching for the Philadelphia Phillies against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Oswalt, 33, said that he had a small lump on the back of his head but doesn’t have a headache. He expects to make his next start.
“I actually slept pretty well,” he said yesterday. “It was a little bit stiff this morning but overall it went pretty well.”
In the fourth inning of Wednesday’s preseason game in Port Charlotte, Fla., Oswalt’s pitch to Manny Ramirez was lined right back at him. The pitcher had little time to get out of the way and was hit below the ear. X-rays and a CT scan were negative.
“I remember when I was laying on the ground thinking, ‘Did I just get hit in the head?’ ” Oswalt said. “It surprises you more than it does anything. You don’t really know what to do.
“You don’t know if you need to get up quick or whatever, so I just stayed there and asked trainer] Mark and he made me stay down for a little while longer,” Oswalt said.
Feliz remains closer
Neftali Feliz will keep closing games instead of starting them for the AL champion Texas Rangers.
The Rangers have settled on their starting rotation and Feliz, who set a rookie record with 40 saves last season, will remain the closer. Feliz had been stretched out this spring in case they decided to use the righthander as a starter.
Texas opened spring training knowing lefthander C.J. Wilson and righty Colby Lewis would be their top two starters. The rest of the rotation announced includes Tommy Hunter and lefthanders Matt Harrison and Derek Holland.
Wilson will start the season opener April 1 at home against Boston.
Cahill, Guthrie tabbed
Trevor Cahill, 18-8 with a 2.97 ERA last season, has been named Opening Day starter for the Oakland Athletics. The A’s open the season April 1 at home against Seattle.
Baltimore Orioles manager Buck Showalter said Jeremy Guthrie will start on opening night in Tampa Bay on April 1.
“I don’t think that’s some big secret,” Showalter said. Guthrie went 11-14 with a 3.83 ERA last season.
Portrait of Pedro
The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery in Washington will unveil a portrait of former All-Star pitcher Pedro Martinez.
Martinez, a former Cy Young Award winner who won the World Series with the Boston Red Sox in 2004, plans to attend the unveiling today at the museum. He also conducted a baseball clinic to promote exercise for children.
Martinez, an eight-time All-Star, also pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Montreal Expos, Mets and Phillies.
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