Tucson – Yorvit Torrealba got too buff for his own good.
During the offseason, the Rockies catcher returned home to Guarenas, Venezuela, where he hired a personal trainer and started pumping some serious iron for the first time.
“He had every intention of making himself better,” general manager Dan O’Dowd said.
Unfortunately, Torrealba’s good intentions backfired. By muscling up, he lost some range of motion in his shoulders. When he reported to spring training and started throwing, shoulder pain flared. A recent MRI revealed no muscle tears or major damage, but he has caught only five innings in one spring game and won’t be behind the plate for at least a few more days.
In the meantime, Danny Ardoin, his chief competitor to be the starting catcher, is hitting .466. Torrealba, limited to action as a designated hitter and pinch hitter, is 0-for-6 after striking out in a pinch Sunday against Oakland.
“It’s the wrong time for me to get hurt, because I’m competing for the everyday catcher spot,” Torrealba said. “I’ve never been hurt before, but hopefully it’ll just be a few more days and I’ll be ready to go.”
Rockies trainer Keith Dugger said he’s working to undo what Torrealba did during the offseason.
“It’s going to take some time,” Dugger said. “We’re working on his flexibility and range of motion. We’ve seen a lot of progress in the last four or five days.”
Torrealba, acquired in an offseason trade with Seattle for pitching prospect Marcos Carvajal, planned to report to spring training in the best shape of his career. Torrealba accomplished that goal, but the strategy had side effects he didn’t anticipate.
“For the first time, I paid a trainer over there to work with me,” he said. “I was lifting kind of heavy weights, more than what I normally do. I normally go light on my shoulders, but this year I went a little bit heavier.
“I felt really great when I got here. Then I started throwing and I got tight, so now there is some inflammation.”
Torrealba insists he’s not worried about the injury and said he’s making progress.
“It’s just a matter of time,” he said. “I threw (Saturday) about 60 feet pain- free. So I’m happy about that.”
Manager Clint Hurdle is following a cautious plan, perhaps catching Torrealba in upcoming minor-league games in a more controlled environment.
“I still won’t be concerned about it,” Hurdle said. “That’s one of the reasons we’ve got the depth we’ve got. We got (JD) Closser and we’ve got (Miguel) Ojeda, if (Torrealba) wouldn’t be able to go. And that’s all innuendo right now. We don’t anticipate anything like that. We are just trying to get him healthy.”
Staff writer Troy E. Renck contributed to this report.
Patrick Saunders can be reached at 303-820-5459 or psaunders@denverpost.com.
