CLEARWATER, Fla. -- While Kyle Lohse, Jeff Weaver, Freddy Garcia and a handful of other pitchers look for work, a guy you haven't heard much from in awhile is toiling in the background here and odds are he could become one of the bigger comeback stories of 2008.
Remember Kris Benson?
Sure you do.
First off, he's much quieter than his wife. Anna Benson never met a reporter she couldn't leave with a controversial quote, from the explicit interview she did with Penthouse magazine when Kris was still pitching in Pittsburgh to the sexy Santa outfit she wore to a charity appearance in New York that finally pushed the Mets to get Kris out of town.
For those more familiar with Anna than Kris, he's nothing like what you'd expect. He's quiet, intelligent and speaks in measured tones. He didn't pitch at all last season while recovering from shoulder surgery but early reports here in the Phillies camp are that he could help -- and, perhaps, sooner rather than later.
Kris estimates that he's only a week or two behind the other pitchers in camp, and Charley Kerfeld, special assistant to general manager Pat Gillick, has been impressed with what he's seen.
"I thought he looked great," Kerfeld says. "Usually after a surgery like that, the last thing to come back is command. And his command has been great.
"Now, it's a question of when his velocity comes back."
Kerfeld estimates that Benson could be ready to pitch for the Phillies by May 1.
That would be great with Benson, who can opt out of his contract March 25 if he isn't placed on the PHillies' major-league roster but says he's open to starting the season in the minors with the club if his shoulder isn't quite ready.
He's also throwing his curve again after junking it in New York at the suggestion of Mets pitching coach Rick Peterson. When he started to develop his slider, Benson says, his curve wasn't as effective anymore. Partly, it was because his then-weakening shoulder wouldn't allow him to throw the curve as hard has he needed to to get a sharp break on it.
"This spring, I'm trying to develop those two pitches together," Benson says.
Another year older at 33 and all the wiser following surgery, the right-hander is the latest in a long line of hurlers who have had to learn to pitch, rather than just throw.
Maybe one day soon, he can make more headlines than his wife.
Likes: Chain of Lakes Park in Winter Haven, with sparkling Lake Lulu in the background. This is it, though, as Cleveland is moving to Goodyear, Ariz., next spring. Last one out of Winter Haven, turn off the lights. ... I know Chain of Lakes gets knocked, but there's so much history here -- going back to when the Red Sox trained here -- and besides, how can you not like a press box in which a snake slithered over the computer keyboard of Indians beat man Paul Hoynes (Cleveland Plain Dealer) last spring? ... Kristin Laine's book American Band: Music, Dreams and Coming of Age in the Heartland. Very moving ending. ... From the Southern Cleaners' marquee on Lakeland's Florida St., this bit of wisdom: "The bigger the menu, the smaller the portions." ... Smoked sausage with red beans and rice at Harry's in Lakeland. ... The 134-pound burger they concocted at Mallie's Sports Grill and Bar in Southgate, Mich., last week. Glad to see folks are making constructive use of their time.
Dislikes: Can any driver in Florida use a turn signal? Please? ... So I'm working in the room Saturday night while watching Kansas-Kansas State, and ESPN goes out. I've got, like, 60-some channels in the hotel room, and every single one of them is working except ESPN. So that lasts about 15 minutes, and it finally comes on. Great. Then midway through the first half, it goes out again. Why couldn't, say, the Jewelry Channel have gone out? Or QVC? Or the Food Network. Lemme tell ya, life on the road is not easy. ... Aw, the end came too soon for the St. Mary Catholic Central Falcons, 69-52 losers to Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard in a Class C Michigan High School boys' basketball District tournament final.
Sunblock day? Gorgeous. Warm sun, bit of a breeze, temps around 80.
Rock-n-Roll lyric of the day:
"Lookin' for somebody
Young enough to take it on
Clean up the corruption
And make the country strong
-- Neil Young, Lookin' for a Leader