Spoke with Russell Branyan on Monday night and this story on his progress from the back problems that bugged him this year ran in this morning’s sports section. It didn’t make our online edition, however, so here it is for the thousands … OK, hundreds … OK, dozens … well, those of you who see this blog.
By Kirby Arnold
Herald Writer
Russell Branyan hopes he has found the weak link in a body that broke down this season for the Seattle Mariners.
Bothered with back problems from spring training and finally sidelined the final month because of a herniated disc, the big first baseman has been working three days a week with a therapist near his offseason home in Franklin, Tenn.
“Just in the last week and a half, I’ve really started feeling good,” Branyan said. “I didn’t realize that my supporting muscles, especially my hips, were so weak.”
Playing on a regular basis for the first time in his career, Branyan set career highs with 116 games, 431 at-bats, 31 home runs and 76 runs batted in.
He has experienced back problems other times in his career, but playing on a part-time basis gave him time to recover. Playing every day with the Mariners didn’t allow that.
“This past year was first year I’ve played every day in a long time, and now I know what I need to do to get through a full season,” Branyan said.
One target this offseason is his core strength.
“One thing my therapist here really exposed was how weak my hips are,” he said. “We were laughing at how weak some of the muscles are in my hips, and we’re doing manual exercised to isolate the hips.”
So far, he feels great.
“I’ve been feeling awesome,” Branyan said. “I’m to the point where I’ll start getting back in the gym shortly. I’ve been home only three weeks but it’s amazing how much stronger I’ve gotten and how much I’ve learned what I need to do to compete over a full season.”
Branyan, a free agent, wants to return to the Mariners and said he spoke briefly with general manager Jack Zduriencik after the season.
“He said they want to talk and try to propose something,” Branyan said. “But I haven’t heard anything yet. I like it out there, but that’s out of my control at this point. I can’t go to the team and say, ‘Sign me.’ All I can do is wait and see what happens and enjoy watching the World Series.”
Branyan’s Series pick?
“I’ve got to go with the Phillies,” he said. “But the way C.C. Sabathia is throwing for the Yankees, he’s going to be tough to hit. Both teams have spots in their rotations where there’s lots of uncertainty, so there could be a lot of scoring.”
It’s also been a nice offseason for Branyan from a non-baseball aspect.
His wife, Jill, is within days of giving birth to their third child (a girl). And they are finishing off the new home they bought last winter — installing a swimming pool and a garage.
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