SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Eduardo Escobar wasn’t sure what happened.
One moment, he was sitting at his home in Venezuela not feeling well, and the next thing he knew he was in the hospital.
“I got a bug in Venezuela. They had to hospitalize me,” Escobar said. “My brain had a little swelling, and I was in the hospital for about four or five days. I was scared, but fortunately everything was OK and I’m OK now.”
Escobar was in the hospital over Christmas, but he said the doctors told him he is 100 percent healthy.
“There’s nothing to worry about,” Escobar said. “Everything turned out OK, and I’m here and ready to play, perfectly healthy.”
Spring Training memories
D-backs infielder/outfielder Josh Rojas grew up in Arizona, and Spring Training was his favorite time of year.
“Chase Field I went to every once in a while, but Spring Training was always a really big event out here,” Rojas said. “It was your chance to see guys from all over the place. One of my favorite players growing up was Ichiro [Suzuki], so for him to come out here every year when he was with Seattle and see him play every year, stuff like that is pretty awesome.”
Rojas has played all over the diamond during his professional career -- every position except center field and catcher -- but he played mainly in the outfield for the D-backs after coming over in a trade from the Astros just before last year’s Trade Deadline.
While he hasn’t been told what he should expect, Rojas is focused on being a utility player who can play every day.
“I can kind of see what my role might be based on how the team is shaping up,” he said. “So I’m going to continue to work on my craft at both infield and outfield and wherever I’m needed, that’s where I’ll be. In the Minor Leagues, I was a utility guy playing every day. There were times where I would go 10 straight days playing a different position every day. I love that. I love showing up to the yard and knowing that I could play a different spot each day. It’s kind of refreshing.”
D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said Rojas will get time both in the infield and outfield this spring.
’Magic’ Mike Hazen
D-backs GM Mike Hazen was referred to as a “magician” by a fan at FanFest over the weekend, and that’s a moniker that team owner Ken Kendrick agrees with, given the way Hazen has pulled off the difficult trick of rebuilding a farm system while also keeping the team in contention.
“One of the things, I think, was in a question from a fan that they referred to him as a magician,” Kendrick said. “That’s a pretty nice way to think about what he’s performed. We’re very impressed with he and his team.”
Marte migraine
Outfielder Starling Marte suffered a migraine Sunday that prevented him from taking his physical with the rest of the position players. He was still a bit limited Monday, but he did take some batting practice.