LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- When Freddie Freeman arrived for Spring Training on Tuesday, he addressed the plan to protect his right wrist by limiting his activity during the early weeks of camp. The antsy Braves first baseman then took some batting practice on Wednesday and attempted to persuade the team's medical staff to allow him to take more swings when the Braves staged their first full-squad workout on Thursday.
"I'm not hitting today, but I'll go back to hitting tomorrow," Freeman said. "I already told them I could hit today, but they were like 'No, no, no.' I'll keep trying to push the envelope. I feel good. No problems today. So, that's a good sign."
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At least from a mental perspective, Freeman took a step forward on Wednesday, when he hit some soft pitches thrown by hitting coach Kevin Seitzer in the indoor batting cages. This marked the first time he had hits balls thrown from an overhand trajectory since his right wrist forced him to miss most of the final week of the 2015 season.
"I haven't seen that in a long time and it was definitely nice to see it," Freeman said. "The big test I think we all know is the repeating of having to swing a hundred or two hundred times every single day. Once I get through that, it will not only ease my mind but everybody else's."
With Opening Day still a little more than five weeks away, the Braves have no intention of rushing Freeman, who battled lingering discomfort for nearly six months after suffering a sprain and bone bruise of his right wrist on June 13. Any activity that forced him to impinge his wrist, including opening a water bottle, created some discomfort throughout a portion of this offseason.
Freeman admits he has had "some good days and some bad days" since he was first cleared to begin taking dry swings and hitting off of a tee on Dec. 31. He had not progressed to the point to hit overhand tosses until Wednesday and he still has not swung a bat more than two consecutive days.
"Whenever I take a weird swing, I still have that feeling of, 'Is it going to go?'" Freeman said. "But right now, I just need to get past that. It's all mental for me right now. Physically, I feel good. So right now, it's all mental."