SARASOTA, Fla. _ There might not be a player in the Orioles clubhouse more thankful just to put on a major league uniform than outfielder Craig Gentry. And that's because just a few months ago, he didn't think he'd have another chance to be a big leaguer again.
Not that long ago, Gentry was one of the best fourth outfielders in baseball, a player who brought speed on the bases, patience at the plate and hustle on defense. But the style Gentry played _ head-first slides, slamming into outfield walls _ sometimes comes at a cost, and the price he has paid is a tremendous one.
That Gentry is in big league camp, that he's fighting for one of the Orioles' final Opening Day roster spots heading into the last days of spring training, that he's even on a baseball field, all seemed very unlikely given his ordeals.
"Honestly, after the past couple years, I didn't know if this opportunity would come again," Gentry said. "I assumed I might be able to be in the minor leagues (this year), something like that, but the opportunity to make a big league team, I didn't know if that would ever pop up again."
At age 33, Gentry landing with the Orioles _ he signed a minor league deal one day after the team's first full-squad workout as part of the club's continuing efforts to improve its outfield defense _ could be a case of the right place and perfect timing.
"He's shown you he can do it when he's healthy," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. "He just hasn't been healthy the past two years. I think he's a prime example of the type of thing we have to do better than other clubs. If he's healthy and he's returned to form, he's a weapon."
Over his career, Gentry's body has taken a beating. He has dealt with a litany of injuries: fractures to both hands on separate attempts to bunt, a broken wrist while crashing into an outfield wall, and back, ankle and hamstring injuries. But it was a concussion Gentry suffered while playing with the Oakland Athletics in 2014 that sent his career _ and life _ into a two-year spiral.
