JUPITER, Fla. — JUPITER, Fla. - Ex-Orioles outfielder Jay Gibbons, trying to make it back to the majors with the Florida Marlins, was hoping to face his former teammates yesterday at Roger Dean Stadium, but that'll be a story for another day.
"I kind of was looking forward to playing against old friends, but I don't think it's going to be weird," he said. "It's more fun seeing some old teammates, old friends and remembering the old times."
Gibbons took a circuitous route back to major league training camp, playing for the independent Long Island Ducks and spending time in Double-A and Triple-A with the Milwaukee Brewers last year. Now, he's competing for an outfield role with the Marlins.
Gibbons has no complaints about how he was treated by the Orioles, who released him last spring after he struggled to live up to his large contract after his admitted involvement in baseball's steroid scandal.
"I'm disappointed with the way it ended, that's for sure," he said. "I didn't fulfill the contract the way they wanted me to. I wanted to play better towards the end, and it just didn't happen. I don't have any resentment towards them at all. You don't bite the hand that feeds you. They were great to me. I look at the good times I had there. Yeah, we struggled, but I had so many good times and so many good memories there that there's no way I could feel any resentment at all."
The Orioles are still on the hook for nearly $6 million of Gibbons' guaranteed salary this year, but anything he earns in the majors is subtracted from that guarantee.
Jones scratched
Adam Jones was scheduled to be in center field for yesterday's exhibition game, but he was scratched from the trip because of right forearm stiffness. The problem is not believed to be serious.
Good first step
Looking to earn a spot in the Opening Day rotation, former top prospect Hayden Penn threw two scoreless innings in the Orioles' 3-2 loss to the Marlins. Penn allowed two hits but struck out three.
Baltimore Sun reporter Jeff Zrebiec contributed to this article.