There was another Brian Roberts sighting today. He was outside the indoor batting cages swinging a weighted bat and loosening up to hit. This would normally would not prompt much interest, except that Roberts has tried hard to stay out of sight during the early days of spring training.
This is understandable at both ends of the player/reporter relationship. Roberts obviously has grown tired of questions about his long recovery from a pair of concussions. He doesn't want to give daily updates on his condition, that much was apparent the one time Orioles reporters saw him during the offseason -- at the annual charity Christmas party in December, where Roberts resisted any attempts to gauge his progress.
Of course, anybody with a rudimentary understanding of economic theory knows that when you restrict the supply of something, the demand for it grows in relatively equal proportion, so we in the media are hungry for any newsy tidbit about Roberts.
That's why several reporters and one photographer pulled out of a tour of the new training facility to watch him do something that for any other position player in camp would be perfunctory. He talked to them briefly and outlined his routine, which includes tee work and playing catch, and said he would talk more at length when position players officially begin workouts later this week.
He's the Orioles man of mystery, and that mystery isn't going to be solved for quite awhile -- so stay tuned.
Orioles: Stalking Brian Roberts
Brian Roberts has kept to himself during the early pitcher/catcher phase of spring training, which is why every sighting sparks interest in his recovery from a pair of concussions. (Getty Images)