Rick Patrick
rick@greenepublishing.com
It has been a long off-season for former Madison County High School (MCHS) Cowboy Lorenzo Cain and the rest of the Milwaukee Brewers. But the 10-year veteran is working to get back into "playing shape" ahead of the start of the 2020 major league baseball season.
In an interview with MLB.com, Cain said he was able to do a lot of running on his property in Oklahoma, but did not have access to a gym, due to the pandemic. It wasn't until the week before the formal start to summer camp that Cain was able to face live pitchers. When he finally faced real pitchers, one of them was Brandon Woodruff, the Brewers' All-Star right-hander. "It didn't go well for me," said Cain.
Despite the lack of real work-out capabilities, Cain did have a trio of "work-out partners" who were glad to help. Cain's young sons - Cameron, Jayden and Landyn - kept dad moving quite a bit. "They kept me very busy every day, going outside and playing catch or chasing them around," said Cain. "It definitely helped out a lot. They got used to their dad being home for the summer. That was definitely weird for me, because I don't think I've been home for the summer since I was 18. We tried to kind of enjoy it as much as possible, and just take advantage of spending time with my family. We had a blast, but it's back to work now. I'm definitely not in the shape I was when I got to spring training, but I'm trying to get back there. The legs, the swing, just trying to get it all back to where it was."
The Brewers had an exhibition game with the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, July 22. The regular 60-game season begins on the road for the Brewers with the start of a three-game series with the Chicago Cubs on Friday, July 24. That series is followed by a three-game road stint in Pittsburgh against the Pirates. The Brewers' home opener is on Friday, July 31, when they face the St. Louis Cardinals.