PORT CHARLOTTE (620 WDAE) -- After missing five days dealing with a family issue, including the first day of full-squad practice, outfielder Steven Souza Jr. returned to Spring Training Tuesday to continue getting ready for the season.
Souza would not elaborate on the issue that caused him to return to Seattle, but did say that everyone involved is OK "for now."
The soon-to-be 29-year-old was pleased with his 2017 season for the most part, but did make some changes to try and maintain the consistency.
"We play six months of baseball, and I would say I played five good months of baseball. And unfortunately they don't grade you on five months of baseball," Souza admitted. "So I changed my workout routine to try and basically push myself to the limit of how long can I sustain this strength for. A lot more conditioning and stuiff like that. I want to go out there and be the best I can until the last game of the year."
Souza also got some help in tweaking his diet.
"My wife and I kind of helped each other be accountable, he said. "[We] tried to cut back on as much sugar as possible. Tried to eat a lot more greens and a lot less pizza. I love pizza. It's been an ongoing process, we didn't cold turkey it. Just gotten better and so I have her to thank for that."
He also returned to camp with a different feel to the clubhouse as both Jake Odirzzi and Corey Dickerson were moved during his absence. However, the outfielder looked at things for a pragmatic point of view.
"My contract says I play right field for the Tampa Bay Rays," Souza said. "I'm not a GM, and at the end of the day, Erik [Neander] is our boss. And if he and [manager Kevin] Cash think this is the best for our team, I'm going to go out there and give it 100 percent."
He added that while he'll miss both Odorizzi and Dickerson personally, he knows that this is how the team operates and no one should be surprised. He also voiced his excitement to once again play with first baseman C.J. Cron, who was added from the Los Angeles Angels for a player to be named later.
"I played with C.J. in the Arizona Fall League," Souza said, noting the 2013 Mesa Solar Sox team. "He was the best hitter on our team. And we had a 3-4-5 that was him, Kris Bryant, and me."
Listen to comments from Souza below!