AJPettersen

I awake with sore hands and forearms, worry and stress cause me to clench my fists while I sleep-an outward manifestation of an inward feeling. My body tenses up in a reaction to the stresses of life. The only way I am able to defend against my stress reaction is through letting go, through surrendering. The truth is-open hands are always better than clenched fists. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] I cut through the Florida morning fog on the way to the complex and see the sun rising over empty fields. I walk into the clubhouse to over 100 peers. Over 100 teammates. Over 100 opportunities. This small space packed full of dreamers used to be chaos to all my senses, but now it appears different. I have changed its meaning. I have dreamed of playing big games on big stages since I was a kid, but the more I play, the more I realize that the journey has been the dream all along. Recently I have wondered if the journey is about more than me. I would love to make a career out of baseball in the big leagues, it is something I strive for, but what if it's about something more? What if I could be a small piece of someone else's dream? What if a little encouragement or advice could help them make a career out of playing in the big leagues? How cool would that be? I return home to see my parents have arrived-they are on vacation from Minnesota. They greet with smiles and hugs. Their presence reminds me of the wisdom they have shown throughout my life. My mom has struggled to see me fail over and over, but she let it happen because she knew I needed to learn. She has an incredible heart and she constantly reminds me that I ought to strive to have a heart like that for others. My dad still texts me before games and reminds me to play free. He knows that in the letting go, I am able to be my best. When I free myself of stress, worries and angst, I play differently. What if everyone let go and worked, learned or played freely? What if we set aside our own stresses and concerned ourselves with the stresses of others? What would that look like? I lay my head down for the night and mark a successful day because my journey has taken an unexpected, profound twist that has left it with far more meaning than before. Follow me on Twitter this year! @apettersen1

I awake with sore hands and forearms, worry and stress cause me to clench my fists while I sleep- an outward manifestation of an inward feeling. My body tenses up in reaction to the stresses of life. The only way I am able to defend against my stress reaction is through letting go, through surrendering. The truth is- open hands are always better than clenched fists. I cut through the Florida morning fog on the way to the complex and see the sun rising over empty fields. I walk into the clubhouse to over 100 peers. Over 100 teammates. Over 100 opportunities. This small space packed full of dreamers used to be chaos to all my senses, but now it appears different. I have changed its meaning. I have dreamed of playing big games on big stages since I was a kid, but the more I play, the more I realize that the journey has been the dream all along. Recently I have wondered if the journey is about more than me. I would love to make a career out of baseball in the big leagues, it is something I strive for, but what if it's about something more? What if I could be a small piece of someone else's dream? What if a little encouragement or advice could help him make a career out of playing in the big leagues? How cool would that be? I return home to see my parents have arrived- they are on vacation from Minnesota. They greet with smiles and hugs. Their presence reminds me of the wisdom they have shown throughout my life. My mom has struggled seeing me fail over and over, but she let it happen because she knew I needed to learn. She has an incredible heart and she constantly reminds me that I ought to strive to have a heart like that for others. My dad still texts me before games and reminds me to play free. He knows that in the letting go, I am able to be my best. When I free myself of stress, worries and angst, I play differently. What if everyone let go and worked, learned or played freely? What if we set aside our own stresses and concerned ourselves with the stresses of others? What would that look like? I lay my head down for the night and mark a successful day because my journey has taken an unexpected, profound twist that has left it with far more meaning than before. Follow me on Twitter this year! @apettersen1

I walked outside to grab the mail and a little girl came whizzing by on a bike. She stopped when she saw me. I knelt down and introduced myself, "I'm AJ," I shook her hand. "Hi, I'm Olivia," she responded. She told me she was 6 years old, later I met her twin 4 year old siblings, Alexis and Ray. They were all so full of life. I saw them the next day, and the next. Pretty soon they were ringing the doorbell everyday to ask if I could come out and play. Now, each day at 4:30, we hang out. We walk and talk. I hear about school projects, about home experiments, about weekend plans. Sometimes the light can shine through when you least expect it.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Spring training is approaching fast. It's a month full of questions. Where will I be this season? Will I be around at all? The stress starts to mount as the chaos of 150 guys in one clubhouse is about to commence. I get sucked up in it all, worrying about what coach thinks what and what player ends up where. But every day at 4:30 my friends are waiting for me and they don't care about those things. They remind me of myself when I was younger. The days when I would just go play, without attaching a stigma to the playing or stressing about where the next game would occur. I would live for the day and play until it was time to go in, then I would wait for the next time. Culture has a way of skewing what playing is really all about. I play a game for a living, it's the same game I played when I was 5, 15 and it's the same one I play now at 25. Somewhere along the way I started to stress about things that weren't connected with the playing. Things outside of my control. This is what makes me most thankful for my new friends-they play as I should. Why can't I be the same? They play to enjoy it and when it's over, they wait for the next chance. How simple. So I will continue to play with my friends-go on walks, ride bikes and scooters, because I know that's what I need. They will keep me playing in the present and they will stop me from worrying about the future. I have a lot to learn from Olivia, Alexis and Ray-they are who I was, and who I ought to be. Follow me on Twitter this Spring Training! @apettersen1

Happy Halloween to all, I hope you enjoyed the costumes and loads of candy. In keeping with the post surgery articles, I'll give an update on what's going on. I got my cast off a couple of days ago at the Mayo Clinic, here's how it went. The drive down to Rochester felt much faster this time because I was shedding a cast rather than getting one put on. The inability to scratch itches and straighten my elbow had gotten old. I went to the same unit as last time and met my new best friend-the nurse with the saw. He quickly removed the cast to reveal this: [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Can you guess which one I had surgery on? There was a lot of dead skin and my forearm was looking rather gaunt, but it was still attached. I swear I heard it gasp for air. I'm still taking guesses for how much weight my left arm lost in 6 weeks. The surgeon came in and did a quick check. He said everything looked to be progressing nicely and that the ligament was officially healed up. My arm didn't want to move from the cast position it was in, but it was time to start range of motion exercises. I need to regain full mobility before I can start strengthening. I was lucky to get to work with a physical therapist that had a lot of experience with athletes. She had been doing therapy for 28 years-she was a pro. We chatted while she did an arts and crafts project making a fitted splint. I learned that she is about to go on vacation-to run the New York City marathon, impressive. When the splint was finished she ran me through the list of motions I would do for 5 sets, 5 times per day. It sounds aggressive, but you wouldn't think so if you saw them. They consist of passive stretching-forward, back, side to side and twisting. If you can't picture that, check out this Wikipedia page-Passive stretching - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Measurements were taken to keep track of my mobility. When I hit certain check points, I can move on to other exercises. In a few weeks I will go back and see the doctor to get looked at again and hopefully advance my routine. So that's where I am currently with wrist surgery recovery, I'm right on track to be ready to play in Spring Training, which is encouraging. I hope you enjoyed my update, but if you didn't, hopefully this cute picture of Willa in her "rufferee" Halloween costume will suffice. You can connect with me on Twitter (@apettersen1) or via email (ajpettersen1@gmail.com)

After I received so many responses on my first post about my wrist surgery, I decided it would be interesting to continue updating the Twins Daily community on my progress. Hopefully my journey provides everyone with a little insight into something different in the world of professional baseball. Today is 13 days post op. My wife and I took a short jaunt down Highway 52 to the Mayo Clinic. On the docket was a switch from a splint to a hard cast. We arrived at the 15th floor for my appointment. It's the kind of place that offers a surprise behind every door. Door A for pre op, door B for surgery, door C for casts-a super utility floor for a super utility guy. Makes me feel right at home. I was extremely excited for the arrival of a real cast as it meant a return to exercise, and a possible return to video gaming. The nurse came in and started cutting away, she got through all the fluff to reveal the forearm of a 7th grade boy. What happened? You don't want to see what's under there A new nurse named Bill entered with the PA who was present during my operation. She said Bill was the best at this-he had been doing it for 33 years. He was an experienced casting magician. After my arm was cleaned and sanitized, he started the wrapping process, I swear I heard him call out a few spells under his breath. After sufficient pre-wrapping material, Bill started getting the hard plaster material wet. He used some more wizardry and the cast began hardening. Going to need a silver sharpie so all my friends can sign it When the PA returned I asked an important question regarding video games. She said one hour of Madden at a time would suffice. Working out for the first time in a couple weeks felt great, even though I am still unable to use both arms. I thought it would only prevent me from doing bench press and push-ups. What I didn't imagine was difficulty...tying my shoes. I mean really, have you ever tried to tie your shoes with one hand? Do yourself a favor and do the one-handed shoe tying challenge today. It is incredible. I used my teeth and my other foot, and eventually got them tied loosely. The next step to look forward in my recovery is when the hard cast comes off in four weeks. I hope you enjoy a look inside my rehabilitation. While not one journey is the same, many ball players go through the process sometime in their career. To follow my journey and the randomness the offseason often brings, check me out on Twitter- @apettersen1

Injuries are tough to deal with, but they are part of the game of baseball. After playing nearly every day for six months, there are bound to be aches and pains. Some things resolve with rest, while others need medical attention. After this year ended, I had a wrist issue I knew I had to get taken care of. I got an MRI and after meeting with Dr. Steubs (the head Twins doc), I was referred to Dr. Berger at the Mayo Clinic. He is an ulnar sided wrist pain expert, so I was hopeful that he could fix me up. My wife, Emily, and I took the trip down to Rochester on Monday to have an evaluation done. Dr. Berger introduced himself and began feeling around for pain and discomfort. He found a few areas and then looked at the MRI to determine the significance. While wrist pain is often very difficult to diagnose, he told me there was a 95% chance I had a split tear in one of my ligaments called the ulnotriquetral ligament (UT for short). The best way to explain this is with Twizzler's Pull and Peels. Rather than the ligament ripping across the Twizzler's, it was separating the long way. The fibers were tearing and opening like a book. Dr. Berger had performed this operation many times since he invented it eight years ago. He has performed it on baseball players, golfers and many others. I felt fairly confident in his ability to fix the problem so we decided to do surgery on Wednesday. We arrived at the surgery center around 9 am and by 9:30 I had an IV in. The nurse advised my wife to ask questions after she put “truth serum” into my line. An anesthesiologist arrived and explained that the surgery would be performed with a nerve block. She numbed my skin and hooked up an ultrasound machine so she could see exactly what she was doing. She was trying to explain to me what was happening on the screen. All I could think was, "I'm just glad you went to a lot of school to learn how to do this." Once a sufficient amount of numbing medication was injected into the nerves beneath my armpit, she checked the results. She asked me to pull and then push. Eventually she pushed my wrist down and it just flopped, all feeling was gone. Staring at your own arm without sensing it is a very odd feeling. A little later, in the operating room, I was given more sedative drugs and sent off to lala land. I woke up what seemed like 5 minutes later. Dr. Berger came in and said the split tear was deep (picture the binding of the open book falling apart), but he was able to stitch it closed. He also found another small tear in the area and was able to clean it out. He handed me a sheet full of pictures for proof. It appeared to be a bunch of clouds inside my arm, looked like it was about to storm. Again I thought, “good thing he knows what he’s looking at.” I'll be in a post surgery cast for two weeks, followed by four more in a plaster cast and then a removable splint. The doc tried to apologize for the hour and a half drive to get the casts changed, I told him it was a very small price to pay to have him cut me open. I'm not allowed to exercise for two weeks, so Netflix is currently keeping me sane. A healthy dose of pain meds, Parenthood and naps will fill the next few days. I'm lucky to have a wife that takes care of me/puts up with me post surgery (she was also there after the nose smashing incident my first year). I hope you enjoyed the look at an injury from the player's perspective. I'm happy to be on the road to recovery! Follow me through the recovery process and the offseason on Twitter! @APettersen1 You can also follow my wife as she gives a little different take on minor league life @em_pettersen or on her blog emilyandaj.blogspot.com If you have any questions or comments you can email me at ajpettersen1@gmail.com

The Rules: A black cat can be anything someone says that is good about your own team or bad about the visiting team. The opposite will inevitably happen. Example 1: “Our starting pitcher is dicing up the other team today. He’s going to throw a shutout. Black cat. He will give up a run and come out of the game.” Example 2: “This team hasn’t hit a home run in a while, they look awful at the plate. Black cat. They will hit a home run and start squaring balls up.”[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] A white dog is anything bad about our team or good about the other team. Example 1: “We never score first. White dog. We score three runs in the first inning.” Example 2: “These guys crush fastballs. White dog. Don’t hit a fastball hard all day.” If you intentionally black cat someone it turns into a white dog and vice versa. If you black cat someone it is customary to take them out to lunch. I was getting ready for the game, when one of the bullpen pitchers asked who was starting for the other team. I explained that he was a top prospect, but recently had a slew of bad outings and reportedly lost some velocity. As I was talking some other bullpen guys joined in on the conversation. One of them had a look in his eye like I just said something catastrophic. “Black cat!” He yelled. I had no idea what he was talking about, which he figured out from the confused look on my face. After he explained the rules to me, I understood that as far as the bullpen was concerned, I had sealed our fate that day. Superstition has been a part of baseball for a very long time. Some guys wear the same socks or shirts without washing them for days at a time, while others will go to crazy lengths to keep everything the same from past successful games. The black cat/white dog has become an interesting superstition in the Rock Cats bullpen this year. Whether these rules ring true or not, you will have to decide for yourself. A special thanks to Matt Hauser and the rest of the bullpen for their help with this article. You can follow Matt on Twitter @MHauser_17. You can also follow me on Twitter @APettersen1 or email me at ajpettersen1@gmail.com.

​Sorry it has taken me so long to get back on here folks, but I’ll give you my latest news here. Here is a review of the first half. It has been quite a whirlwind. I arrived in Florida with my wife in early January, so I have been doing Twins related activities for a while now. The first change of plans occurred when I found I would be heading to Cedar Rapids to start the season. I was sent down the last week of Spring Training and began to prepare for the trip back up north. In the few days following I got to play with Byron Buxton, which was a treat. The way he goes about his business is impressive and his tool set is off the charts. He is an exciting player to be around.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] I like to say my first promotion was when the trucks were loading up to go to their respective cities. We ship a lot of our items to the cities, so that air travel is less hectic. I was told to take my stuff out of the Cedar Rapids pile because I could be staying in Florida. This was confirmed later in the day. I had been sent down and promoted within a week, minor league baseball can be crazy sometimes. A 12 game win streak, a 24-4 record and a few Sano bombs later and I was heading to Portland, Maine to join New Britain. This was obviously unexpected when the season started, but was a very exciting opportunity. I played a night game in Fort Myers and played the next day at noon in Maine. I arrived in the clubhouse about an hour before the game to find out the pitcher we were facing threw 59-66 MPH. I knew AA would be different, but had they checked their radar gun lately? Charlie Haeger was on the mound-the first predominantly knuckleball pitcher I had ever faced. My dad had been visiting in Florida so he decided to drive my car up the coast (roughly 24 hours) and made it for my second AA game. His reasoning, “this is exciting, this kind of stuff doesn’t happen very often.” Once again, minor league baseball is crazy at times. My wife finished her travel nursing assignment and joined me a few weeks later with our dog. A couple of weeks after that, more friends from Fort Myers joined the Rock Cats. While I haven’t gotten off the best AA start, it has been quite the journey. Sometimes in baseball you have to expect the unexpected. It has been fun getting the chance to play with guys who have been in the big leagues. We faced a pitcher early on, who got his debut a few weeks later. It makes the “Show” seem a lot more attainable. I have seen three knuckleballers, numerous top prospects and some great stadiums. We just got back from Altoona, where a rollercoaster sits beyond right field. Some more highlights have been seeing the hardest ball ever hit (a few nights ago off the bat of Sano) and getting two baseball cards in one season (got promoted at just the right time). I hope to get back on here more often in the coming weeks and look forward to interacting with the Twins Daily community more! Follow me on Twitter @apettersen1 or email me at ajpettersen1@gmail.com. I welcome any and all questions or comments!

When I was younger, my brothers and I loved to play video games. We took a liking to games of all kinds, but especially enjoyed playing baseball games together. Typically we wouldn’t “play” many of the games, we would simulate them. This allowed us to get in a number of seasons in a short amount of time. We would sit for hours in front of the television, hanging on every game in the careers of imaginary players on a screen. It sounds ridiculous, but video games gave us a hope that these players could be us one day. Each of us would usually take a liking to a specific guy. This guy would play a similar style to our game and we would take them from draft day to the Hall of Fame…in a few weeks time. We would imagine ourselves in his shoes, getting called on draft day, debuting in the big leagues, becoming an All Star and a hero for his team. It was wash, dry, fold, repeat.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Every year a new game would come out and we would get our hands on it, spending hours trying to perfect our players and our squad into World Series champions. This has been a way for us to bond as siblings. We still try to play against each other remotely. Over the past few years we have played an online game called Strat-O-Matic Baseball. It was perfect for us because we could play in the same league and the entire game was based on simulation. Recently I stumbled upon a game called Out of the Park Baseball. It too is a game based entirely on simulation, but unlike Strat-O-Matic, it is a comprehensive package. OOTP 14 recently came out and I was given the chance to preview it. If you enjoy Twins Daily’s Prospect and GM Handbooks, you will enjoy this game. While you can sit and imagine what you would do if given the chance to run an organization, this game gives you that opportunity. You control every team to every detail with personalized options available for each player. You control contracts, call-ups and team strategy. The new game added the new rosters for 2013. Free agents can now come from a number of different places-the draft, international signings, independent ball, etc. A new interface makes navigating the game much easier and a new player development tracking system allows you to get a better grip on your farm teams. I thought everyone here at Twins Daily would enjoy it. If you do decide to get the game, be prepared for a possible addiction. I spent a number of hours playing the game right when I got it. I shared this game with my older brother and he immediately began playing. It is a fun way to feel connected to your hometown team and it can also be great way to get to know more guys in the system. If you are interested you can check the game out here: https://store2.esellerate.net/store/checkout/CustomLayout.aspx?s=STR6838997456&pc=&page=OnePageCatalog.htm Follow AJ on Twitter @APettersen1 or email him at AJPettersen1@gmail.com