A’s Daily News Clips; Saturday, March 06, 2010 A's pitcher Ben Sheets sees initial start as 'W' By Joe Stiglich/Oakland Tribune. 3/5/10 PHOENIX — It was a short day's work, but Ben Sheets considered it a big hurdle cleared. Sheets threw 12/3 innings in his A's spring debut Friday against the Milwaukee Brewers, allowing four hits and two runs (one earned) in an 8-7 A's victory. It marked Sheets' first start in 17-plus months after he missed all of last season recovering from right elbow surgery. His command was off on his fastball and curveball, but Sheets felt fine physically afterward. For that, he considered his day a "W." "Seventeen months since I last faced a batter," he said. "I ain't gonna lie, it's not like I wasn't nervous out there. Once I got (in the flow), I felt pretty good." Milwaukee, Sheets' former team, put good wood on him in a two-run first inning, but throwing errors from catcher Kurt Suzuki and third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff didn't help. Sheets got George Kottaras swinging on a changeup to end the first. After Steffan Wilson singled with two outs in the second, A's manager Bob Geren pulled Sheets after 32 pitches. He was on a 35-pitch limit. "He just missed with his curve, but the more he threw you could tell he was right there," Geren said. "The most important thing is how he's feeling, and he said he feels great." Sheets underwent surgery in February 2009 to repair a torn flexor tendon. The A's signed him to a one-year, $10 million contract this winter. Sheets' debut commanded a big media turnout, and he fielded several questions regarding his time with the Brewers. Though his various injuries with Milwaukee were well-documented, Sheets said he pitched with his elbow hurt in 2008. He made his final start of that season on Sept. 27 but missed the postseason. "I gave what I had at the time. It cost me a whole year giving that, too," Sheets said. —... I wouldn't change a thing. I'd go back out there and be willing to blow my arm out again." Eric Chavez, learning to play first base, played five innings there Friday and tripled in his first at-bat. Included in his day was a nice stop of Gregg Zaun's grounder in the first. He was charged with an error when Lenny DiNardo's pickoff throw got by him in the fifth. "I'm still getting comfortable," Chavez said. "I'm glad this day's over. I got one in the books." After Ryan Braun walked in the fifth, Chavez caught himself holding Braun on even though there were runners on first and second. Brewers first base coach Ed Sedar had a chuckle and told him he could play back. "He hooked me up," Chavez said. Catcher Anthony Recker hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the sixth and the A's evened their Cactus League record at 1-1. Travis Buck, trying to win an outfield roster spot, also homered in the sixth. The A's committed four errors in the game, but Rajai Davis stood out in left field for a second straight day. He made a diving catch to rob Alcides Escobar in the second. Kouzmanoff started at third base after being limited in recent days with a bruised shin. He knocked down a laser off the bat of Braun in the first but threw wildly to first for an error. He batted cleanup and went 0-for-3. Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Angels at noon will be shown on tape delay on the MLB Network at 4 p.m. Chin Music: More familiar faces in A’s lineup vs. Brewers By Joe Stiglich/Bay Area News Group. 3/5/10 We’ve got a few more regulars in the A’s lineup today. Here’s what it looks like for Cactus League home opener vs. Brewers: Rajai LF Ellis 2B Suzuki C Kouzmanoff 3B Chavez 1B Cust DH Buck RF Rosales SS Patterson CF Sheets P It’ll be interesting to see how Bob Geren sets the middle of his batting order. I could see Suzuki-Kouzmanoff-Chavez-Cust being a potential combination in the middle, but I’m not sure how much we should glean from today’s order. For one thing, I don’t expect right-handers to take up the first four spots. Figure switch hitter Coco Crisp will occupy one of the top two spots when he plays. Chavez gets his first real game experience at first base, so we’ll see if he gets any difficult plays over there. Geren said the A’s broke out a stop watch yesterday and timed Chavez on how long it took him to cover the bag from where he was playing a hitter. They also compared that to the speeds with which many of the game’s fastest left-handed hitters get down the line. That gives him an idea of how much time he has to get to the base and receive a throw. Technical stuff, but still sorta interesting. That’s all for now … Sheets returns to mound, Chavez tries first Susan Slusser,/Chronicle Staff Writer. 3/6/10 Ben Sheets made his first start in an A's uniform Friday in the team's Cactus League home opener, and Eric Chavez made his first-ever start at first base, with an assist from Brewers first-base coach Ed Sedar. Sheets got knocked around a bit in the A's 8-7 victory over his former club, the Brewers. He allowed four hits and two runs, one earned, in 12/3 innings, but said he felt good overall in his first appearance in a game since Sept. 27, 2008. Sheets spent 2009 recovering from elbow surgery. "I felt great, I really did," said Sheets, who threw 34 pitches and was hitting 92 mph on the radar gun. "I was a little nervous - it had been 17 months since I last faced a batter. But the batter eases your mind. You've got to get back into it." "He's in the same boat I am," Chavez said of Sheets. "We're not out here to impress everyone today. Health is the big thing for us." Chavez, working his way back from two back surgeries and multiple shoulder surgeries, tripled in his first at-bat of the spring, and he played well in the field. The six-time Gold Glove third baseman will be Oakland's utility player, if healthy, and he's still learning to play first. "I was covering first at times I didn't need to," Chavez said. "Their first-base coach was like, 'Hey, you don't need to be here.' He hooked me up." Chavez was manning the bag with men at first and second, chatting with runner Ryan Braun, when Sedar told him it wasn't a situation to hold Braun. Chavez imitated doing a nonchalant wave and said with a grin, "I was like, 'OK, I just wanted to say hi.' " Chavez had to make a sliding stop to his right for a grounder by Gregg Zaun in the first, and he raced to the bag ahead of Zaun. He handled throws to the bag well, including a few that were offline, although the first that came his way was a wild overthrow by third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff. "The first one, I thought he was going to dive into the runner," Sheets said of Chavez. "That was a tough play for the first one. As good as he was at third, I don't think he'll have any problems playing first base." Briefly: Travis Buck hit a solo homer for the A's and minor-league catcher Anthony Recker a three-run shot. ... Jason Jennings threw a 24-pitch simulated game and will pitch in Monday's game. ... The A's game against Anaheim on Sunday will be aired on the MLB Network, tape-delayed at 4 p.m., with blackout restrictions lifted in the Bay Area. Ben Sheets' tenacity is no joking matter Bruce Jenkins/Chronicle Staff Writer. 3/6/10 The A's have a treasure in Ben Sheets, perhaps in more ways than they realize. They're going to need some humor, insight and old-fashioned courage as the season goes on, and Sheets loads all of that into a package that also includes four invitations to the All-Star Game. As Sheets made his spring debut in Friday's exhibition against the Milwaukee Brewers, it wasn't so hard to flash-forward to the regular season at the Coliseum: just a few thousand fans, strident voices heard loud and clear, a lineup devoid of star power, costly mistakes putting runs on the scoreboard. But there also was Sheets, taking the mound against big-league competition for the first time in 17 months in the wake of major elbow surgery. At times, in the A's company, it seemed he was all alone out there. He probably felt a bit forlorn as the Brewers took a 2-0 lead during his 30-pitch assignment, few of his storied curveballs finding the strike zone. ("None of them," he confirmed, "went over the plate.") It's just that all of Sheets' postgame comments came with a smirk, a little something extra. He's a pretty good-natured guy to begin with, endearing with his southern-Louisiana accent and perhaps the baggiest uniform pants worn by any pitcher in baseball.