Major League Baseball

Brewers' Greinke enjoys ride after bumpy start

Published Sep. 15, 2011 11:16 p.m. ET

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Zack Greinke ate alone in his locker at spring training in the Milwaukee Brewers' clubhouse.

He was frustrated, plus a little worried as doubt crept into his mind after learning he'd cracked a rib in a pickup basketball game and would miss a month.

It was exactly the start the 2009 AL Cy Young winner didn't want with a new team. He thought about the negative attention he'd face after being the centerpiece of baseball's biggest offseason trade, a six-player blockbuster with Kansas City.

''When they initially found out I was hurt at the time, I was uncomfortable with how I was going to be (perceived),'' Greinke said. ''The first two weeks I didn't realize I was hurt and thought I'd be able to pitch through it.''

Anxiety is something Greinke has long struggled with. It cost him most of the 2006 season when he walked away from baseball. He doesn't like talking about the medications or how tired he gets from certain tasks.

For a moment, he believed he might be stuck again.

Instead, the Brewers sent a strong message.

''A couple of the guys said that they would be able to get through the first month of the season without me, but don't get hurt again,'' Greinke said. ''They could make it a month, but they didn't want to have to try to do it for longer.''

Greinke began feeling more comfortable immediately.

He asked manager Ron Roenicke if he could accompany the club - almost demanded it - while he was on the disabled list. Greinke was reaching out, trying not to let an opportunity pass.

''I wanted to make sure I could travel with the team because it was going to be a while, and I needed to stay around the guys,'' Greinke said. ''I needed to get them comfortable being around me and me comfortable around him. That helped. It would've been better to be able to pitch, but at least I was able to stay with the them while I was hurt.''

Greinke was grateful for the early support, and since he's returned, he's meant even more to the NL Central leaders.

The Brewers have won all 13 times he's started at Miller Park this season. He's set a franchise record with his 10-0 start at home.

Since the All-Star break he's 7-3 with a 2.38 ERA, closely mirroring the numbers of his Cy Young numbers when he was 16-8 with a 2.16 ERA for a Royals squad that lost 97 games.

Overall, he's 14-6 with a 3.87 ERA and averaging more than a strikeout per inning.

''The year that he won the Cy Young, his numbers were ridiculous that year,'' Roenicke said. ''I don't think when a guy has a year like that that it's fair to say you expect that from him every year. What he's doing right now is huge.''

On the field, Greinke believed he'd be fine anywhere when he waived his no-trade clause to join Milwaukee. Off the field, the social anxiety is something he's continued to keep in check.

From the start, the Brewers worked to keep Greinke involved. He was called on in team meetings. He spoke out during drills. He also flashed a wry sense of humor toward his boastful teammates.

''There's not a lot of things I like to talk about. But it's fun for me to make fun of people who brag about stuff,'' Greinke said. ''Everyone thinks they're the best athlete. Just about everyone has a response to, 'I'm better than you at this.' ... No one on this team is sensitive.''

That includes Greinke.

''We don't treat him any differently, we don't give him a free pass by any means,'' Brewers left fielder Ryan Braun said. ''He's smart, he's witty, he's funny. He was just looking for a group of guys that wouldn't treat him differently. I really believe that.

''Whoever you are, when you come in here, we're going to have fun, we're going to talk trash, and I think he's really enjoyed that environment. He talks as much trash as anyone, from his fantasy football team to his hitting ability to his high school senior year stats.''

Greinke was a young tennis star who later felt he could become a pro golfer before he turned his attention fully to baseball. He never really wanted to be a pitcher because he liked hitting so much, but still wanted to be on the mound against the toughest opponents.

When he hit his first homer as member of the Brewers earlier this season, he let his teammates know it in the dugout. Prince Fielder, Braun and Corey Hart laughed over his reaction, and that he finally backed up his talk.

''He's never been left out,'' Hart said. ''We knew what he could do, but who knows how he would've performed if he felt like if he wasn't part of the group. Obviously he's succeeded, but a lot of that is because he's one of our guys and he fits in just as good as anybody.

''He's opened up a ton because he feels comfortable around our guys. Coming from one of the guys that everybody looks at, now he's just one of a group of guys.''

Roenicke said Greinke impressed him with his attention to detail.

''He likes to have discussions about meaningful things, not about fluff,'' Roenicke said. ''How do you pitch to certain guys on the other team? Or what's my best stuff - is it a curveball, is it the slider? If it's something that he believes is meaningful, he likes to talk about it. And he engages real well with the other guys.''

Greinke has a little corner in the locker room. It's his for at least one more year with Milwaukee even, no matter if Fielder and others leave in free agency. He knows he'll have to get to know new teammates, and the process will start again.

''Not everyone's going to be back. I'm not just talking about Prince,'' Greinke said. ''It's kind of tough.''

But no longer worrisome.

Instead, he's where he hoped to be the first day he stepped into the Brewers' clubhouse. He's just playing his part on a baseball team that is tantalizingly close to a postseason berth.

''I'm enjoying it,'' Greinke said, cracking a smile. ''I think everyone is.''

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