Major League Baseball

Rasmus: Houston 'definitely a better place for me' than Toronto

Published May. 15, 2015 12:39 a.m. ET

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Outfielder Colby Rasmus is facing his former club, the Toronto Blue Jays, in a series this weekend. Before Thursday's series opener, the Houston Astros' free agent signee spoke a bit about how it feels to play against the Jays, with whom he spent 2011-2014. 

As he told Chris Abshire of MLB.com, Rasmus has mixed feelings about his tenure in Toronto. When asked about the difference between the two clubs, Rasmus offered this up:

"I can kind of be myself and don't have other people judging me all the time. It's more of a friendly environment, everybody gets along a little better, not poking and prodding about how much [playing] time you got and worrying about what other people are doing. I fit in better here, not having to look over my shoulder worrying about being a veteran or how many years you have or how much [playing] time you have and the pecking order of it. I'm not going to go into any details, but I feel more comfortable in this clubhouse and in this environment."

So what was the issue? In addition to the unforgiving artificial turf at the Rogers Centre, Rasmus said things went south whenever he struggled: "When I wasn't producing like I [had been], it wasn't as comfortable," he said. "[After playing] nearly 60 games in a row on the turf, I started to teeter off and my hamstrings were hurting and you're not playing up to expected, then things change. Friendly smiles aren't as friendly anymore. That's just the way it goes."

He also only had one start in September, a circumstance that was less than enjoyable for him: "That was tough, you know, not getting to play the last month. I wiped it out of my mind, that's all behind me. [Houston] is definitely a better place for me."

So far with the Astros, Rasmus is hitting .232/.303/.485 with six home runs and 13 RBIs. 

(h/t MLB.com)

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