Brewers veteran Randy Wolf first broke into the big leagues in 1999, with the Phillies. At this point, he's a veteran of 14 spring trainings. So, when Wolf assesses a Cactus League season, it carries some weight.
Thus, Milwaukee fans should be pleased when they hear Wolf describe the vibe around his clubhouse as "positive." According to the 35-year-old lefthander, the Brewers are about to break camp in Arizona with sound bodies and minds.
"Spring training went well," Wolf declared Tuesday. "Because guys, for the most part, were healthy. ... All the pitchers pitched well, got our innings in. Our strength is good.
"I think we're finally at the stage where we're tired of being in Maryvale (Baseball Park, in Phoenix) and getting ready to get out of here," he added.
The Brewers had a 15-15 mark in Cactus League play this spring, as of Tuesday. But Wolf said Milwaukee's newcomers, like third baseman Aramis Ramirez, have meshed well with the holdovers from last season's division-champion squad.
"In spring training it's virtually impossible to get a real grasp of the pulse of the team; the games are just different in spring training," Wolf said. "You try to get your intensity up as much as you can for a spring training game, but it is a lot different once the season starts.
"The thing we have going for us," Wolf continued, "is that a lot of the players -- most of the players -- from last year are back. And we pretty much know what to expect from each other. We have a few new additions, but luckily those guys have established careers and we know what they have to offer.
"So, I think when the season starts we're gonna be extremely positive."
That said, Wolf, who went 13-10 in 2011, knows the Brewers need to take things incrementally throughout the 162-game regular season. That's something manager Ron Roenicke preached last season, when Milwaukee produced a 96-66 overall record.
"Ron has instilled in us an understanding to take it game by game -- focus on the small picture, and the task at hand," Wolf explained. "And, if you do that, at the end of the season things have a way of taking care of themselves. They did last year, with 96 wins."
The Milwaukee Brewers provided interviews for this report.
