SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Alberto Callaspo is in camp now, finally, the last of 64 players to show up.
He has a chance to win the starting job at second base, maybe even a good chance, but before he put on a uniform today he put on something of a clinic in how to dig yourself an unnecessary hole.
The stories about why Callaspo is late are varied and they are many.
A late visa.
A visa pickup delayed because the office was closed on Monday.
Flights booked full.
Whatever.
There are real obstacles guys face in getting here from other countries. Visas can only be picked up on certain days, they're not like fast food cheeseburgers. And Callaspo did play a full season of winter ball, so he's not coming in behind (besides, spring training is too long, anyway).
But the fact is Callaspo has known for months when he was to report to camp, known for months that his hold on the second base job was tenuous at best, and known for longer that he'd need a visa and a flight to get here.
The Royals have every right to be frustrated by this.
It's all eraseable by a strong spring, by beating out Willie Bloomquist and Mark Teahen for the job, but that's part of the point.
Callaspo came here before last season in a trade, you might remember, and he came with some baggage. Police were called to his house over a domestic dispute, though no charges were filed. Dayton Moore said he and his people investigaged Callaspo's background and came away satisfied, and made the trade for what he called his second baseman of the future.
They were disappointed, then, when Callaspo was arrested for drunken driving and subsequently missed about two months with an unspecified medical condition.
When Mark Grudzielanek missed the last two months, Callaspo had the opening to prove Moore was right about the trade. He did well, batting .319 with a .371 on-base percentage over his final 32 games as the starting second baseman.
Callaspo played winter ball, like we mentioned earlier, a good sign for a player who wants to establish himself.
The Royals, meanwhile, seemed to do everything they could to provide some competition. They signed Willie Bloomquist, a utilityman in Seattle, and said he'd have a shot at starting at second base. Then they nodded when Mark Teahen -- last seen at second base his freshman year of juco -- wanted to try it out.
Now, they're looking longingly across the free agent dance floor at Orlando Hudson, wishing they had the payroll flexibility to make Hudson the starting second baseman.
The message couldn't be clearer.
Callaspo isn't good enough, not established enough, to not be here on time. Hell, he should be here early. Nearly everyone else was.
To be late, well, it's just stupid.
His strengths as a baseball player -- contact hitter, doesn't strike out much, takes walks -- are what this team needs more of.
His weaknesses -- zero power, no speed, bad range at 2B and no ability to play another position -- mean that if he doesn't win the starting job, he probably doesn't hold enough value to take up a roster spot.
Again, if Callaspo hits this spring like he's fully capable, the frustrations of the moment probably go away.
If the Royals look at Callaspo in six weeks and see a guy who can hit above .300 with a lot of walks and has improved his defense even marginally -- they'd be thrilled with average defense from him -- nobody will care he missed a day or two of camp.
But right now, it's just not the first impression a guy competing for a job should make.
Grud would cost $4 million? If he would, I'd agree: forget him. But it occurs to me that with the market for free agents following the housing market, we ought to be able to get him for a lot less money than everyone originally assumed. What if he'd take $2 million? Does anyone doubt that that would be a good one year investment until some of the kids in the farm system are ready? I've read Bianchi and Giavetello (sp?) both have promise, though not for this year. Maybe Teehan will make this a moot issue, but maybe not.