Hall of Famer Biggio visits camp, shares wisdom

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The first Hall of Famer to join the Astros at Spring Training is Craig Biggio, who was in uniform for morning workouts on Tuesday and will remain with the team throughout the week.
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Florida is populated with plenty of Biggios this month, in fact. Biggio's son, Cavan, a top Blue Jays prospect, is with his team in Dunedin, and his daughter, Quinn, a shortstop for Notre Dame, recently participated -- and homered -- in a college softball tournament in Clearwater.
"The girls' game is awesome," Biggio said. "I love everything about it. They have fun, they have their cheers, they all pull for each other. Notre Dame has some tremendous coaches, and they pull it all together. It's a lot of fun to watch."

Former players serving as guest instructors is a time-honored tradition for many Major League teams, and the Astros are no different. Hall of Famer Jeff Bagwell will join Astros camp at some point this spring, too.
"You can't take for granted the Hall of Famers we have around here," manager AJ Hinch said. "Just some really good resources for our players and coaches. [Biggio is] very visible in Houston -- our players in Houston know him very well and will not be shy in gathering his expertise and wisdom. The younger players will probably be a little tentative early until they start to realize he's just like one of us."
Biggio, who currently serves as a special assistant to president and general manager Jeff Luhnow, experienced his first Spring Training with the Astros more than 30 years ago, as a 22-year-old attempting to crack the Opening Day roster in 1988. He debuted in June of that season.
"This is 33, 34 years for me here now," he said. "I guess I'm a lifer when it comes to Houston Astros baseball. I love it. I love our guys."

Bregman progresses
Third baseman Alex Bregman, recovering from minor surgery on his right elbow, took ground balls and threw across the diamond without incident for the second day in a row on Tuesday, and later he took several swings in the batting cages -- also pain free.
"I have a long way to go with my swing right now, but other than that my body feels great, which is the most important thing," Bregman said.
It'll be a while before Bregman faces live pitching on the field, but he's still on target to play in a Grapefruit League game in early March, which should be plenty of time for him to prepare for Opening Day.
"He's itching to do more and more every day," Hinch said. "He's in really good shape, and we don't anticipate any issues. We're going to bring him along slowly."

Pitchers throw batting practice
Eleven pitchers threw batting practice Tuesday, including right-hander Collin McHugh and left-handers Framber Valdez and Wade Miley.
"It's a chance to face hitters, a chance to get that game feeling again and that competitiveness where you're actually attacking someone," Miley said. "Getting results, getting to see what a hitter thinks of your stuff. It's going to be cool to look at [on video]."
Others who threw BP include right-handers Corbin Martin, Cy Sneed, Brendan McCurry, Jose Hernandez, Rogelio Armenteros, Akeem Bostick and Bryan Abreu, and lefty Ryan Hartman.