SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The video of Cubs corner infielder Patrick Wisdom going through his Driveline Baseball assessment made the rounds through the group chat.
To collect motion-capture data, Driveline will have players hit or pitch in their compression shorts, with nodes stuck all over their bodies. And the player-development organization puts out some of those videos on social media.
‘‘I’m glad to provide some entertainment,’’ Wisdom told the Sun-Times, laughing.
Wisdom spends his offseasons in the Seattle area, where Driveline is based. But before committing to it, he went in to watch other players undergo their assessments. This was his first winter working out there.
‘‘I found out some good things and implemented them into my work,’’ Wisdom said. ‘‘And I feel like I’m in a really good spot coming into camp.’’
He got a better picture of how he was rotating in his swing and picked up some cues to help him stay on his legs and back hip more.
‘‘There’s so many ways to skin a cat and so many ways to hit,’’ Wisdom said. ‘‘So you can take a lot of nuggets from so many different areas and make it your own.’’
Wisdom got the Cubs’ Cactus League opener off Friday, but he started at first base in the Cubs’ 8-4 victory Saturday against the Giants. In his second at-bat, he lined an RBI double to center field.
Arkansas roots
Growing up, left-hander Jordan Wicks followed teammate Drew Smyly’s career because he was a left-handed pitcher who grew up 30 minutes from Wicks’ hometown in Arkansas.
‘‘I looked up to him because he made it out of our area,’’ Wicks told the Sun-Times. ‘‘It’s so cool for me to just sit here and be able to be in camp with him and watch him go about his business. Just the utmost respect for Drew and what he does.’’
Wicks, 24, and Smyly, 34, are in the mix for the fifth rotation spot.
‘‘I just want to win, especially this late in my career,’’ Smyly said. ‘‘Everything’s more fun when you win. So it’s not about my job [or] his job. I hope he pitches great this year; I hope we all do. We have a lot of really good talent on this team, a lot of really young talent that’s going to help us a lot. So if there’s any way I can help them, that’ll be great.’’
Introduction to Sloan
Infielder Matt Shaw, whom the Cubs drafted in the first round last summer, has made two Cactus League starts at second base to begin spring training. He got his first taste of spring games Friday at Sloan Park.
‘‘It’s so much fun to be in that environment,’’ he said. ‘‘It really, at least for me, feels like a real game, a season game. Everyone’s so invested. It’s really cool.’’
Cubs 8, Giants 4
Outfield prospect Brennen Davis went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBI. Considering Davis’ injury history, manager Craig Counsell has said his spring training will be about providing a good ‘‘foundation of health’’ for the minor-league season. But Counsell didn’t rule out a midseason call-up if all goes well.
• Infielders David Bote and Chase Strumpf also homered. The Cubs (2-0) have scored eight runs in each of their first two spring games.
• Cubs starter Drew Smyly threw two hitless innings in his first start of the spring. He issued two walks.
• On deck: Padres at Cubs, 2:05 p.m. Sunday, Mesa, Marquee, Randy Vasquez vs. Javier Assad.
