Health conscious
Cliff Floyd thankful, excited about upcoming season
Posted March 31, 2000
By Christie Cowles

Things are going just swimmingly for the Marlins' Cliff Floyd this spring.

Cliff Floyd's top priority for the season is simply to remain healthy.

The area of his game he's most pleased with has been his ability to remain healthy.

Floyd's main goal entering this season, the one thing that would make him happier than breaking any record, is staying healthy. That's all he wants more than any statistic or lofty number.

While this may seem like a relatively easy task, Floyd has visited the disabled list often enough to know that staying healthy might be the toughest challenge ahead of him.

In 1999, Floyd hurt his left knee in Spring Training and missed the first three weeks of the season following arthroscopic surgery. Then in mid-June, he tore his right Achilles, which earned him another stint on the DL. He wouldn't return until early September.

While on the DL, the Marlins missed his production. The left fielder hit 22 home runs, drove in 90 runs and hit .282 in 153 games in 1998. In 69 games last season, he still hit .303 but compiled only 11 homers and 49 RBI.

Manager John Boles is happy to see Floyd has been taking care of himself this spring.
"He's a dominant guy in the lineup and we're a better team with him."

-- John Boles on Cliff Floyd

"We're hoping injury is a thing of the past and he'll be able to show everybody what he can do," Boles said. "He's a dominant guy in the lineup and we're a better team with him. He can hit for average, he can hit for power and he can run."

Despite a recent sprained thumb that resulted in a few days of rest, Floyd has been relatively healthy this spring. He even managed to escape his teammates' battle with, of all things, the mumps.

Floyd is upbeat about the 2000 season and feels he can accomplish all the goals he has set for himself.

"My number one goal is health," Floyd said. "I've been hurt in the past and I think if I can stay healthy, then 30 home runs, 100 RBI and a .300 average are not out of reach."

Floyd feels that while he has set goals for himself, he is not going to obsess over reaching a certain statistical number. He just wants to have a good time playing ball with his teammates.

The smile on his face suggests that Floyd is happy to be around the clubhouse, enjoying the camaraderie and having the chance to play the game each day.

"I want to enjoy myself and have fun," Floyd said. "The game is about having fun. If you don't have fun then you're basically defeating the purpose."

Floyd's past injuries have made him more appreciative of each day he's been able to play and the experiences baseball has given him.

"The best part is the road. You get out and see different places that you never even thought about visiting," Floyd said. "All the cities I've been to, I know I would never have had the opportunity to go if I wasn't playing ball, so I'm just thankful that I do get the opportunity to play."
Floyd feels fortunate to have a job doing something he enjoys and looks forward to going to work each day.

"Not too many guys get the opportunity to do something that they love to do," Floyd said. "I just want to have fun and do my job at the same time ... drive in a lot of runs, wins some ballgames and that will be a happy year for me."