AMARO JR.
We pursued Wes for quite some time, it actually began last year. We’re pleased to have signed him to a 2-year deal with a club option.
We’re pleased to bring Wes here to Philadelphia. We think he’s the kind of guy, with the makeup and personality that we want. He had a tremendous year last year with Florida and we’re glad he’s with us now.
HELMS
It’S an honor to get to have a chance to play for a winning team again. That was my ultimate goal coming into this off season was to be a part of great organization and a winning team. I just knew by playing against this team last year in the division what they can do. Especially with the young guys getting another year under their belt.
I’m going to be a good fit here because of - like Ruben said - my personality. I’ll get along with all the players. I do what is asked of me to do.
YOUR ROLE?
Charlie just said to me you are going to play a lot. He said you’ll fit in the lineup well and you’ll play a lot and you’ll play third base. Maybe in an American league game I’ll be the first baseman and Howard will DH and give him a rest from the field.
No terms were discussed about playing time. He basically said you’ll play a lot and you’ll be a big part of the team.
LIMITED FIRST BASE LAST TWO YEARS?
I do know that I will play more third base. I don’t think it will be an adjustment because I came up as a third baseman and I played third base primarily my whole career with the exception of the last two seasons.
I know what to do. I know the maneuvers. I worked hard in batting practice on ground balls to stay sharp. It’s a corner infield position - first or third - and you see the ball of the bat the same way.
MORE FIT?
Yeah, I got myself a personnel trainer the past two years (Lee Gravlee). I’ve always worked hard I just never knew what to do. I did the typical things to build strength. But I got a guy who taught me how to eat and train for baseball. It totally changed my career. Down to making me more agile in the field, to my bat speed, everything just got better. I owe the world to him for that.
LAST YEAR SHORTER QUICKER SWING?
I’ve always been a guy that expected too much from myself so I tried to do too much. I think I got smarter as my career went on and now understand sometimes less is better.
The last two seasons I let the ball get deeper. I concentrate on hitting the ball to second and to right center and even if I’m early, it’s still a fair ball.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST THINK PHILLY?
I was coming here last year. Just to put it out there the big reason I signed with Florida had nothing to do with the Phillies, it was they had a young team and I had a feeling I’d get to play a lot more down there. A goal of mine was to get myself back to someone giving me an opportunity to get back to those 400-plus at bats.
I can sit back and say I made the right decision but now it’s time to go out and do what I had to do. I told my wife that David Bell is not back in Philly and I really do believe that Philadelphia will be a spot I’d love to go to.
THE DECISION?
It came down between the Phillies and Yankees. I definitely from the beginning wanted to stay in the National League. I know all the pitchers, all the hitters and how to play them from the field. Everyone I ever played with said it’s an adjustment and it’s a more comfortable for me to come to.