DUNEDIN, Fla. (AP) - Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Aaron Hill is ready to return.
Hill, whose season ended on May 29 when he sustained a concussion in a collision with shortstop David Eckstein, expects to be ready by opening day.Hill is working out three times a week at the team's complex in Dunedin.
"Everything is fine," he said before a session with pitchers Roy Halladay and Jesse Litsch. "I got the go-ahead about a month or so ago to go full time. It's been good fun getting here every day and actually doing some things."
Hill was hitting .263 with two home runs and 20 RBIs when he was injured. The 26-year-old Hill had been .291 in each of the previous two years as a regular.
"It was emotional more than anything," he said. "It's probably the most I have been out since I was 13 or 14 years old. You can always learn something so now it's time to work hard and get back on the field."
The Blue Jays will compete in the AL East next season minus pitcher A.J. Burnett, who opted out of his contract and signed with the New York Yankees as a free agent.
"A.J. did a great job for us last season, but we have some young kids that had a chance to do some things and it's also looking pretty promising in the farm system. It's was a great opportunity for them and hopefully they will come up, prove themselves and help us next season."
