Joe Blanton moved from the first base side of the rubber to the third base side, from the rotation to the bullpen and from a four-pitch repertoire to more of a fastball-slider mix.
But before the Dodgers reliever could re-invent himself and revive a career that flat-lined two years ago when the Angels released him and swallowed the remaining $8.5 million on his contract, he made a strategic call.
Blanton sat out most of 2014, with the exception of his two starts for Oakland's triple-A club, clearing his head by tending to the grapes on his Napa Valley vineyard.