OAKLAND -- Sonny Gray is carrying a heavier load this year, in more ways than one. Oakland's ace is primed to take on a leadership role in a mostly young rotation in 2016. Gray, just 26 himself but soon entering his third full big league season, also has a 1-year-old son to manage.
"I did have to stop carrying him around because he got too heavy," a smiling Gray said of son Gunnar. "So I got to start using my left arm more."
On several occasions this offseason, Gunnar accompanied dad to his workouts at his alma mater, Vanderbilt University, where Gray worked to remedy his sporadic 2015 second-half stumbles alongside fellow Commodore David Price and teammate Chris Bassitt, among others.