Raburn to catch a little

Some morning tidbits:

• Jim Leyland said this morning he plans to play Ryan Raburn all over this spring, including a few games at catcher. Ryan played it a few games in high school and college, but not much. He didn't work with the catchers in camp last week, but he was behind the plate earlier this month to catch side sessions for some of the pitchers who reported early, including Justin Verlander, Jeremy Bonderman and Preston Larrison. "Whatever keeps me around," Raburn said with a smile.
• Again, it's hard to gather what to take out of live BP this weekend, but one curious thing to watch will be how hitters react to Rick Porcello out on the mound. He has looked good so far in camp and has carried himself well.
• Another interesting pitcher to watch could be Denny Bautista, who credits his work in the Caribbean Series in part for his start in camp. Bautista had never pitched in the series before, but by doing it this year, he was able to report to spring training less than a week later in game shape. He thinks more consistent command of his fastball has been a difference for him so far.
• Leyland on Ryan Raburn: "He's as good of an outfielder as we have in the organization, maybe the best." If he can make more consistent contact at the plate and cut down on strikeouts, Leyland thinks he has a chance to be a regular player in the big leagues someday.
• In regards to the question about why players from overseas don't take care of visas sooner, I'm not sure that's the issue here with Cruceta. If you look at the players still waiting for theirs, a lot of them have legal issues to deal with. Tampa Bay's Juan Salas, like Cruceta, served a 50-game suspension for steroids last season and is now facing delays, too. Francisco Liriano had to deal with a DUI citation from a couple years ago when he was ready to head over to the states.
• Finally, proving players do read the papers, someone played a practical joke on Zach Miner this morning and taped a photo of Mariano Rivera to his locker. "To Zach: Good luck in your career! I really admire you," the message read, referring to an article a couple days ago about Miner maybe becoming a closer someday. He wasn't the only victim of a joke, though. Todd Jones had a red tag on his locker this morning. It's that time in camp for hijinks.