Howard's new mantra: 'Why be negative?'

CLEARWATER, Fla. - A ladybug landed on Ryan Howard's right shoulder Tuesday as he spoke to the media for the first time since arriving at spring training.

That's good luck, the Phillies first baseman was told.

"We'll keep it right there," Howard said, opting to let the insect remain as he answered questions.

Howard was in a good place at that moment. He had just come off the field after a strong Grapefruit League debut against the New York Yankees. He had singled twice, drove in a run and looked nimble fielding his position before departing after five innings.

It was one small step in a marathon, but at least it was a positive one, which is the sermon Howard is preaching at a time when so many have written him off.

"Why be negative?" Howard asked. "It takes a lot more energy to be negative than it does to be positive. Negative bad. Positive good."

There's no way to know if Howard's positive vibes will translate into the resurrection of his career this season, but you have to admire the effort, focus and attitude he has brought with him to spring training. He has made adjustments to his life and his approach. Howard estimated he lost between 15 and 20 pounds in the offseason.

He had come into camp slimmed down before, but never quite this much.

"Diet," Howard said. "I cut out sugars, all that kind of stuff."

His legs, the greatest source of power for any baseball player, feel good, he says.

"Doing all the extra work in the morning, the ground balls, hitting, conditioning, everything that goes on in between, they're holding up pretty well," Howard said. "Once we get into the season, the easy part is just playing the game. If I can make it through all this, then I think it will be all right."

Howard, at 35, also has a different hitting setup in an effort to get his hands through the zone quicker. He is standing more upright and has a more closed stance.

"I was working on that this offseason," he said. "How does it look?"

It looked great on this day. He beat the shift and singled to left field on a first-pitch fastball from Yankees righthander Adam Warren in the second inning. Two innings later, he fouled off a couple of two-strike pitches from Luis Severino before driving in a run with a single to right field. It was an eight-pitch at-bat during which he appeared to see the ball well.

Howard also looked good in the field, making a nice play on a grounder to his right and handling a high throw to first on consecutive plays in the third inning.

"He really moved around real well on the field and squared some balls up," manager Ryne Sandberg said. "I liked him going to left field there, opening up the field."

Asked about being in competition for a job he has held since the middle of the 2005 season, he essentially said: Bring it on.

"If people want to look at it as competition or whatever it is, that's fine," he said. "That doesn't affect me. My thing is taking care of my business in front of these white lines."

Before talking for the first time this spring, Howard set up some ground rules. He does not want to discuss the trade talk or general manager Ruben Amaro Jr.'s offseason comment about how the Phillies would be better off without him. He also does not want to talk about the family financial squabble with his mother, father and brother, and who can blame him? The only fair question on that subject is whether it impacted his play last season. Those who know him well believe it did.

"Like I said before, everything that happened in the past is in the past," Howard said.

He was referring to the difficult times that have dogged the Phillies in recent years, but he could have just as easily been talking about his own life and career. To his credit, he is trying to change the karma by changing his approach and routine.

Howard, coming off the worst full season of his career and two injury-shortened seasons before that, is not just relying on lady luck or a ladybug. Instead of arriving as a malcontent after the Phillies desperately tried to trade him in the offseason, he has opted to look on the bright side of life.

For that alone, he is worth cheering for.