Under a cloudless sky the color of his old powder-blue Seibu Lions uniform, Daisuke Matsuzaka and his fellow New York Mets pitchers are being put through their spring training paces here.

This day, the hurlers are broken into five groups, each set working on a different fundamental aspect of their position: fielding bunts, pick-off moves, covering home plate and so on.

After 10 minutes, a Mets coach yells "Change 'em up!" and the pitchers rotate to the next station.