Aubrey Huff back with Giants

LOS ANGELES _ Aubrey Huff walked into Dodger Stadium with a wide grin on his face, often stopping to joke with teammates as he made his way into the clubhouse. It was a good day for Huff, who still is recovering from one of the worst days of his life.

Huff was activated from the disabled list Monday, two weeks to the day after he left the team while having a panic attack. Huff has been getting treatment for an anxiety disorder and said he's ready to play the game "with fun and let the chips fall where they may."

"This kind of puts more things in perspective," Huff said. "A little bit of pressure builds and it just gets to you sometimes. But this game isn't everything.

"I'm trying to keep myself in check and keep my mind positive."

Huff flew home in the midst of an episode of anxiety April 19, hours before the Giants played a doubleheader against the New York Mets. He's been going through therapy ever since and has been with the team for over a week as he prepared to return to the field.

Huff wasn't in the starting lineup Monday, but that hardly mattered to him. He was just happy to be back on the active roster and said he wasn't bothered by the fact that manager Bruce Bochy said he primarily will play left field.

"I've just got to come out and play_just go out there and have fun again," he said. "There's no doubt that if you look at my numbers the last year and a half, I just obviously haven't had fun. It was a tough year last year. In 2010 I was having a blast_I've got to get back to that.

"There was a lot of stuff on my plate last year and coming into this year. I just need to go out there and have fun again."

That hasn't been hard for Huff over the past week. He said the combination of spending time with his wife and two kids, as well as his teammates, has helped him recover.

Bochy researched anxiety issues when Huff was first put on the D.L. and said he's confident Huff is ready to return.

"I'm very happy for him," Bochy said. "This is a tough thing he has been through. I don't really know how he deals with it, but I'm sure it's not easy."


(chicagotribune.com)