"Third baseman Evan Longoria looks a little different coming into camp this spring.

After spending the past two offseasons bulking up in workouts, Longoria is 10 to 15 pounds leaner and considerably looser, emphasizing flexibility over strength in an effort to avoid the muscle injuries (hamstring, quadriceps, oblique) that have sidelined him during the past two seasons.

"That was the focus for me," Longoria said Friday. "I feel great. So I hope it pays off."

After spending the past two offseasons at the Athletes' Performance facility near his offseason home in Arizona, Longoria opted for a less structured workout at a smaller facility, similar to what he did before the 2009 season, which he considers his best.

"At Athletes' Performance everybody focused on your weight and intake and what you're putting in your body, and there's no right or wrong there, but it just wasn't right for me," he said.

Instead of lifting weights, Longoria focused on plyometrics (muscle stretching and explosiveness) and movement prep, "more strengthening the smaller muscles in my body and not just doing biceps and bench and all the heavy stuff," he said. "It's just as intense of a workout. It's just a different workout than you're used to, a lot of core strengthening."

Longoria, 26, won't know if the new plan works until he gets through the season; his goal is to play all 162 games. But after missing the final 10 games of the 2010 season with a quad strain and being limited in the playoffs, and missing a month early last season with an oblique and struggling afterward, he is confident this way will be better."