He was in sunny Arizona, away from all the snow and cold of New England, and with that sunshine brought even more hope to the always optimistic Brad Zapenas.

That optimism was put to the test last year when, in late May, he tore his labrum diving to make a play at third base for the Peoria Chiefs, a Class A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.

“I think you just have to stay positive about it,” the former Nashua High School North and Boston College standout said from his hotel room at the Cubs spring training complex in Mesa, Ariz. “I used it as an experience I’ll look back on.”

But right now, as he begins spring training in Mesa, mainly on a limited throwing program, Zapenas looks forward. Like any injured ballplayer, he feels he’s lost a year and wants to regain his status in the organization as a prospect who provides depth but could also find his groove at any time and blossom.

“Obviously, getting injured isn’t good,” Zapenas said. “You hate to get hurt and have (the organization) look elsewhere.

“Nobody’s happy doing it (rehabbing), but you see things from a different view. You appreciate the game a lot more.”

One of the things that made him feel better was the fact that Cubs trainers had kept in constant contact with him in the off-season to check on his rehab.

Zapenas had surgery last June in Chicago and spent the rest of the summer rehabbing at the Cubs facility in Arizona before heading back to Nashua in the fall. One thing the injury did was give him the time to finish up his finance degree at Boston College.

“It was certainly a long summer rehabbing,” he said. “But it was good I could get my degree. I feel totally different knowing I have that done.”

That’s because it gives Zapenas the confidence that he has a career to fall back on in case baseball doesn’t work out. The lowest point in the injury process was when the Cubs told him he was spending the summer in Arizona rehabbing, that his season would be done. But he feels fortunate this didn’t happen earlier in his career.

“I’m lucky it happened in pro ball,” he said. “Had this happened in high school or college, it’d be tough to get to the next level.”

But Zapenas now is trying to stay at the level he’s at. He felt good enough in the off-season to do some swinging of the bat and even did a little cage hitting, but didn’t push it.

No injury comes at a good time, but the timing was tough for Zapenas. First, he was set to begin last season at Daytona, the Cubs’ highest-rated Single A club. But just before spring training ended, the organization needed him to fill in for an injured third baseman in Peoria, a lower-rated Single A club, so off he went.

One of the highlights of his spring training a year ago was working on his hitting with former Cubs and Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner. Buckner, who was a hitting instructor in the Chicago organization, had altered a couple of things and it seemed to work, as Zapenas, who hit .238 in his first pro summer, was batting .273 at the time of his injury.

“Buckner was great,” Zapenas said. “He just keeps things so simple, and he loves baseball.”

So does Zapenas, who was drafted in the 42nd round by the Cubs in the 2011 June draft. He can play third, short or second, and says it’s easier to go from the middle infield to third than it is the other way around.

His versatility may help him as he recovers.

“If I go to extended spring, they could say, ‘Go up to this level and fill in for that guy who’s injured’,” he said. “It wouldn’t be a bad thing (to be in extended spring, a likely possibility). They never push an injury, especially a shoulder.

“I think they look at me as a utility guy, who can fill in anywhere they need me.”

That’s what Zapenas hopes is the case, that he’s needed. He hasn’t felt any pain since surgery and he’s ready to go.

“I’ll work as long as it takes to get my arm to be at full strength,” he said. “As long as I can get my arm back to full strength, I’ll be fine. … I feel they (the Cubs) are pulling for me.”

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