BEAVERTON -- Liam Ridgewell has had a short offseason.

How short was it?

Meh, really short. But he's not complaining.

Ridgewell was the only Major League Soccer player who spent the offseason on loan with another team. He finished a six-week stint -- and played in six matches -- for Football League Championship club Brighton & Hove Albion.

Now he's back, "feeling fit and fine."

"It kept me going," Ridgewell said after his first training back with the Timbers. "When I stop really is when I start to slow down."

The Guardian recently noted how the MLS has evolved regarding offseason loans. Where it used to be the norm, now it's rare. MLSsoccer.com has a video on the winter loan season that offers some reasons for the change.

"I think things are changing a bit with that," Timbers coach Caleb Porter said. "Partly, the season is so long it's difficult for guys to do that.

"With Ridgy, he's done it in the past and he likes doing it."

Ridgewell does seem to thrive on playing games. He returned from a loan stint last season and didn't skip a beat. Alongside Nat Borchers, the pair anchored a defense that had 13 clean sheets in 2015 and helped win the MLS Cup Championship.

Less than 10 weeks later, Ridgewell returns to the Timbers match fit and ready.

Porter even joked Ridgewell seemed a bit thinner -- read "in better shape" -- than when he left.

So, while other players were enjoying what Ridgewell calls "a bit o'rest," he's ready to start.

"The way he looks at the offseason," Porter said. "He might as well be playing."

-- Molly Blue