KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Don’t close the book on Jack Flaherty.
“I’m very much close to throwing off a mound,” he said before the game in Pittsburgh on Aug. 19. “Very close.”
Like, this weekend.
“I want to get in there and help these guys,” he said. “They’ve been grinding and I’ve been grinding every day to get back as soon as I can, while also understanding that pushing on it too much can push it in the other direction. And that doesn’t help anybody here.”
Flaherty has been on the injured list with a flexor strain in his right forearm since coming out his start at Wrigley Field on July 20. It was his first start in 10 days, coming after the All-Star break. In the six starts before that, he was in a groove. The Tigers were 4-2 in those starts and he posted a 2.12 ERA with 34 strikeouts and 10 walks.
After an up-and-down start to the season, he’d finally gotten right. And, salt in the wound, what he thought was minor muscle soreness is going to cost him six, maybe seven weeks.
“We need to get him off the mound just to have that test,” manager AJ Hinch said. “The tentativeness at the beginning of a throwing program is the unknown. How is it going to feel? Then you start throwing farther and you start throwing harder, then you introduce the slope and pitch things.”
In other words, there are still a lot of boxes to check before he can get to some rehab starts to build his arm strength and pitch count.
“He’s super excited,” Hinch said. “He’s been at a steady, safe pace and he’s been hungry for more. And that’s an excellent sign.”
To better support the flexor tendon, the Tigers’ trainers and medical staff are having Flaherty build up the areas around the tendon. And that’s led to some discomfort in unfamiliar areas.
“It’s a different type of soreness,” he said. “I just have to make sure what I’m feeling is good and so far, it’s been good. But (the soreness) has bounced around. But everything I’ve been told, that’s a good thing. You never want to feel something in different areas but it’s better than having just one spot that’s uncomfortable every time.”
The clock is ticking, though. If the Tigers stay true to the process they've used for Justin Verlander, Tarik Skubal and others who have had long stays on the IL, Flaherty will throw at least three regular bullpens, spaced out every three or four days. Then there would be one or two live bullpens against hitters in a controlled setting.
Then, if he clears all that, he will be sent on one or two minor league rehab starts.
“If we can get him off the mound (in Kansas City), then I think we will start to perk up around here about where he’s heading," Hinch said. "He’s responding really well.”
Flaherty has every intention of being back in September.
“We’re in a really good spot right now,” he said. “It feels very, very close. In terms of editing or changing my expectations, right now it’s narrowed down to just what can I get done next and the end game is get back on the mound. I know I’m going to pitch at some point for sure.
“I feel good about that. I want to help these guys.”
Tigers at RoyalsFirst pitch: 7:15 p.m. Saturday, Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Mo.
TV/radio: Detroit Sports Net/97.1 FM
Scouting report
▶ RHP Drew Anderson (4-4, 4.01), Tigers: This will be his fourth start since moving into the rotation. And after pitching five innings in 74 pitches against the White Sox last time out, it feels like his pitch count is built up enough to remove the governor. His stuff was sharp last time out, working changeups and curveballs off 96 and 97-mph four-seamers, he allowed just three hard-hit balls. One, unfortunately, was a mislocated curveball that light-hitting catcher Drew Romo hit out of the park.
▶ RHP Michael Wacha (6-8, 3.58), Royals: He beat the Tigers at Comerica Park on July 25, allowing two runs in seven innings. Both runs were delivered by Hao-Yu Lee, who homered and rapped an RBI double, which tracks with Wacha’s splits this season. Right-handed hitters are slugging .504 with an .803 OPS. The reason Wacha has always been able to neutralize lefties is his elite changeup. That pitch is holding hitters to a .194 average this season. Righties have been feasting on his slider and cutter.
@cmccosky
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Tigers' Jack Flaherty: 'I know I'm going to pitch at some point, for sure'
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