According to the Mainichi Daily News [1], Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka threw a bullpen session off a mound for the first time since undergoing Tommy John surgery last June. Matsuzaka threw off the mound 21 times, with his first 10 tosses coming with a catcher standing in front of home plate and his last 10 being pitches with the catcher crouching behind the plate.
"Today is like a warm-up," Matsuzaka told reporters. "I think I'll throw harder next week."
Matsuzaka was 3-3 with a 5.30 ERA in eight games (seven starts) in 2011, and has a career 49-30 mark and 4.25 ERA in five seasons with the Red Sox. He is in the last year of a six-year, $52 million deal with the Sox.
While there had been some sentiment that Matsuzaka may have thrown his last pitch with the Sox, team officials have raved about conditioning and rehab work while in Fort Myers. It now appears increasingly likely that the right-hander will pitch for the Sox at some point in 2012.
For complete Red Sox coverage, visit weei.com/redsox [2].
Links:
[1] http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/sports/news/20120131p2g00m0sp150000c.html
[2] http://www.weei.com/redsox
[3] http://www.weei.com/category/boston/red-sox