TORONTO — Another day, another test passed for Aaron Sanchez, who’s on track to return to the Toronto Blue Jays rotation this Sunday versus the Tampa Bay Rays.
The right-hander threw a 22-pitch bullpen Friday at Rogers Centre, using all of his pitches and, most importantly, throwing without any kind of protection on the middle finger of his right hand where persistent blistering forced him to the disabled list two weeks ago.
If Sanchez’s finger feels fine when he wakes up Saturday, he’s expected to be activated from the disabled list and return to the mound Sunday afternoon.
“No pain, no issues—everything’s on track,” Sanchez said after the side session. “Everything was good. Mechanics were good. The ball came out easy. No pain around the finger. No pain around any of the nail.”
Sanchez has been steadily progressing through a throwing program over the past week, incrementally advancing in terms of both distance and pitches thrown. At first, Sanchez stuck to his four- and two-seam fastballs before recently beginning to reincorporate his curveball, the pitch that puts the most stress on the affected area.
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On April 17, Sanchez flew to Kansas City where Dr. Glenn Goldstein, a dermatologist, performed an operation that removed a quarter of the nail length-wise on the pitcher’s right middle finger. The theory is that without the nail creating pressure in the area, Sanchez will no longer develop blisters when he pitches.
The nail isn’t expected to grow back for six months, which the Blue Jays hope will get Sanchez through the end of the season. If the nail removal is effective in limiting Sanchez’s blisters, he can return to Goldstein’s office this offseason to have the procedure performed again, but this time with a subsequent chemical treatment that will permanently prevent the nail from growing back.
Sanchez will remain in contact with Goldstein throughout the coming weeks as he begins pitching again. He says baseballs don’t feel any different in or coming out of his hand without the section of nail he had removed. Aside from some initial tenderness following the procedure, it’s had little effect on his day-to-day life. Sanchez does have some scabs and callusing in the area, but he says that doesn’t bother him at all.
“There’s a bunch of stuff around it that you just have to let heal,” Sanchez said. “There’s still a scab in there, there’s still some things that are floating around. But being able to not feel anything today tells me that I’m ready to go.”
The most reassuring thing for Sanchez is getting back to his normal mechanics, the same ones he relied on to lead the American League in ERA last season and finish seventh in Cy Young voting. Due to the blisters Sanchez was experiencing throughout spring training and during his first two starts of 2017, the 24-year-old found himself altering his mechanics—especially at the end of his pitching motion—as he compensated for the discomfort.
That’s why Sanchez’s fastball velocity, which normally sits at 96 m.p.h., was down to 94 m.p.h. in his final start before hitting the disabled list. It could also be the cause of Sanchez’s poor results in that outing, when he gave up five runs over 5.1 innings to the Baltimore Orioles, including three home runs.
“This game’s already hard enough without have to worry about a little finger issue that affects my whole game,” Sanchez said. “It’s nice to just be able to go out there and do my thing.”
Sanchez says he feels strong enough to pitch without restriction in his return, but it’s possible the Blue Jays will keep him to a pitch count in his first outing.
“You don’t want to put too much pressure on the nail to start,” Sanchez said. “But I feel like I’m ready to go. I’m in shape. I didn’t lose much from when I took the time off.”
Meanwhile, fellow injured Blue Jays Josh Donaldson and Troy Tulowitzki will head to Florida following Sunday’s series finale with the Rays to continue their respective rehabs at the team’s facility in Dunedin.
Donaldson has missed two weeks with a right calf injury, while Tulowitzki has been out for a week with a right hamstring strain. The Blue Jays don’t yet have a timetable for either player’s return.
“It’s hard to say,” said Blue Jays manager John Gibbons. “No set dates yet for either one of them. But they’re both feeling better.”