The Detroit Tigers were supposed to be without the services of relief pitcher Al Alburquerque for about half the season after they learned he needed offseason surgery on his throwing arm in December. Unfortunately, the half way point of the season has now come and gone, and Albuquerque is still not with the team.
According to MLive.com, Alburquerque was scheduled to throw some bullpen sessions in late June in order to allow the team to assess him and see if he's ready to get going with a rehabilitation assignment. Since then, the story has remained the same but no progress has been made:
Detroit Tigers head athletic trainer Kevin Rand said Sunday morning that Alburquerque is scheduled to throw two live batting practice sessions -- the first one Tuesday -- in Lakeland, Fla., before his next step is determined.
"He just felt he needed a little bit more time," Rand said when asked whether Alburquerque had experienced a setback. "So we just instituted a couple of the bullpens in there for him. That's all."
Alburquerque was a good surprise story for the Tigers as a rookie last year, going 6-1 with a 1.87 ERA and a barrel of strikeouts.
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