Liam Hendriks throws first live batting practice since Tommy John surgery
Red Sox reliever Liam Hendriks is inching closer to returning to the big leagues. The right-hander threw a scheduled batting practice on Tuesday while the team was in Kansas City.
Hendriks tossed his first batting practice just a little over a year after undergoing Tommy John surgery last August. The veteran tossed 16 pitches, facing catcher Danny Jansen and infielder Nick Sogard while mixing in his secondary pitches.
“It felt all right,” Hendriks said to reporters at Kauffman Stadium. “I felt like the ball was coming out all right. But it feels like, right now, I have to put more effort into getting where I need to be.
“It’s something I deal with every spring training where you kind of forget how deep you can dig. Whereas once you get in the middle of the season, it’s kind of a little easier to do that. Whereas, right now, I have to remind myself subconsciously how deep I can dig into it.”
Hendriks screamed out a few expletives on a handful of pitches, feeling he could have located his pitches better during his session.
The 35-year-old said his arm felt good following throwing batting practice but will need to see how the recovery in between sessions goes to get an idea of how he’s ultimately progressing.
“Mainly, just making sure the elbow doesn’t hurt—that’s the big one,” he said. “Obviously, just the recovery, making sure I can retain that strength level, and make sure when I come back out tomorrow to play catch, that I can actually do it and not be kind of stressing on it too much, or a little bit too tender in there.
“My goal is just to be able to throw as much as I can, and that way I can kind of start building that arm.”
Hendriks' next live BP session is scheduled for Saturday. He is expected to have one more session before starting his rehab assignment.
