Regardless of where the Yankees are right now in the standings, it’s not stopping Masahiro Tanaka from his rehab process. So far so good, after the platelet injection and about week of light outfield throwing sessions Tanaka continues to feel no pain. Now the Yankees will allow Tanaka to throw off the mound tomorrow. He is scheduled to throw a 25-pitch, fastball only bullpen session according to Chad Jennings. Things are progressing, but Tanaka realizes he still has a ways to go before he can even think about pitching in a game. “If I can’t throw the way I want to throw on the mound or in the bullpen, then there’s no way I’ll be able to throw that in a game,” Tanaka said via his translator. “So definitely, the bullpen will be important.”
There is still no exact timetable and Joe Girardi continues to downplay things, and for good reason. It is a big step, but I dont think anyone will know anything until Tanaka is allowed to throw his full arsenal of pitches, especially his splitter and slider. So we will wait and see how it goes tomorrow.
