Daisuke Matsuzaka Activated By Red Sox

With all the kerfuffle surrounding the huge Red Sox/Dodgers trade, and the placement of David Ortiz on the disabled list Monday, there’s one further Red Sox move that sort of went under the radar:

Red Sox activate RHP Matsuzaka from 15-day DL, place DH Ortiz on 15-day DL (retro 8/25), recall OF Kalish & option RHP Beato to Pawtucket.

— Boston Red Sox (@RedSox) August 27, 2012

Not only is Daisuke Matsuzaka back on the active roster, but he is starting Monday afternoon’s game against the Kansas City Royals, which, at this writing, is just beginning. He allowed a run in the first inning, unearned partly as a result of an error by Dustin Pedroia.

Matsuzaka had been reactivated from Tommy John surgery earlier this season and did not do well, posting a 6.65 ERA in five starts. He was put back on the DL July 3, so he’s been rehabbing for almost two months. Perhaps it will work this time.

For more on the Red Sox, please visit Over The Monster and SB Nation Boston.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Back On Disabled List

Boston righthander Daisuke Matsuzaka had Tommy John surgery in 2011, did all the prescribed rehab and worked his way back to the Red Sox rotation last month.

He made five starts. Only two of them could be charitably described as “decent”, and Monday night against the Athletics in Oakland, Matsuzaka had more trouble with his body:

In the days leading up to the start, Matsuzaka had been bothered by discomfort in his neck and didn’t throw a side session. He was confident he could get through it and give his team a chance to win.

As it turns out, he didn’t even come close, and the Red Sox suffered a 6-1 loss to the A’s.

Matsuzaka pitched one-plus inning, giving up four hits and five runs while walking two and striking out none and throwing a career-low 28 pitches.

And it wasn’t just his neck bothering him:

The injury is a recurrence of the soreness the right-hander felt in his trap muscle while he was in Triple-A in late May.

So this should come as no surprise:

Daisuke Matsuzaka back on DL to make room for Mauro Gomez.

— Nick Cafardo (@nickcafardo) July 3, 2012

Gomez, a first baseman, was acquired by the Red Sox as a six-year minor-league free agent this past offseason. He appeared in two games for Boston earlier this year, going 0-for-2. (Though he did hit .311/.366/.614 in 72 games at Triple-A Pawtucket.)

Sounds like a summary of Boston’s season.

For more on the Red Sox, please visit Over The Monster and SB Nation Boston.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Will Face Nationals Saturday

When last we left the Daisuke Matsuzaka story, two weeks ago, he was “not ready to pitch in the majors”.

There hasn’t been much news about Dice-K since then, but he must have gotten ready in the meantime, because:

DiceK starts Saturday vs Nats

— Nick Cafardo (@nickcafardo) June 6, 2012

There’s been no official confirmation from the Red Sox on this, and since it’s only Wednesday, they have time. Matsuzaka is coming back from Tommy John surgery, which he had less than a year ago (in July 2011), and has made seven rehab starts, one in Double-A and now six in Triple-A.

At Triple-A Pawtucket Dice-K threw 28⅓ innings — thus, averaging fewer than five per start — and posted a decent 3.49 ERA and very good 1.02 WHIP. Those aren’t stunning numbers, but with the Red Sox needing starting pitching, they probably figured, “Why not now?”

We’ll find out why or why not on Saturday.

For more on the Red Sox, please visit Over The Monster and SB Nation Boston.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Pitches 3rd Triple-A Start, "Not Ready For Majors"

Daisuke Matsuzaka, all things considered, is recovering extremely quickly from Tommy John surgery. He underwent the surgery less than a year ago, and he's already made five minor-league starts. His latest start came on Thursday, when he allowed two home runs and four earned runs in 6⅔ innings against the Durham Bulls.

Sounds good(ish)! Call him up, right? Hold on just a bit. From the Boston Globe:

‘‘I feel the same way as Bobby. I’m not ready to pitch in the majors yet, especially after an outing like my previous outing,’’ Matsuzaka said. ‘‘But if I’m able to consistently pitch like I did today, then I don’t think my return to the majors is that far away.’’

Nice and prudent. Matsuzaka is running out of time, though. From MLB.com:

Matsuzaka will pitch next for Pawtucket on Tuesday. After that, the clock will run out on his 30-day rehab assignment.

At that point, the Red Sox might have to get creative and find a way for the righty to get some more tune-ups in before returning to the Majors.

If Dice-K figures that he's still not ready, getting creative shouldn't be a problem.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Solid In Double-A Rehab Start; Triple-A Next

The Boston Red Sox have had numerous issues to begin the 2012 season, one of them being starting pitching, although they righted their ship somewhat with a recent six-game winning streak during which they allowed 19 total runs.

But every team can use more pitching, which is why it has to be encouraging to Boston management that Daisuke Matsuzaka had a solid rehab start for Double-A Portland on Saturday:

In his second rehab start since coming back from Tommy John surgery on his elbow, Matsuzaka was in command throughout, challenging hitters with a fastball that touched 93 mph and an assortment of off-speed stuff that baffled the Phillies.

He threw 74 pitches, 44 for strikes, and went to a three-ball count on only three of the 17 batters he faced. Matsuzaka, who has frustrated Boston fans with a couple of uneven seasons, allowed only three hits, walked two and struck out seven.

According to this Boston Globe article, Dice-K will make his third rehab start for Triple-A Pawtucket; he's expected to make five rehab starts in all, which would mean it could be mid- to late-May before he's back pitching in Boston.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Throws Rehab Start

In the last update to this StoryStream™, we noted that Daisuke Matsuzaka had undergone Tommy John surgery. It was June, and considering the typical recovery time for UCL replacement is usually 12 to 18 months, he wasn't expected back until late 2012, if it all this season.

Well, surprise!

Major leaguer Daisuke Matsuzaka got tagged with a loss but felt good in his first rehab start after 10 months away from the game, as the Salem Red Sox fell 7-2 to the Wilmington Blue Rocks in front on 1,618 on a blustery Monday night at Salem Memorial Ballpark.

Matsuzaka threw four innings and allowed three runs, which would make him the most effective starter in the Boston rotation right now. His fastball touched 94 m.p.h., and he threw 57 pitches in the game before throwing 13 more in the bullpen.

The start was the first of a 30-day rehab program in the minors, after which Matsuzaka's minor-league appearances would end, but he would either remain on the disabled list or join the Red Sox' roster.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Injury: Tommy John Surgery To Be Performed Next Week

Last night, it was stated that Red Sox righthander Daisuke Matsuzaka was “leaning” toward having Tommy John surgery. Today, via tweet from SI.com’s Jon Heyman, we learn that it’s official:

Dice-k will have tommy john surgery. Dr. Lewis yocum will perform, probably next week.

Recovery from TJ surgery can take quite a long time, perhaps up to 18 months. The Nationals’ Stephen Strasburg, who had TJ surgery early last September, isn’t expected back until next season. Matsuzaka will miss the rest of this season and probably all of 2012.

Perhaps coincidentally, 2012 will be the last year of the six-year deal he signed with the Red Sox before the 2007 season, when he was “posted” by his NPB team in Japan, the Seibu Lions. The Red Sox paid Seibu a $51,111,111 “posting fee” and are paying Matsuzaka $52 million over the six years, which can only be described as “disappointing”; Dice-K has posted a 49-30 record, but with a pedestrian 4.25 ERA and 108 ERA+, which means he’s been worth only 8% over league average for the last four-plus seasons.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Injury: Tommy John Surgery Reportedly Likely For Red Sox Starter

A week ago, Red Sox manager Terry Francona said that injured starter Daisuke Matsuzaka would not need to undergo Tommy John surgery. Earlier on Wednesday, Francona said that nothing had changed, and that the rehab plan remained the same. So you can see how this comes as a pretty substantial surprise:

Source: Matsuzaka leaning toward TJ surgery after Yocum found significant tear and recommended procedure. DM to discuss with Red Sox.

Matsuzaka's elbow sprain was re-evaluated by Dr. Lewis Yocum, and Yocum reportedly found sufficient damage to recommend surgery, meaning the tear in Matsuzaka's ligament is bad, if not complete.

So now Matsuzaka and the Red Sox will consider their options, but if Matsuzaka's ligament tear is as significant as it sounds, there's not a whole lot they can do. You can't really rehab a badly torn UCL.

If Matsuzaka does undergo Tommy John surgery, he'll be done for the rest of 2011 and much of 2012. If he doesn't, he'll take a rest-and-rehabilitation approach, but that could keep him out for a very long time even if it worked, and it wouldn't be guaranteed to work. A ligament replacement procedure appears likely.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Injury Update: Red Sox Pitcher To Continue Rehabbing

Daisuke Matsuzaka hasn't started for the Red Sox since the middle of May, due to a sprained elbow ligament. He initially went on the disabled list on May 17 and made his way to Japan, where he would receive treatment before flying to California for a second opinion. Matsuzaka has now had that second opinion - two weeks after being disabled - and according to Terry Francona, nothing has changed:

"Diagnostically, everything is kind of the same," Francona said before Wednesday’s matinee with the White Sox at Fenway Park. "We have to figure how to best go about this. The player or pitcher has to have some opinion, too. But I think you’re always going to go about it non-operatively, first. That just seems like it makes sense to me."

In other words, Matsuzaka will continue rehabbing his elbow, rather than going under the knife. There's no guarantee that this approach works out in the end, but the Red Sox would prefer to avoid surgery if at all possible.

The good news for the Red Sox is that Matsuzaka has been feeling better of late. That said, there's still no timetable for his return to action, and it might be wise not to count on Matsuzaka for anything over the rest of the year.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Injury: No Tommy John Surgery For Red Sox Pitcher

There is still no word on when Boston Red Sox right hander Daisuke Matsuzaka is going to return from an elbow sprain that has kept him out since a start on May 16, but manager Terry Francona eliminated at least one possibility. From the Providence Journal:

Contrary to a report from SI.com's Jon Heyman, Daisuke Matsuzaka does not need Tommy John surgery. Manager Terry Francona said on Monday that Matsuzaka, currently on the disabled list with a right elbow strain in his ulnar collateral ligament, will receive a second opinion later this month from Dr. Lewis Yocum in California.

The good news: no surgery. The bad news: you usually don't get second opinions for something minor, like tennis elbow.

The Red Sox are also down John Lackey, and they've been using Alfredo Aceves and Tim Wakefield at the back end of their rotation. Dice-K was struggling this year, posting a 5.30 ERA and walking 23 batters in 37-1/3 innings, though he was able to mix in the obligatory flashes of tantalizing brilliance that drives Red Sox fans nuts.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Has Elbow Tightness, May Have Sprained Ligament

After the Red Sox’ Daisuke Matsuzaka left his Monday start following seven walks in 4-1/3 innings, he was sent for an MRI exam, which took place yesterday.

Today, via tweet from Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com, we learn that this elbow stiffness is “consistent” with a strained ligament, and that Matsuzaka won’t be re-examined for “two weeks”, which would basically mean the entire length of the DL stint.

If a pitcher isn’t “re-examined” until his DL time is just about up, that likely means several more weeks before he’s ready to pitch again; that is, if surgery isn’t needed. It may be quite some time before the Japanese right-hander sees game action again.

Matsuzaka’s turn was to come up on Saturday at Fenway Park against the Cubs; instead, Alfredo Aceves will make that start. Like the Red Sox, the Cubs are also missing two of their five starting pitchers; Tim Wakefield will make the Sunday start that was originally scheduled for the now-disabled John Lackey.

Daisuke Matsuzaka Looking DL-Bound As Red Sox Call Up Michael Bowden

On April 29 in a start against the Mariners, Red Sox starter Daisuke Matsuzaka departed with stiffness in his elbow. It wasn't considered much of a problem and Matsuzaka remained on the roster, but in his most recent start on Monday night he walked seven Orioles in 4-1/3 innings, and Tuesday he was sent in for an MRI on his arm. Even before the results are in, the Red Sox are placing Matsuzaka on the disabled list on Wednesday.

Taking Matsuzaka's place on the roster will be 24-year-old righty prospect Michael Bowden, who has four walks and 28 strikeouts over 22-2/3 innings with AAA Pawtucket. Taking Matsuzaka's place in the rotation, meanwhile, will be Alfredo Aceves, who to date has appeared in 11 games as a long reliever. With Matsuzaka and John Lackey out, the Red Sox are down two-fifths of their starting rotation; although, if you want to look on the bright side, at least it's the worst two-fifths.