Grayson Rodriguez's Shoulder Inflammation Recovery Milestone

0:00It's April 21st, welcome in. This is MLB News Today, where baseball meets AI. Grayson Rodriguez just hit a key milestone in his recovery from right shoulder inflammation. The Angels' right-hander faced live hitters for the first time since spring training ahead of Monday's series opener against the Blue Jays at Angel. Stadium. He threw about 30 pitches across two simulated innings against the few teammates and coaches. Rodriguez got shut down in mid-march after entering Camp Healthy, following elbow serves last year that sidelined him for the full season. He came over in an off-season trade from the Orioles and showed solid stuff in the cactus league with 12 strikeouts and 12 and 2-thirds innings, despite some control issues. He came away pumped, saying it brought back that game adrenaline after being out so long. Angels manager Kurt Suzuki watched the whole session and was impressed by his progressively sharper bullpins leading into it. Rodriguez reports his command is way better now after focused work during down time.

1:01Last time out in the majors in 2024, he posted a 3.86 ERA over 116 and 2-thirds innings with 1, 130 strikeouts. If progress holds steady, expect him to face hitters again soon with more pitches, putting him on track for a rehab stand and eventual rotation spot, as the Angels they cautious with their 26-year-old ace.