Jason Heyward made significant progress the past few days in recovering from an April 22 appendectomy, and the Braves right fielder could begin a minor-league rehab assignment by the end of this week.
After resting 10 days, Heyward took his first “dry swings” with a bat on Friday to see how he felt. That went so well that he also hit balls off a tee that day and did some light throwing. On Saturday, he increased those activities, hitting some soft-tossed balls, fielding some grounders and throwing “aggressively.”
“Now we’re getting to running today (Sunday), and more throwing and more hitting,” an upbeat Heyward said Sunday morning. “Really encouraging. Going with the team on the road trip to stay with the trainers, make sure I’m in shape, get back in baseball shape. Hitting on the field as soon as possible. Running outside as soon as possible; today it’s just going to be treadmill.”
He’ll accompany the Braves on a three-city, 10-game trip that starts Monday in Cincinnati and continues in San Francisco, but he might not be with them for the final leg in Arizona. He could begin a minor-league rehab assignment by then.
“He’ll go to Cincinnati with us and take some live batting practice and start doing some more stuff,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “I don’t know if it’ll be three days in Cincinnati and then a couple of more days in San Fran, and then we’ll send him out (to a minor-league team) to get some ABs.”
Gonzalez said there was no timetable for when and where the rehab assignment would start, or how long it would last.
“We’re just taking it day by day right now,” he said. “He’s feeling better every day. His body is getting healthier and stronger every day, so he’s moving in the right direction.”
