PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Mike Minor has thrown a couple of bullpen sessions and could make his first spring start within a week, but it's too soon to know whether the Braves left-hander will be able to avoid a season-opening stint on the 15-day disabled list.
Minor couldn’t throw or work out in January after having urinary tract surgery Dec. 31, and then developed shoulder soreness after ramping up his throwing at the beginning of spring training. The Braves had him rest for about a week before he resumed long-tossing, then he threw five minutes off the mound for the first time Wednesday.
“He feels good,” Braves general manager Frank Wren said. “We’ve still got to play it by ear (on whether be ready to start season). It’s going to be close. But we’re not going to do anything foolish to speed it up for one start to make it work. We’ll do what’s right for him and for us.”
Minor hasn’t faced hitters yet, and will likely throw batting practice once or twice before he pitches in a Grapefruit League game. Because there are off days in the schedule during the first two weeks of the regular season, the Braves wouldn’t need a fifth starter until April 12 in their 10th game.
Their hope was that Minor would have enough time to prepare if they bumped him to the back of the rotation to debut in that second week of April.
“It’ll be close,” Gonzalez said. “The good thing that we have going for us is that we could bump him all the way to the back to buy us some time.”
