Twenty-three days after his jaw was broken in two places by a 90-mph fastball, Braves slugger Jason Heyward was back on the field hitting Friday, albeit hitting pitches thrown about 30 mph slower.
Wearing a modified batting helmet with a guard attachment to protect the right side of his face, Heyward took batting practice before Friday’s series opener against the San Diego Padres at Turner Field. He previously was restricted to hitting balls off a tee or tossed from someone beside the batter’s box.
While there is no specific timetable for his return, the Braves and Heyward hope their right fielder will be able to play in some games before the regular season ends Sept. 29 and be ready for the postseason. He’s expected to face live pitching in instructional-league games at the team’s spring-training site in Florida before he rejoins the Braves.
Heyward didn’t hit balls as far as he usually does during batting practice, but made solid contact and didn’t show any signs of being encumbered by the helmet attachment as he took swings at pitches from first-base coach Terry Pendleton.
Heyward also caught some fly balls in the outfield, the first time he’s done that since he was hit in the face by Mets left-hander Jonathon Niese during an Aug. 21 game at New York. Heyward, who didn’t travel with the team on a seven-game trip that ended Thursday, had protective braces and rubber bands removed Monday.
Metal plates that were surgically attached over the fractures three weeks ago will remain.
“I’m just looking forward to seeing him hitting on the field,” manager Fredi Gonzalez said before the workout. “I’m just letting him go out there, let him run around and do whatever he’s capable of doing.”
After telling a Braves media-relations official that he didn’t want to be interviewed before the workout, Heyward stopped only briefly to chat with reporters afterward on his way back to a closed clubhouse.
“I don’t have anything for you, other than I hit, and I ran, and I shagged (fly balls),” he said.
Asked if he felt OK, Heyward said, “I wouldn’t have been cleared if everything didn’t feel OK. I’m cleared to go, as long as everything felt fine. So nothing’s holding me back. Got to let time take its course now.”
Heyward might accompany the team to Washington on Monday, or he could travel to Florida to prepare for instructional-league games. “I guess these next two days will tell us where Monday will bring us to,” Gonzalez said.
Seven in seven: The Braves are scheduled to start seven different pitchers in a seven-game stretch that began Friday.
The unusual scenario was the result of uncertainty over the health of veteran left-hander Paul Maholm, who missed his scheduled start Friday because of a sore elbow. David Hale started in place of Maholm for the series opener against the Padres in the major league debut for the right-hander from Marietta.
A dye-contrast MRI of Maholm’s left elbow showed no ligament damage, and he’s penciled in to make his next start Friday at Chicago in a series opener against the Cubs, who traded him to Atlanta in July 2012.
Kris Medlen starts Saturday and Julio Teheran on Sunday in the series finale against San Diego. Mike Minor will start Monday at Washington, followed by Freddy Garcia on Tuesday and rookie Alex Wood in Wednesday’s series finale against the Nationals. The Braves are off Thursday.
Gonzalez said after next week the Braves could return to a regular five-man rotation. In the meantime, extra rest for Medlen, who will start on consecutive Saturdays, could be beneficial because he already has pitched a career-high 174 1/3 innings.
That’s 21 above his previous high, set last season when he pitched 138 innings in the majors and 13 1/3 at Triple-A. Despite the workload, Medlen said he feels fresh.
“I’m going to say I’m surprised by the way I feel now — I feel great — because I prepared myself for this,” he said.
Downs update: After being fitted for a splint on his broken right ring finger, lefty reliever Scott Downs was to see the Braves' hand specialist for a follow-up exam Friday afternoon and said he expected to be cleared to pitch.
The finger was fractured Saturday when Downs was hit by a line drive to the mound off the bat of Philadelphia’s Chase Utley.
Uggla, B.J. on bench again: For the fourth time in five games, sub-.200-hitting veterans Dan Uggla and B.J. Upton were out of the lineup Friday, replaced again by Jordan Schafer in center field and Elliot Johnson at second base.
“Put the best player you think you can win today’s game with,” Gonzalez said. “That’s what we’ve been doing here the last three or four games.”
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