After a disappointing season to say the least, Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Sonny Gray will pitch on Wednesday for the first time since August 6.
Gray has had two injuries disprut what was supposed to be another Cy Young caliber year. The 26-year old from Nashville, TN finished third in last year’s voting behind Dallas Keuchel and David Price; not bad company.
Oakland manager Bob Melvin is projecting an extremely low pitch count before Ross Detwiler takes over. Mevlin talked about why he wants Gray to pitch one more time, “Get on a mound and get after it and know you’re healthy going into the offseason is really what we’re looking for,” Melvin said. “He passed all the hurdles physically. I know he’s eager to get into a game.”
Gray threw to live hitters on Saturday and according to Athletics Beat Writer Susan Slusser on Twitter, Gray looked pretty sharp.
Sonny Gray threw to hitters this morning, it went great. Matt Olson says Gray looked just the same as he did when he saw him this spring.
— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) September 24, 2016
Olson says Gray threw him some nasty sliders. Gray not sure what happens next but would like to pitch in game in final week.
— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) September 24, 2016
Melvin chimed in again, this time on his former ace’s throwing session, “He threw the ball really well, all his pitches. pretty intense what he was doing today. It was high energy level.”
Gray was one of the game’s best pitchers in 2014 and 2015. In those two years, he averaged a 2.90 ERA with 176 strikeouts. Gray was a major factor in the Oakland Athletics push towards the 2014 AL Wild Card game where they lost to the Kansas City Royals; Gray did not pitch in that game. He improved in 2015, but the Athletics did not make the playoffs due to their lack of a complete team.
Some might look at this situation and wonder why the Athletics would pitch him for one or two innings in just one game. The Athletics are well out of the playoff chase, so risking an injury is probably not the smartest move, right? Well getting the confidence back, even if it is just that one game, getting Gray’s belief in his ability to throw again would be huge. Even if Gray has a horrible start, it would mean the world for his mentality to get out on a major league mound and pitch.
Next: Is Cotton Oakland's Next Ace?
“I would like to pitch,” Gray said. “Whether it’s one game — one, two, three innings — whatever it is. But like I said, I need to get back on the mound and throw a full bullpen, so we’re hoping to do that in the next two or three days. Until I can do that, I won’t really know.”
What Gray does not know is how confident he is in his capabilites on the mound. A few innings on Wednesday would greatly help him out in his endeavors for next season.