Can the forgotten ace regain his dignity again?
Tomoyuki Sugano (330), former ace of the Yomiuri Giants in Japan, who failed to join the opening roster due to injury, is accelerating his comeback.
Now it’s time to start pitching the bullpen. The next goal is expected to be situation pitching.
Sugano was Yomiuri’s representative ace.
He reigned as Yomiuri’s ace with a splendid career, including 4 times ERA, 3 wins, and 2 Sawamura Awards.
At one time, he sought to enter the major leagues, but he also postponed the major league challenge to receive better treatment.
However, it can be said that his recent performance fell short of the qualifications of an ace.
With 6 wins in the 2021 season, I personally failed to achieve 10 wins, the second time, and last year, I barely filled double-digit wins with 10 wins (7 losses, average ERA of 3.12).
It was clearly not up to Ace’s reputation.
Injury came here.
I had to rehabilitate with pain in my left elbow. He has not yet been able to pitch normally. Although he avoided surgery, the poor condition of his elbow prevented him from making a first-team appearance yet.
Then, what is Sugano doing now?
Recently, good news has been heard. I was able to start pitching in the bullpen. I went into the bullpen and threw the ball with about 80% power.
He entered the bullpen just three days ago and threw a total of 62 pitches. He picked up his pace by mixing fastballs and breaking balls. 크크크벳
Director Hara is in a position that he will not rush Sugano’s return. Although the team’s performance is not good, he is calculating that hastening his comeback could cause a bigger upset.
First of all, Sugano plans to use Sugano in the first team only when no abnormalities are found in the second team game after going through situation betting (a match between a pitcher and a batter assuming the game situation).
Sugano is currently playing catch, throwing the ball from the bottom to the top of a sloping hill, and he believes this method can help him come back faster.
Now that he has entered the bullpen pitching, it seems that he will have to rehabilitate for another month. However, the fact that he started pitching in the bullpen while he was on a rehab pitch with no end in sight is a result with a clear meaning.
Will Sugano become a forgotten ace? It is expected that the results will be revealed through his rehabilitation appearances and first-team performance in the future.