
NEW YORK –- Henderson Alvarez will make his next rehab start Monday for Triple-A Nashville, as he continues on the comeback trail from shoulder surgery.
Alvarez threw three innings and gave up one run for Single-A Stockton on Wednesday night, his first minor league rehab outing since he underwent surgery on his shoulder last July.
To this point, all has gone smoothly for the 26-year-old right-hander in his comeback. Should he make a healthy return from the disabled list, the 2014 All-Star will represent a major upgrade to the A’s rotation based on his track record in the bigs so far.
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[STIGLICH: Morning After: Valencia can't out-run 105 mph throw]
He’s again set to throw three innings Monday, and A’s manager Bob Melvin said Alvarez could get up to around 45 pitches in that outing. Melvin has mentioned the team would like Alvarez to build up to around 100 pitches by the time he returns.
And though Melvin also has said that Alvarez’s return might not come until early June, it’s worth noting that a pitcher’s minor league rehab stint can last a maximum of 30 days. Using Alvarez’s start Wednesday as the beginning of his clock, that would point to him joining the active roster May 20 barring any setbacks. And there’s no saying Alvarez couldn’t be activated before that.
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Melvin didn’t have a pregame update on third baseman Danny Valencia’s hamstring injury, saying he would have something after the game. But he did offer this:
“Hamstrings are a tough deal. Hamstrings aren’t a day or two and you’re back in the lineup, for the most part.”
When asked questions about how he might handle his lineups in the upcoming weekend series at Toronto, Melvin prefaced it by saying, “It depends on what our roster looks like when we get there.”
With Valencia unavailable Thursday, the A’s are going with a three-man bench against the Yankees, and that’s no way to operate on an extended basis. The most likely scenario would have Valencia joining the 15-day disabled list and the A’s calling up another infielder from Nashville. Tyler Ladendorf is a strong candidate based on his ability to play all over the infield, and even the outfield.
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The Yankees held a pregame ceremony for former A’s minor league pitcher Michael Nolan. Nolan, a Yonkers native, was the victim of a drive-by shooting and died in October. Melvin and Yankees manager Joe Girardi both took part in the ceremony, with Melvin presenting Nolan’s family with a No. 47 jersey.