With Chien-Ming Wang, the Nationals probably won't get their wish
By Adam Kilgore
More than a dozen Nationals pitchers threw bullpen sessions today,
Chien-Ming Wang among them. Wang will be watched closely this spring as
he tries to pitch in the majors for the first time since July 2009. Today,
he looked to be as far from away from a big league mound as he believes he
is, not as close as the Nationals had hoped.
Still recovering from a unique and major shoulder surgery that took place
almost 20 months ago, Wang threw softly in his fifth bullpen session of the
spring. He has been in Viera for two weeks in preparation, but he has made
clear he wants to move slowly. On Monday, he said he expects to begin the
regular in the minor leagues, building up stamina and strength in his arm.
"If that's what he says, than I certainly have to expect that," Manager Jim
Riggleman said. "Initially, I think through the winter we kind of felt he
would be in spring training competing for a job. But, again, we want to be
really conservative. Usually, it's the player who's telling you otherwise.
They're trying to speed the process up. In this case, if he's willing to slow
it down, I know we will be."
Though the low level of intensity in Wang's session indicated he has a long
way to go, the Nationals liked what the saw. "I thought he threw the ball
good," pitching coach Steve McCatty said. "First day, I thought he looked
fine."
The real test for Wang will come tomorrow, when his shoulder has recovered
from today's throwing.
"The next day is when we really want to check him out," Riggleman said. "How
do you feel after sleeping that night? We'll get a little more information
about that tomorrow."
This offseason, the Nationals non-tendered Wang and then signed him to a
one-year, $1 million contract that could worth up to $5 million with
incentives.
By Adam Kilgore | February 17, 2011; 5:44 PM ET
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