Christian Vazquez knew his boys were in town.
Vazquez, who underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery earlier this month, visited his Boston Red Sox teammates before Tuesday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. The catcher has been rehabbing at the Red Sox’s spring training facility in Fort Myers, Fla.
“He’s going through the initial phase of rehab,” Red Sox manager John Farrell told reporters in St. Petersburg. “And that is to gain full range of motion. The daily and weekly reports on that, he’s making very good progress. I think he’s about 12 or 14 degrees from full extension and almost full range of motion when he contracts, so things are going according to the rehab plan right now.”
Vazquez made his major league debut with Boston last July and quickly evolved into a leader behind the dish. The 24-year-old arrived at spring training full of enthusiasm and optimism, but he suffered an elbow injury on a throw to second base during a Grapefruit League game and it turned out to be serious.
Recovery from Tommy John surgery typically takes 12 to 18 months for pitchers, with catchers’ recoveries varying to some degree. Vazquez will be sidelined for all of 2015, but he could spend time around the major league club in Boston this summer, perhaps charting pitches at Fenway Park.
“We just want to be sure he’s not at risk by being around other things where banging into something (might hurt him),” Farrell said. “He’s in such a delicate phase right now with that surgery, so that might be more early summer by the time that takes place.”
Vazquez’s passion is undeniable. It’s no wonder he used the Red Sox’s first regular-season trip to Florida to catch up with some familiar faces.
Thumbnail photo via Charles LeClaire/USA TODAY Sports Images
