Clay Buchholz, who received a platelet-rich plasma injection in his injured right elbow, gave an estimate Thursday as to when Boston Red Sox fans might see him back on the mound.
“I think the total amount of time is probably going to be five to six weeks,” Buchholz, who underwent the procedure Wednesday, told reporters in Houston, via WEEI.com. “I’m going to be back whenever I can. This is sort of frustrating. Yeah, whenever I’m able to go. (Dr. James Andrews) gave me the steps to follow, and that’s what I’m going to do, and that’s what I went to him.”
Red Sox manager John Farrell said Wednesday he expects Buchholz back before the end of the season — a five-week timetable would set him up for a late August return — and Buchholz said he was pleased with the results of his visit to Dr. Andrews.
“It was basically re-affirming what we know,” the right-hander told reporters. “The one thing that came out of it that I was thinking a little differently about is the catch that I was playing. It probably wasn’t the right thing to do, in his mind. Yeah, that’s the reason for the PRP, because the time I’m going to be down, it’s not going to extend that time at all. Being that I don’t have any tears and it wasn’t a surgical issue, he said that I’d probably be in the upper 80 percent for this PRP stuff to either help or form a stronger muscle rather than just taking rest.”
Buchholz, who had allowed one earned run or fewer in five consecutive starts before landing on the disabled list July 11 with a strained flexor muscle, is in the final guaranteed year of his contract, making his performance over the final few months of the season all the more important. His contract includes team options of $13 million and $13.5 million for 2016 and 2017, respectively.
“I definitely want to pitch again (this season),” said Buchholz, who has spent his entire career in the Red Sox organization. “I don’t care how many starts. I need to; that’s why I’m here. This is actually a big year for me, too. …
“I don’t really want to go anywhere. When it comes to the time where somebody’s got to make a decision, the decision doesn’t always match the same way you feel. It is what it is. That’s the business side. I’ve said it a hundred times. It happens to a lot of guys. It’s very rare for a guy to stay in one spot his whole career. If it does happen, it happens.”
Thumbnail photo via Dan Hamilton/USA TODAY Sports Images
