Phil Hughes Returning To Yankees For Wednesday Start

Scroll through Wednesday’s scheduled pitching matchups and you won’t see a whole lot that catches your eye. That is, until you get to this:

Hughes has been missing since struggling with reduced velocity and command in April and going on the DL. There, he underwent a number of tests that ruled out various maladies, but in time he got better, and more recently he made three rehab starts with Staten Island and Trenton. In those three starts, Hughes struck out 18 in 14 innings while showing improved velocity, and the Yankees have evidently decided that he’s shown enough to earn his way back.

So, encouraging news from Sweeny Murti of YankeesWFAN:

Phil Hughes threw 49 pitches in rehab start today in Tampa, FB 91-93mph consistently. Good first outing. Will pitch at Staten Island Sunday.

Sounds promising, especially the velocity. The Yankees had been on a nice run, and a week ago led the AL East by two games. But now they have lost three of their last five, and allowed 17 runs in the first two games of their current series vs. the Red Sox. They could use Hughes and a rehab start Tuesday, followed by one or two more, could have on a path back into the Yankees’ rotation by the end of the month.

Writes Hoch later about what the Yankees are calling Hughes’ problem:

So we’ll see how this throwing program goes. The Yankees will hope that Hughes begins throwing at or near full strength, and who knows, maybe time and a little cortisone was all he needed. But there’s no telling until Hughes is actually out there throwing a baseball.

But Yankees GM Brian Cashman discussed the Hughes situation today, and had some encouraging news:

Cashman says Hughes feels a lot better. Had cortisone shot 4/28.This is the first update about Hughes that’s anything other than completely ambiguous or foreboding, so while it’s not exactly the same as Hughes popping 95-mph fastballs in extended spring training, “feels a lot better” is a definite improvement.

This is good news for the Yankees, because they can eliminate some major and scary possibilities. But this is bad news for the Yankees, because it means they still don’t know why Hughes isn’t throwing the way he used to.

Of course, in first place at 16-9, the Yankees aren’t exactly in a desperate position at the moment, although one wonders how long that rotation of theirs can possibly hold up.

The young right-hander, who has gone through a battery of tests since going on the disabled list with what the team called a “dead arm” on April 15, is scheduled to see specialist Dr. Robert Thompson to determine whether he has thoracic outlet syndrome.The Yankees have been concerned with Hughes since spring training, when the rising young star wasn’t able to throw with his typical velocity. While Hughes never claimed to feel pain, the Yankees put him on the disabled list after several poor starts.

For those of use who’ve never heard of this ominous syndrome, here’s a definition from PubMed Health:

Thoracic outlet syndrome is a rare condition that involves pain in the neck and shoulder, numbness and tingling of the fingers, and a weak grip. The thoracic outlet is the area between the rib cage and collar bone.

No update on Hughes yet. He went through five more hours of testing today, including a dye-contrast MRI and blood work.

While the Yankees have been linked to every starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who doesn’t have a no-trade clause -- and several that do -- they would probably like to figure out what is wrong with Hughes before they make a significant trade.

The Yankees will leave no stone unturned as they search for the miles per hour and control that Hughes has had go missing. Based on the lack of pain, an injury seems unlikely, but the statistical symptoms are definitely there, so there’s no harm in looking, just to be sure.

While no results have yet been determined, I honestly wonder what the Yankees might be hoping for. An injury would be bad, but it would at least be an answer. If Hughes’ arm is in good condition, but it still can’t throw like it used to, then this whole thing will remain a mystery.

Hughes isn’t having any pain. So he’s got that going for him, anyway.

But this news obviously delays any rehab start against real hitters, and Hughes won’t know if he’s right until he pitches against live hitters. This is rank speculation, obviously, but it’s hard to imagine him starting again for the Yankees before June. At best. Considering that nobody seems to know what’s wrong.

The timing of Phil Hughes’ return from the Disabled List could hardly be more indefinite. Wednesday, Chad Jennings reports (via LoHud Yankees Blog):

Hughes hasn’t been diagnosed with a specific injury; he supposedly just has a “dead arm,” which is what they say when you can’t throw as hard as usual but the doctors can’t find anything wrong.

In what comes as little surprise, the New York Yankees have elected to place struggling starting pitcher Phil Hughes on the disabled list. Initial reports that Hughes was heading to AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre were not correct. While Hughes does not appear to be structurally injured, the team believes he is fighting through a dead-arm period that has taken a toll on his performance.

The 24-year-old Hughes has made headlines this April for his reduced velocity and ineffectiveness. Through three starts, he’s thrown his fastball a few miles per hour below where it’s been in the past, and opposing batters have taken liberal advantage. One glance at Hughes’ numbers say all that needs to be said: