BRADENTON, Fla. – The Pirates Head Athletic Trainer, Todd Tomczyk, met with the media this morning for the weekly injury update. The biggest news was that Josh Bell is in the final stages of game activity, with the goal of getting him into Grapefruit League games next week. Bell has a goal this week to get into sim games and participate in base running. The latter is always the final step for rehab from a leg injury before getting into games.
**Francisco Cervelli returned yesterday and played three innings, after previously dealing with right foot discomfort. Tomczyk said that after the game, Cervelli wasn’t even thinking about the injury, and came out of the game well.
“We’re going to have a program in play,” Tomczyk said on Cervelli’s build-up. “We’re looking to get him back into competition, and that program is being discussed by Francisco, Clint, and Tom Prince.”
**The three Tommy John rehab guys — Brandon Cumpton, Angel Sanchez, and Casey Sadler — continue to progress. Cumpton is starting to throw in flat ground, while Sanchez and Sadler both have sim games coming up. The latter two are coming off a traditional return from Tommy John, with just one surgery. Cumpton missed an extra year with shoulder surgery, and is behind them on schedule. It doesn’t look like any of the three will be ready for the start of the season, and they might be on a more delayed path to getting ready for 2017.
“We’re going to progress as their bodies let us know,” Tomczyk said. “We’re always monitoring their workload. We’re monitoring their responses to the workload. And as you’re well aware, that journey from UCL reconstruction is a long one, 14-16 months. They’re where they need to be right now, and we’ll make adjustments to increase their workload or decrease their workload accordingly.”
**Jason Stoffel, who dealt with right arm discomfort at the start of camp, is in his flat ground work.
**Adam Frazier was hit with a pitch yesterday, right after coming back from a ball deflecting off his bat and thumb. Tomczyk said that he’s sore, but it’s not a concern.
