Chien-Ming Wang throws in rehab game but return to season remains undecided - MLB Update
Chien-Ming Wang is fast finishing his rehab assignments and making strides for his return in the season. As a starter, he promises so much for his side. The fact the Nationals already have strong arms in their ranks, even if he shows up in time, it will
not be easy for him to find a spot in the rotation.
Following his rehab outing at Class AAA Syracuse, only one more appearance has left for conclusion of his official duties there.
Wang holds 59-29 career win-loss record, which makes him an attractive option for the Nationals to have.
He will have landed in the season right away after recovering from an injury, if it was not for the tremendous control Ross Detwiler showed, every time he was sent on the mound.
Detwiler had come as a replacement and now has become such an important component of the rotation, sending him to Minor League in favour of Wang is an unpleasant dilemma to deal with.
As manager observed Wang in his rehab game, certainly he has come a long way from injury, Johnson maintains. Manager however makes it clear that Wang will have to prove if he can actually provide quality pitches as their existing arms in the rotation are
doing.
“I think he’s real close,” Johnson said. “That’s going to be a decision left up to [General Manager Mike] Rizzo. The question really comes down to, is he polished off enough to come in and replace one of our starters and give us the same type of effort?
That was a big step in the right direction. It depends how he recovers from that, I would think.”
By using his last rehab game as an occasion to justify his inclusion, Wang can compel manager on thinking about him as being different from rest of the pitchers.
While he may not have the kind of pitches Gio Gonzalez and Stephen Strasburg have in their repertoire, he indeed possesses something that makes him a distinct entity.
In light of this, one can assume, just to give a new flavour to their rotation, manager may think of sending Detwiler back to the Minors to create space for him.
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