Writing in the WEEI.COM BLOG NETWORK Alex Speier reports that Daisuke Matsuzaka remains on schedule in his return from Tommy John surgery. (AP) Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka played catch for the first time since undergoing Tommy John surgery in June to repair the torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. According to the Kyodo News (via JapanBall.com), Matsuzaka threw 39 times from “short range” in Fort Myers as a starting point to the gradual rebuilding of his arm strength. After the throwing session, the 31-year-old reflected on what he considered a significant milestone in his rehab process. ”I have been waiting a long time for this day,” Matsuzaka told reporters in Fort Myers. ”It was the first time I threw a ball in awhile but I was relieved because my elbow didn’t hurt at all,” he said. ”I was nervous about my first throw because I didn’t want to throw it in a strange way. Since it was my first time holding a baseball in a long time, I wasn’t quite sure about my release.” Matsuzaka made just eight appearances (seven starts) in 2011, going 3-3 with a 5.30 ERA before suffering the elbow injury that ultimately required season-ending surgery. While he remained true to the wildly inconsistent form he’d shown over the last three seasons, his absence nevertheless contributed to the decimation of the Red Sox’ starting pitching depth that ultimately contributed to the team’s collapse in September. While Matsuzaka has a stated goal of returning sometime in the second half of the 2012 season — the last of the six-year, $52 million deal he signed with the Sox after Boston won its posting bid of $51.11 million on him in Nov. 2006 — it remains to be seen whether he ever pitches in a major league game for the Sox again. That said, to date, Matsuzaka’s recovery from Tommy John has remained very much on schedule. Going forward, Matsuzaka said that he hopes to throw every other day, and he acknowledged that he will take more time both in preparing for his throwing sessions and getting post-throwing treatment. In five seasons with the Sox, Matsuzaka is 49-30 with a 4.25 ERA while striking out 8.2 batters per nine innings and walking 4.4 hitters per nine. He will make $10 million in 2012. Matsuzaka has an even better chance of recuperating form his Tommy John surgery with the help of the ArmTutor. The ArmTutor™ system has been developed to allow for functional rehabilitation of the upper extremity. The system consists of an ergonomic wearable arm brace and dedicated rehabilitation software. The ArmTutor™ system allows for a range of biomechanical evaluation including speed, passive and active range of motion and motion analysis of the upper extremity. Quantitative biomechanical data allow for objective evaluation and rehabilitation treatment follow up. The ArmTutor™ rehabilitation concept is based on performing controlled exercise rehabilitation practice at a patient customized level with real time accurate feedback on the patient’s performance. The exercises are designed in the form of challenging games that are suitable for a wide variety of neurological and orthopedic injury and disease. The games challenge the patient to perform the exercise task to their best ability and to continue exercise practice. The ArmTutor™ allows for isolated and a combination of elbow and three directional shoulder treatment. The system provides detailed exercise performance instructions and precise feedback on the patients exercise performance. Controlled exercise of multijoints within the normal movement pattern prevents the development of undesired and compensatory joint movement and ensures better performance of functional tasks. The ArmTutor™ together with its sister devices, HandTutor, LegTutor and 3DTutor, is used by many leading rehabilitation centers worldwide and has full FDA and CE certification.
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