March 07, 2008
Step One
Francisco Liriano pitched in a game today, his first since Tommy John surgery:
Francisco Liriano faced a major league team for the first time in 18 months, gave up no runs and felt no pain.
He even made Manny Ramirez look silly on a changeup that the Red Sox slugger flailed at for a third strike. And he made Twins pitching coach Rick Anderson smile.
"He felt great," Anderson said. "His first outing was outstanding and we just build off of that."
Certainly that's good news for the Twins. Liriano can take Johan Santana's place if he remains healthy. One thing that might help in that regard is a change of mechanics:
His motion was less energetic than it had been, a change Anderson hopes can help him avoid injury.
"On his finish, he's not so violent recoiling," Anderson said. "He looked pretty calm."
The questions, however, is can he be both calm and effective?
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Posted by David Pinto at
09:47 PM
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It's nice to see Liriano back on the hill. I wonder if his strikeout rate will decrease.