SAN FRANCISCO -- Giants left-hander Madison Bumgarner began the throwing portion of his recovery from an April 20 dirt-bike accident by playing light catch on Tuesday, three days ahead of schedule.
It was Bumgarner, all right -- making the somewhat deliberate pivot on his left foot, then bringing his arm around in an easy whip-like motion -- though his movements were slower than usual. Having sustained bruised ribs and a sprained joint in his throwing shoulder, Bumgarner is unlikely to rush anything for quite a while.
He did accelerate his return to throwing, however. Giants manager Bruce Bochy said that Bumgarner, who was expected to try throwing on Friday, lobbed about 45 tosses on flat ground from 45 feet, then 60.
"He had been doing so well [in his recovery] that he wanted to bump it up," Bochy said.