Johnson resumes long toss after slight setback

SAN DIEGO -- Pitcher Josh Johnson, working his way back from Tommy John surgery he had a year ago, has resumed his throwing program after being slowed by soreness in two areas last month.

Johnson had a simulated game at Petco Park on April 28, which would have likely been the last hurdle before a rehabilitation assignment with a Minor League affiliate. But Johnson developed triceps tightness shortly thereafter.

Johnson then developed tightness with the nerves in his neck, a problem that was only recently alleviated.

On Wednesday, Johnson resumed playing catch. On Sunday, he played long toss for the first of three consecutive such sessions, covering 120 feet.

"It definitely feels like it's moving in the right direction," Johnson said. "It's been a frustrating."

But if there's anything Johnson has learned while recovering from his surgery last April -- and even his first Tommy John surgery in 2007 -- it's the importance of patience.

"I know never to get too high or too low," he said.

There's no timetable, manager Bud Black said, for Johnson to do anything other than play catch at this point.

Johnson, who had surgery on April 24 of last season, worked through his rehabilitation and throwing program without so much as a hiccup until he was sidelined with the triceps and neck tightness.