Moore making progress in his recovery

ST. PETERSBURG -- The contrast was striking during the Rays' pregame activities Friday afternoon at Tropicana Field.

Outside the home dugout, Alex Cobb told reporters that he had decided to undergo Tommy John surgery. On the mound, Matt Moore, who is 12 1/2 months into the rehab for his Tommy John surgery, was showing how successful the operation can be.

Moore had Tommy John surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow on April 22, 2014. Friday was the second time he has thrown to hitters, with Brandon Guyer and Tim Beckham serving as the hitters.

Beckham smiled when asked how Moore looked: "I think his cutter and changeup looked really good."

Moore said that he was able to "throw all of my pitches."

"I'm in a pretty good mood afterwards so I'm happy about it," said Moore, noting that the reactions by the hitters told him a lot.

"I've been friends with Tim for a long time and played with Guyer for a while. So when they say something after the BP and let me know what some of my pitches are doing, it means more coming out of their mouths."

Moore allowed that he has a good feel throwing his pitches at this juncture.

"This is the part of the process where I can start getting a little more excited and start to focus on maybe a mid June-ish [return]," Moore said. "... It feels good. It's nice to come to the park on days when I can compete like this."

Moore is following an every five days routine, so he will pitch again on Wednesday. Matt Silverman, Rays president of baseball operations, said if all goes well, Moore will throw two more live batting practice sessions before he begins a rehab assignment.