It wasn’t a wow, but it was definitely a significant step. Bailey Ober threw 3 1/3 innings for High-A Cedar Rapids on Sunday afternoon as he continued to move closer to a return to the Twins’ starting rotation.
Ober, who has been out since May 31 due to right elbow inflammation, threw 57 pitches (38 strikes) for the Kernels against Wisconsin. He chose to make the shorter trip to Appleton, Wis., rather than pitching for the Twins’ Triple-A St. Paul affiliate in Louisville. This was his first time facing hitters since suffering the injury.
“Perfect,” said manager Derek Shelton. “He threw strikes. It’s a rehab start. I think a guy like Bailey, when he goes down in an A-ball game, they’re going to swing and there’s going to be contact. So as long as he reports tomorrow [that] he’s healthy, that’s really all that matters to me.”
The right-hander was reached for three runs, all earned, on seven hits. He struck out one, did not walk a batter and allowed a home run to lead off the game. His pitches were largely located down in the zone. One of the hits was a grounder to third base and another was a blooper that dropped between three players in shallow center field.
Full pitch data is not available for Ober’s outing, but the radar gun on the broadcast had his four-seam fastball and sinker at 88-89 miles per hour, about where he’s been for most of this season. He averaged 88.7 on his four-seamer in his last start before he hit the IL.
Ober was expected to throw about 50 pitches. It’s likely he will have at least one more rehab start, most likely for St. Paul at home next week, before rejoining the Twins.