Jesus Luzardo remains in quarantine well into the A’s second week of training camp after testing positive for coronavirus. Pitching coach Scott Emerson says the young left-hander is in great spirits. Manager Bob Melvin said recently that Luzardo’s itching to get back.
Luzardo can’t return just yet, stuck in isolation as the 2020 baseball season encroaches. His ability to overcome this setback before the season starts seems increasingly remote, leaving the A’s to at least consider the possibilities he won’t be a full-fledged member of the starting rotation to open the 60-game campaign.
Emerson emphasized that no decisions have been made at this point.
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“Once we get him on the mound, we can look at the data to see where he’s at,” Emerson said. “Then you make an educated decision on how you go about building him into the mix.”
The A’s have options in that regard. Great pitching depth, especially with established starter Chris Bassitt able to step into the rotation from a swing man’s role, takes the pressure off having to push the 22-year old’s progress.
“This guy has a bright future,” Emerson said. “You have to look at big-picture thinking. Of course, we want him to start every fifth day for the next 20 years of his career but, in order to do that, you’re going to have to use your intelligence and experience as a coach, the experience as an organization and the data.”
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Part of that is going to take time. Building up a starting pitcher doesn’t happen overnight. They often start at about 35 pitches, Emerson said, adding 15-20 every time out. The A’s want their starters coming out of the three-week camp ready to throw between 75-85 pitches, with long relievers ready to carry the team into the late innings.
While he’ll eventually end up in the rotation, exactly where Luzardo fits while ramping up remains in question.
“When we get him on the team, do we start him the two innings or do we use him more in a leverage situation and pick the days he gets to pitch?” Emerson said. “Or the feeling might be that we’re running out of time right now, and let’s pitch him in games that are meaningful and stretch him out that way, and as the season goes on, we plug him in as a starter."
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Luzardo is currently indoors, trying to stay limber and in shape with dry drills and indoor exercises. The A’s want to see him throw some bullpens and eventually pitch to hitters in a controlled environment before entering him into a game. That would help measure his preparedness and the pitch-count restrictions he might initially be under.
"He’s already politicking to me that he’s ready to go, that he’s only going to need a bullpen or to throw to hitters once before being ready to go," Melvin said. "We want to make sure that he’s physically in a position to do it. He keeps himself in great shape. He threw during the layoff and was someone like [Frankie] Montas, who was throwing quite a bit. My guess, it won’t take us long. The sooner we get him back, the better. We don’t know when that’s going to be yet."