Detroit - The Tigers are seeing encouraging signs from Gleyber Torres, who appears to be moving in the right direction as he works back from a second oblique strain.
Manager AJ Hinch said the energy Torres is bringing to the process stands out.
“I love the spark in his voice and his excitement that he’s not feeling anything,” Hinch said.
Torres has been out since June 16, but he’s ramping up again with up to 45 swings in the cage off coach pitching, along with full workouts. So far, he says the response has been clean.
“It feels good so far,” he said. “We’re doing the right things out there, just little by little.
The swing feels good. No pain so far.
It feels good compared to the first injury. It’s feeling way better right now.
After full workouts, the next day I don’t feel any soreness. I just have to keep doing what I have to do to come back after the break.”
That break is the catch. The All-Star pause also shuts down the minor leagues, so Torres likely will spend next week in Lakeland continuing his return-to-play work. Justin Verlander, Jackson Jobe, Brant Hurter and Burch Smith are also expected to be at TigerTown during the break, which should give Torres a chance to get some live batting practice in.
“Hopefully, everything goes well down there and then when we start playing, do a rehab assignment and then at some point join the team,” he said.
Before the setback, Torres was giving Detroit exactly the kind of production it needed. He played 11 games in June before re-injuring the oblique and hit .341/.413/.585 with a .998 OPS. In that stretch, the Tigers went 7-4 and averaged over six runs per game.
There’s also the matter of the Aug. 3 trade deadline, though Torres said he’s trying not to get caught up in that part of it.
“Every year I’ve been in that conversation,” he said. “It’s not new for me.
I don’t hear anything. I just know it’s part of the business.
I just want to be healthy. That’s the only way I can help this team.
I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future. We’re playing really good right now and we’re not far from where we want to be.
“So, just recover well, get back healthy and help the team and we’ll see how it’s going to be.”
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