Opponents were hitting .339 against Buchholz in 2014, far and away the worst average he’s allowed in his career (second highest is .299 in 2008).
So when he faces the
Charlotte Knights on Saturday, Buchholz won’t be treating the outing like a glorified spring training tuneup. He wants to see results, and quickly.
“Hopefully just one start,” he said, asked the timetable for returning to the big club. “I don’t have to build up arm strength. That’s usually what rehab assignments are for, is to go out and gradually build your arm strength. But I hadn’t stopped throwing. I’ve been throwing bullpens the whole time. I feel like the arm strength’s gotten even better just by playing long toss and the bullpens and everything.
“So if everything goes fine tomorrow and there’s no hiccups, I don’t see a reason why [I have to stay down] ... unless they just wanted me to throw another game. Hopefully this will be my only one.”