Detroit Tigers starter Reese Olson begins rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo
Detroit Tigers right-hander Reese Olson is back in game action.
Olson, who hadn't pitched in a game since July 20, started a rehab assignment Thursday with Toledo, facing Indianapolis, the Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Tigers plan for Olson to throw a couple of innings.
The 25-year-old has been sidelined for nearly seven weeks with a right shoulder strain. He is expected to need multiple rehab starts, and even when he returns, his workload is likely to be restricted in the final weeks of September.
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Olson threw 20 pitches in Saturday's live batting practice session at Comerica Park, meaning he will increase the pitch count from there in Thursday's rehab start. He was built up to 100 pitches before the shoulder injury.
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When Olson returns, the Tigers will have four starters in the rotation for the first time in a long time with Olson, left-hander Tarik Skubal, right-hander Casey Mize and right-hander Keider Montero. The Tigers also have bulk relievers in Brant Hurter, Kenta Maeda and Ty Madden, but the Tigers will need to option a pitcher to Triple-A Toledo to reinstate Olson from the injured list.
Olson is the second-best pitcher on the Tigers' roster.
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Prior to the injury, Olson posted a 3.23 ERA with 31 walks and 92 strikeouts across 103 innings in 19 starts, including a 1.92 ERA in his first 10 starts of the season.
He has a 3.61 ERA in 40 games (37 starts) in his two-year MLB career.
Checking in on Wenceel Pérez
Outfielder Wenceel Pérez (left oblique strain) has played in three rehab games with Triple-A Toledo. The 24-year-old worked as the designated hitter for the first two games Monday and Wednesday, then started Thursday in right field.
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In the first two games, Pérez went 0-for-5 with one walk and two strikeouts in six plate appearances. He took all six plate appearances from the left side of the plate against right-handed pitchers, which is notable because he's a switch-hitter.
His right-handed swing has been behind his left-handed swing in the recovery process. He still hasn't used his right-handed swing in a game on rehab assignment.
Before the injury, Pérez hit .243 with a .686 OPS as a left-handed hitter in 302 plate appearances against right-handed pitchers and .239 with a .672 OPS as a right-handed hitter in 76 plate appearances against left-handers.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers' Reese Olson begins rehab assignment with Toledo
