With the return of Chris Young to the San Diego Padres’ starting rotation, things are beginning to get back to normal for the Friars. In this season riddled with injuries, any sign of normalcy has to be welcome.
“It’s good to have him back,” Padres manager Bud Black said. “He’s a big part of the team.”
On July 29, Young made his first start since taking an Albert Pujols come-backer to the nose in a start against the St. Louis Cardinals at Petco Park on May 21. Young suffered a fractured nose and facial fractures from the line drive.
The path to recovery for Young included simulated starts, starts in the minor leagues and two surgeries. One of the surgeries involved a repair to Young’s deviated septum and the reopening of his nasal passages on June 30.
Prior to the injury, Young made 10 starts in 2008 and was 4-4 with a 4.50 ERA and 51 strikeouts. In 2007, Young was a National League All-Star and finished the season 9-8.
“He was throwing the ball well prior to getting hit in the nose,” Black said.
Young’s start meant he and ace Jake Peavy were back together in the rotation. Both have missed significant amounts of time this season due to injuries.
Against the Diamondbacks, Young threw five scoreless innings and struck out eight batters, including six of the first seven he faced. Not bad following a lengthy layoff.
“Overall, for my first time out in two months pitching in a big-league game, I was satisfied,” Young said. “I didn’t know what to expect. I felt pretty good.”
Black was also content with Young’s outing.
“I think his strikeouts were indicative of the life of the fastball that we like to see out of [him],” Black said. “We saw some swings and misses on some balls that were up and looked like they were right there ” about 88, 89 [miles an hour].”
Despite stymieing the Diamondbacks through five, Young was taken out because he had thrown 88 pitches. This number was two away from his pitch count of 90 for the start. Young did not come out for the sixth inning, and the Padres ended up losing the game 3-0.
“I was able to give the team some scoreless innings. I wish I’d been able to pitch deeper in the game, but that’s the way it goes,” Young said.
Mechanics and placement aside, Young said he was just happy to be back out on the mound. It had been a while.
“It felt great just to be out there competing on a big-league mound, in a big-league stadium, in a big-league game. It was a great feeling. I certainly missed it while I was gone,” Young said. “It’s been hard sitting out watching, especially the way the season has gone for us. But being out there, being able to try and help the team, is a lot of fun.”
Despite the scar on his nose from the injury, Young said the healing process will not affect his pitching. It just means he might not be able to taste victory.
“There are not any restrictions regarding my ability to go out there and pitch,” Young said. “But there’s still some physical things going on ” with the healing, the nose and the inside. The nerves are still coming back, and the swelling needs to subside a lot. But that’s just going to take time.”
As long as he can pitch, it appears Young doesn’t mind waiting for his nose to heal. For Young and the Padres, the biggest wait is behind them.
Although a postseason berth seems unlikely for the Padres in 2008, with the return of Young they can certainly shake things up for their NL West rivals this month, with their last 12 contests in August coming against division opponents.