Prospect Kaprielian experiences lat discomfort

MESA, Ariz. -- Long-hyped pitching prospect James Kaprielian continues to be stymied by injury.
A's manager Bob Melvin said the right-hander will be behind schedule this spring after experiencing lat discomfort during a bullpen session Friday.
"It looked like he was throwing good before that, but just a little something came up, so I think we're going to have him get an MRI," Melvin said. "So he'll probably be a little bit behind. It looked like he was going to be a full-go and then the last bullpen he felt that."
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The MRI will further reveal the severity of the injury, but it's yet another unfortunate setback for Kaprielian, who hasn't thrown a professional inning since 2016 when he underwent Tommy John surgery.
The 24-year-old was still rehabbing from the UCL reconstruction procedure when the A's snagged him from the Yankees in the 2017 Sonny Gray deal, and he remained sidelined for much of '18 while experiencing shoulder soreness. It wasn't until October that he saw game action, pitching an inning in instructional league.
Kaprielian has appeared in just 15 professional games since going to the Yankees in the first round of the 2015 Draft out of UCLA, but the A's naturally added him to their 40-man roster this offseason to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft.
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Kaprielian will subsequently be in big league camp this spring, but he's not expected to be in the rotation mix for at least another year, considering just how much time he's missed.
Melvin did deliver encouraging news on several of his other pitchers, including Sean Manaea, who is expected to begin a throwing program this week -- five months following his left shoulder procedure.
Jharel Cotton and A.J. Puk, both rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, are continuing to progress with their throwing programs and could enter the rotation mix midseason, Melvin said.