Alcantara ahead of schedule in Tommy John rehab

DENVER -- If Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara had final say, he would be returning to the mound before the season’s end.

“My mind is ‘Yes,’ but they say, ‘No,’” Alcantara said on Tuesday afternoon at Coors Field. “You’ve just got to think and believe in everything they say. Right now, it's not possible. They say, ‘No,’ and I’ve just got to listen to what they say.

“I'm a guy who likes to compete. I think that's every pitcher's mentality. So I think that's my mentality. I mean, they say, ‘No,’ [so] I’ve just got to trust what they say.”

Leave it to Alcantara, who underwent Tommy John surgery on Oct. 6, to be ahead of schedule in his rehab. When Alcantara announced the news on social media last year, he wrote that he would miss the 2024 season, because the recovery timeline for the procedure is typically at least 12 months. But with how well Alcantara has progressed, it could be tempting for the organization to reconsider.

“I think if we would have this second-half playoff push, I think you could see him fighting to get out there,” manager Skip Schumaker said. “But I do feel like he understands where we're at, and it makes no sense to try to push it harder right now, especially him being who he is, to get back out there. He understands that 2025 is kind of the focus, and this is part of the progression. He looks really, really good. He'd be our best pitcher right now, probably, just how good he looked in his bullpen.”

He had his 10th bullpen session Tuesday before the Marlins' 9-8 win over the Rockies. Not only did his pitch count increase to 35 but he also reintroduced his slider. Alcantara plans to keep the same arsenal minus the curveball, which he says could’ve been the “pitch that put me in this situation.”

So what’s next?

Alcantara is likely to throw a few more side sessions before live batting practice. He would then shut down until next year when he can return at 100 percent. Less than six months ago, Alcantara threw for the first time -- on flat ground from 40 feet on the back fields at big league camp.

“He really feels good,” bullpen coach Wellington Cepeda said. “He's throwing the ball really, really good. His command is there, which is weird for a guy that didn't play catch for months. Everything that he's doing is amazing right now. I'm really not surprised, because of the way he works, but at the same time, people that I've been around post-surgery, 10 months after, they're not at the stage that he is right now. …

“Every time I see him, his command is better. He's repeating his delivery, which is not easy to do like I said after 10 months. He's on the right track.”

It’s no surprise to Cepeda and Schumaker because of the work Alcantara puts in. Despite being injured, his legendary workouts are just as intense as ever.

And although Alcantara, who turns 29 on Sept. 7, hasn’t been able to pitch in a game this season, he has continued to be a mentor to the pitching staff.

“How many guys that are out for the year do you see on every road trip?” Schumaker said. “Maybe [he missed] one when he had to go back home. But the only time I've ever seen it in my career was Adam Wainwright, when he missed the whole season. He's been in everybody's bullpen. He's trying to help all the young guys as much as he can. He's here first working out, not trying to get in anybody's way, when he could definitely get in people's way if he wanted to. He has the right to do that.

“The workouts, he's gotten bigger, stronger. You look at him, he's a giant, and he was playing catch at 96 mph in the bullpen. He is really close. I know he wants to pitch this year. Doubt that's going to happen, but I think he could very easily have just a normal offseason with a brand new arm and be ready to go in 2025.”

If you’re curious, the Marlins begin Grapefruit League action on Feb. 22 in Jupiter, Fla. Miami will then host Pittsburgh for Opening Day on March 27 at loanDepot park. Perhaps a Paul Skenes vs. Alcantara duel is in the cards.