Glasnow happy with 'little wins' in TJ rehab

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- As the Rays’ representative in the MLB Players Association, Tyler Glasnow stayed busy throughout the lockout. He was involved in the union’s meetings and charged with updating his teammates on the latest developments -- a role Austin Meadows said Glasnow couldn’t have handled any better.

Between all those Zoom calls and in-person meetings, Glasnow was also busy rehabbing his surgically repaired elbow with an eye on returning at some point this season.

Glasnow underwent Tommy John surgery last August to address the partially torn ulnar collateral ligament and flexor strain in his right arm, and the initial expectation was that he would likely miss the entire 2022 season. It’s still too early to project when Glasnow might return with any certainty, but he said his rehabilitation has gone well so far.

“I feel really good,” said Glasnow, who is playing catch from 75 feet three days a week. “Nothing too crazy, but [my] arm’s been bouncing back, feeling really good, so just looking forwarding to hopefully coming back this year.”

Glasnow, the Rays’ Opening Day starter last year, cautioned that he’s not looking too far ahead in his rehab timeline. It’s a slow progression, and he still has a long way to go, but he said he’s been happy with the daily “little wins and baby steps” to this point.

“It’s not been easy, by any means, but I think I’ve been able to navigate that relatively well,” Glasnow said. “As time goes on and I start throwing harder and going off the mound, I’m sure I’ll have to deal with things as they come. But for now, I feel good.”

During the lockout, Glasnow wasn’t able to continue his recovery with the Rays’ athletic training staff due to rules preventing communication between players and club personnel. That made for a tricky time, as he had to spread out his rehab work at different locations and couldn’t keep the club updated on his progress.

But that changed when the lockout was lifted on Thursday night, and Glasnow was the first Rays player to arrive and work out at Charlotte Sports Park on Friday.

“I definitely took having everything in-house for granted,” Glasnow said. “Having to drive around to do all this stuff, going to different (physical therapists), just workouts and driving everywhere -- I’m extremely happy to be back and do everything in here.”

Around the horn
• Officially, Corey Kluber spent one day with the Rays before the lockout began. The veteran starter signed his one-year contract on Dec. 1, and MLB’s lockout officially began at midnight on Dec. 2. That meant he essentially had less than 24 hours to communicate with the front office, training staff, coaches and manager Kevin Cash before the lockout-mandated communication freeze between the two sides went into effect.

But Kluber, who said he’s healthy and will be ready to go at the start of the season, felt like he was able to hit the ground running when he reported to camp on Sunday.

“Unique for sure. I signed so close to the lockout. I think probably had an idea it was coming, so I tried to make the most of those couple days beforehand and talk to as many people as I could,” Kluber said. “Hopefully I got off on the right foot with a lot of people so that maybe there's a little bit less of that starting-from-scratch feeling right now.”

• Cash said on Sunday, the mandatory Spring Training report date, that the Rays expect everyone on their 40-man roster to be in camp on Monday. That will allow the team to schedule a full workout at Charlotte Sports Park, whereas Sunday was more scattered as players went through intake screening, took their physicals and recorded RaysVision videos before taking the field for light activities.

• The Rays will only have four full days of camp before playing their first Grapefruit League game on Friday, which could make for some limited availability in terms of pitchers and position players’ innings. Players called over from Minor League camp will have to pick up a lot of the innings early on, but Cash said their position players should be ready to handle a decent workload from the start.

“Every position player I've asked, 'Are you good? Are you good to play half a game?' And every one of them has said, ‘Without a doubt,’” Cash said. “I think throughout the lockout, they were doing what they felt was needed [so] that if they had to ramp up quick, they were going to be able to.”

• Shane McClanahan, who switched from No. 62 to 18, won’t be the only Rays player wearing a new uniform number this season. With Kluber taking No. 28, Francisco Mejía has switched his number to 21. Additionally, outfield prospect Josh Lowe, who wore No. 53 during his brief debut last year, will wear No. 15, and non-roster righty Chris Mazza will take No. 22.