OAKLAND -- Prepared for the worst but hoping for the best, A's starter Andrew Triggs was relieved to land in the latter camp following his latest examination.
Triggs, who has been dealing with right arm nerve irritation for nearly two months, met with the Rangers' team physician, orthopedic surgeon Dr. Keith Meister, in Dallas on Tuesday to determine if his latest setback was cause for concern for structural damage in his right arm.
Meister, who performed Tommy John surgery on A's righty Jharel Cotton in March, came back with good news.
"We wanted to kill two birds with one stone and find out, could it potentially be that other bad thing, or is it potentially what we thought it was?" Triggs said. "And it turns out we're on the right track.
"Structurally, everything is pretty solid. So, that was really encouraging to find out, because I thought there was a small chance there was something more. But it turns out it's completely neurological."
"When you're talking about forearm and elbow, especially with his history," A's manager Bob Melvin said, "you have your fingers crossed. But hopefully, this is something now that can settle him down a little bit."
Triggs, who has been on the disabled list since May 18, will remain shut down for at least two more weeks before attempting another rehab; his first attempt brought him to Arizona for a three-inning extended spring camp appearance in late June, only for Triggs to experience tingling in different fingers the next day.
"It was strong, [the ball] was coming out well, and then it was just really frustrating the next day," Triggs said. "Similar symptoms, different fingers. So the biggest thing I took away from yesterday is we were on the right track, because I felt so good in Arizona."
Triggs, who was 3-1 with a 5.23 ERA in nine starts before hitting the DL, has continually been plagued by injuries in his career. Last year, he was limited to 12 starts before hip surgery ended his season.
"I'll be honest, I was mentally prepared for some lousy news yesterday," he said. "I luckily got some really good news. I haven't had many visits with the doctor that have turned out well in the last few years, so this was nice to finally get one to go your way."
Several other rehabbing A's starters are also making progress: right-hander Daniel Mengden (sprained right foot) will make a rehab start for Triple-A Nashville on Friday, while the A's will soon decide whether lefty Brett Anderson (left shoulder strain) needs another rehab outing before rejoining the rotation.
Anderson started for Nashville on Tuesday, allowing two runs on four hits with two walks and five strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings, totaling 81 pitches.