MINNEAPOLIS – Three days after his hamstring tightened during a seven-pitch save, Cincinnati Reds closer Emilio Pagán said he considers himself available for ninth-inning duty again.
In fact, the veteran right-hander said he felt ready to go the day before against the Giants, on the last day of the just-completed homestand, if the Reds needed him.
“It’s going to be uncomfortable, but hopefully the idea with all the treatment is it’s not uncomfortable for too many outings,” said Pagán, who vigorously tested the fitness of the left hamstring during the week and figures he and the training staff have managed it well enough he shouldn’t have to miss a save chance.
“It feels a lot better,” Pagán said. ”It’s still a little tight but getting better with the treatment every day. I’m going to wrap it pretty tight with like an ace wrap and put a sleeve over it and just make sure I’m nice and stretched and warm before I start throwing.”
Forecast temperatures in the 40s for the weekend series in Minnesota won’t help that effort, but Pagán shrugged off the idea of the cold at Target Field, which was just part of the gig during his two seasons in Minnesota before joining the Reds as a free agent in 2024.
The compression sleeve might be the key to navigating a return to the mound as he continues to work the leg back to full health.
Pagán pitched through similar tightness in the same hamstring the final three weeks of last season, in part with the aid of a sleeve he borrowed from Graham Ashcraft.
Two days after first experiencing the tightness this time around, Pagán used the sleeve during his morning bullpen session before Thursday’s game at home.
“It felt pretty good going down the mound,” he said. “I think as long as I have that and I keep doing the treatment that Sean (McQueeney, head trainer) and everybody else in the training room is throwing at it, it should continue to get better.”
Pagán’s save in his last outing, closing a 2-1 victory over the Giants in the opener of that series, was his fifth in as many chances since suffering a blown save in the season opener.
It was his sixth straight scoreless outing, facing just 23 batters in those six innings.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Reds closer Emilio Pagán says hamstring ready for action
Reporting by Gordon Wittenmyer, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
