Ryan Madson the former Philadelphia Phillies closer who sat out 2012 because of Tommy John surgery felt soreness in his surgically repaired right elbow on February 1st and has been shut down by the Los Angeles Angels. Madson had only thrown four times off a mound, will not throw when pitchers and catchers report on Tuesday, for their first spring training workout, and is not expected to be ready for the start of the season.
“I’m a little discouraged, because I didn’t want there to be any hang-ups,” said Madson, whose one-year, $3.5-million deal includes incentives that could push his salary to $7 million. “I don’t know if I pushed too hard too early, but I had been feeling pretty good until this.”
Madson had surgery in April and was expected to take a very conservative, measured approach to his return to the big leagues. Tthe Angels bullpen includes hard-throwing right-handers Ernesto Frieri and Kevin Jepsen and veteran left-handers Scott Downs and Sean Burnett.
Other Angels news: The team announced that Howie Kendrick underwent minor surgery in October to remove bone chips from his throwing elbow.
