HAINES CITY, FLA. — The Kansas City Royals were encouraged by the first spring training outing of pitcher Mac Suzuki, coming back from arthoscopic surgery on his shoulder in October.
The right-hander threw two flawless innings Sunday in a 4-2 victory over a Philadelphia Phillies split squad.
"He did way more than I expected," manager Tony Muser said. "It was an outstanding job with good velocity. If you didn't know he was cut on, you couldn't tell it the way he threw today."
Suzuki made 28 pitches and struck out Reggie Taylor, the last batter he faced.
"Monday is a big day for Suzuki," Muser said. "We'll see how he feels physically. He's way ahead of schedule on his performance Sunday. It was a tremendous day for him. If he's feeling good Monday, that's a huge plus."
Muser said it is "too early to speculate" whether Suzuki will be able to be in the starting rotation when the season opens April 2.
"We've got 19 games and 20 days left," Muser said. "We'll just give him the ball and see how he does."
Pitching coach Brent Strom said Suzuki had a "very, very good" outing.
"I was extremely surprised," he said. "His command was good. His velocity was 91-93 (miles per hour) the first time out of the chute."
In case Suzuki and Jose Rosado, who had shoulder surgery in June, are unable to begin the season in the rotation, Strom said he is preparing right-handers Chad Durbin, Kris Wilson and Chris Fussell to start.
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