Before his elbow injury, and before he spent 13 months rehabbing, Tyler Kinley was not just a good relief pitcher. He was dominant.
Dominant as in:
• An 0.75 ERA in 25 games early last season.
• Posting 27 strikeouts vs. just six walks over 24 innings.
• A 16.7% swinging-strike rate that hinted at even more strikeouts to come.
• No home runs allowed and a .226 batting average against.
• A fastball that averaged just shy of 96 mph in 2022 and a slider that sliced through the strike zone at 89-90 mph.
No wonder the Rockies’ right-hander is so jazzed to begin his minor-league rehab assignment this week. The 32-year-old will begin at High-A Spokane for a couple of appearances, move on to Triple-A Albuquerque, and finally graduate to the big-league club.
“Hopefully, it will be about two weeks or so and I’ll be back here,” Kinley said Sunday from the Rockies clubhouse at Coors Field.
Late-game reliever Daniel Bard sounds as excited as his buddy.
“Any time you put in a full year of work into something, it doesn’t matter what it is, it’s super rewarding when it pays off,” Bard said. “Tyler’s a good friend of mine and I’m super happy for him. Being able to see him complete his rehab and get back to competing is exciting.”
Early last season, Bard, the closer, and Kinley, the set-up man, formed a formidable one-two punch. But following his sizzling start, Kinley didn’t pitch after June 8 when an MRI revealed a torn flexor tendon in his pitching elbow. The Rockies initially feared that Kinley would require the second Tommy John surgery of his career — he previously had the operation in 2009 as a senior in high school.
That Kinley didn’t need Tommy John again was relatively good news. Still, Kinley underwent surgery last July with Texas Rangers team physician Dr. Keith Meister, who essentially reattached Kinley’s flexor tendon to the bone.
Kinley admits he was worried, at least initially.
“Absolutely, I was concerned,” he said. “Not during the recovery process, more so in the beginning because I had Tommy John surgery in the past and I know there is the risk of not being able to come back, or not being able to come back the same. So yes, there were concerns. But I did my best to quiet the noise and trust the process and the doctors and trainers.”
The operation went well, and the early stages of rehab were encouraging. So encouraging, in fact, that the Rockies gave Kinley a three-year, $6.25 million contract last November. Kinley is getting $1.2 million this season and $1.3 million in 2024, which would have been his last year before free-agent eligibility. He’ll have a $3 million salary in 2025, and the Rockies have a $5 million team option for 2026 with a $750,000 buyout.
Kinley called his rehab long and grueling. But he followed the eat-the-elephant-one-bite-at-a-time plan.
“You have to break it down into smaller portions,” he said. “First, it was getting my range of motion back, then getting strength back, and then I started throwing. Then it was about getting a feel for my pitches back, then getting on the mound to face hitters. Now I know I’m ready to go. My arm feels great. I’m confident.”
Manager Bud Black knows pitching talent when he sees it and has no doubt that Kinley, when healthy, can dominate.
“He has velocity to the fastball and velocity to the slider,” Black said. “It’s a hard slider that breaks down, with a lot of depth to it. He has a high arm slot, with a short stride and a high release, so the ball is coming downhill on an angle. That’s tough on hitters.
“That’s what makes him so good. And he throws strikes.”
But Black cautions that it would be unrealistic, and unfair to Kinley to expect him to pick up right where he left off.
“He hasn’t pitched, it’s been a year,” Black said. “So he’s got to knock the rust off and feel comfortable on the mound. But I’ve watched him and I trust that he’s gone about it the right way.”
Tuesday’s pitching matchup
Astros RHP Hunter Brown (6-6, 4.12 ERA) at Rockies TBA (bullpen game)
6:40 p.m. Tuesday, Coors Field
TV: AT&T SportsNet
Radio: 850 AM/94.1 FM
The injuries that have rocked Colorado’s rotation have forced manager Bud Black to scramble, so the Rockies will use a bullpen game Tuesday against the Astros. Black has not said who the opener will be, but he might turn to right-hander Jake Bird. Brown, who has never faced the Rockies, is coming off a tough start vs. Seattle. He allowed five runs on eight hits and three walks while striking out eight over three-plus innings. The strikeouts were impressive, but the Mariners put a lot of men on base during Brown’s shortest start of the season. He needed 88 pitches (49 strikes) to record only nine outs.
Pitching probables
Wednesday: Astros RHP Brandon Bielak (4-5, 3.79) at Rockies LHP Austin Gomber (8-7, 6.19), 1:10 p.m., ATTRM
Thursday: Off day
Friday: Rockies RHP Connor Seabold (1-7, 7.18) at Marlins LHP Braxton Garrett (5-2, 3.90), 4:40 p.m., ATTRM
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