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Zumaya sharp in first rehab outing
Tigers setup man tosses two scoreless innings in Lakeland
By Brittany Ghiroli / MLB.com

LAKELAND, Fla. -- Joel Zumaya tossed two innings of relief for Class A Lakeland on Tuesday night, throwing 24 pitches (18 for strikes) and topping out at 101 mph on the radar gun at Joker Marchant Stadium.
Detroit's setup man last season, Zumaya is ahead of schedule after having surgery last fall to repair the A/C joint in his right shoulder.

In his final extended spring outing on Saturday, Zumaya's fastball topped out around 97 mph, but was more often around 95. Although the Flying Tigers' radar may be several mph off, Zumaya's fastball was still humming enough to average 99 and stun Sarasota batters in the game's seventh and eighth innings.

After going 0-2 to his leadoff batter, Zumaya gave up a double down the right-field line -- the lone hit he allowed -- before retiring the side with a strikeout and a pair of groundouts in the seventh inning. Zumaya faced seven total batters, issuing one walk in the eighth inning.

Tigers manager Jim Leyland said over the weekend that Zumaya will pitch in relief for Lakeland -- at least to begin his assignment -- and if all goes well, he could rejoin the Major League club sometime this month.

Doctors originally expected Zumaya back no sooner than the All-Star break, but with no case history for the procedure he underwent among pitchers, the timetable was a rough estimate.

The flamethrower was also hampered by injuries last season, as Zumaya appeared in just 28 games after surgery on his right middle finger. After missing more than three months, he finished 2-3 with a 4.28 ERA out of the Tigers bullpen.

Brittany Ghiroli is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.