Kenta Maeda threw a bullpen session at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, which was captured from the batter’s box in 360° video by Los Angeles Dodgers social media coordinator Matt Mesa.
The bullpen session was Maeda’s second of the year and puts him on track with the plan he outlined while speaking during Dodgers FanFest last month. At that time, Maeda had yet to throw off a mound, but noted he intended to do so at least twice prior to Spring Training.
Maeda, who will turn 29 years old in April, has focused this offseason on improving his strength and conditioning. Coinciding with that, Maeda elected to forgo pitching for Team Japan in the World Baseball Classic, and set a goal of throwing 200 innings this season; he tossed 175.2 last year.
Maeda erased health concerns by proving to be the lone pitcher from the starting rotation who managed to avoid a stint on the disabled list. That was despite being struck by a line drive on his lower right leg.
Not only did Maeda not miss a start after the injury scare, but he also managed to make his next turn in the rotation on schedule. The Dodgers did provide the right-hander with an additional day of rest whenever possible, in effort to ease Maeda’s adjustment to the Majors.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the club is hopeful to avoid doing such with any frequency this season, which Maeda is also on board with. He finished last season 16-11 with a 3.48 ERA, 3.58 FIP and 1.14 WHIP, and placed third in National League Rookie of the Year voting.
