Daniel Hudson was in the midst of a solid campaign with the Los Angeles Dodgers before tearing the ACL in his left knee that required season-ending surgery this past June.
Hudson went 2-3 with a 2.22 ERA, 2.05 FIP and 0.90 WHIP over 25 games prior to the knee injury. He was slated to reach free agency at the end of the season but the Dodgers signed him to a one-year, $6.5 million contract that includes a team option for 2024.
The estimated timetable for Hudson’s recovery from the torn ACL was six to nine months. The 35-year-old recently revealed he was in the early stages of an offseason training program.
Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said the team is optimistic Hudson will be ready to pitch at the start of Spring Training next year, per Jack Harris of the L.A. Times:
The Dodgers are hopeful that reliever Daniel Hudson will be ready for the start of spring training or shortly thereafter, Gomes said, as the veteran right-hander continues to rehabilitate from a torn anterior cruciate ligament that cut short his 2022 season.
When discussing the injury in October, Hudson said he was making steady progress from ACL surgery. “It’s going really well,” Hudson said. “I can’t really say where I’m at percentage-wise in terms of where somebody is supposed to be at this point. It’s been a little over 10 weeks since the surgery.
“There haven’t been setbacks or anything to this point, so we’re just taking things day by day, week by week, and hopefully within the next couple weeks I’ll be able to have more of a gauge on a normal offseason and what that looks like for me; throwing progression and all that stuff.
“Have conversations with the training staff and kind of eye ball when they want me to try getting things going in the offseason.”
Daniel Hudson wants to return by MLB Opening Day 2023
After signing his contract extension with the Dodgers, Hudson said he feels a sense of urgency to return in time for the start of the 2023 season. “I don’t know if it makes it any easier,” he said when asked if his rehab process is less stressful now that he is under contract.
“For me, it kind of makes it a little more important to try and get a full season in. I don’t want to put too much pressure on myself, but at this point I’m just eyeballing Spring Training and Opening Day.
“Being ready for all that and trying to get a normal Spring Training in and help the Dodgers win another World Series.”
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