Inside The Pinstripes

Yankees' Corey Kluber Provides Update on Shoulder Injury

New York Yankees starting pitcher Corey Kluber delivers an update on his right shoulder injury and the long journey to return from the 60 day injured list

Max Goodman

NEW YORK — Corey Kluber is anxious to return from the 60-day injured list, but he's also buying into his rehab process, no matter how long it takes. 

The right-hander delivered an update on his shoulder injury on Sunday afternoon, revealing that he's throwing out to 90 feet. 

"Trying to build up the progression of the throwing just like anybody would coming back from an arm injury," Kluber said. "You gotta go through the throwing program process. When that's sufficient, you get off the mound."

Beyond that, however, Kluber didn't have much to report. His shoulder still has a subscapularis muscle strain and while he's back to throwing, he has no idea when he'll be able to get on a mound again, let alone return to the rotation.

"I'm trying to do the best I can to take it a day at a time and not look too far ahead," he said. "I think that allows me the best chance to give everything I have to that day to do everything that day to the best of my ability without trying to look too far in the future."

Missing all but one inning last season due to a shoulder injury, Kluber has experience on the arduous road to recovery. 

Asked by Meredith Marakovits of the YES Network if he expects to be back at some point this season, Kluber confidently said yes. 

Kluber last pitched on March 25, leaving the start following his no-hitter (against the Rangers on May 19) after just three innings of work. Departing with shoulder tightness, Kluber went through imaging and once his injury was diagnosed, the expectation was that the veteran would be sidelined for at least eight weeks. 

The right-hander explained that while the wait is frustrating and takes a toll, he understands the necessity of taking it slow. That way, once he's ready to return, it'll be for the long haul, not until an additional setback in the near future.

"Whether you've had injuries before or not, I think it's still something that no player wants to go through," Kluber said. "You want to be out there on the field with your team, you want to be competing with your teammates, not watching with that helpless feeling. But I think at the same time, take a step back and realize when there's something wrong, you've got to address it."

Adding Kluber and Luis Severino (Tommy John surgery) back to the starting staff would be a huge boost for this club as the second half of the season begins. With the distance growing between the fourth-place Yankees and the first-place Red Sox, however, the only question is will their respective returns from injury be too late. 

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Yankees for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. Goodman has been on the Yankees beat for three seasons. He is also the publisher of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Jets site, Jets Country. Before starting Inside The Pinstripes, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. At school, Goodman was an anchor and reporter with NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. While at Northwestern, Goodman interned with MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman. You can connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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