Injured Angels Reliever Hoping to Return This Season

Jose Quijada was off to a great start in 2023. Through his first eight appearances, he had thrown eight scoreless innings with eight strikeouts and suddenly looked like a high-leverage arm out of the bullpen until an 89 mph fastball came out of his hand.

Quijada normally said mid-90's and when he woke up the next morning, something felt wrong.

By May 2, he received a second opinion that led to Tommy John surgery.

He finished the 2023 season 0-1 in 10 games with four saves and a 6.00 earned run average. 

He hasn't appeared in a major league game since April 27 and has been cleared to throw long toss. His next step is to throw from 120 feet

Quijada said he doesn’t have a target date for a return in mind but plans to be back at some point this season. 

However, the Angels are hoping he can be back by June or July.