The DL:
The names will be removed as they return to the game
Nomar Garciaparra, 06/12/01, SS, transferred from 15-day DL to 60-day DL to make room for C Doug Mirabelli on 40-man roster
Bret Saberhagen, 06/10/01, RHP, transferred from 15-day DL to 60-day DL to make room for INF Jon Shave on 40-man roster.
Jason Varitek, 06/08/01, C, placed on 15-day DL with a right elbow fracture of the radial head.
John Valentin, 06/07/01, INF, placed on the 15-day DL with right heel plantar fascitis.
Jason Varitek, 06/07/01, C, suffered a right elbow fracture of the radial head in the game Thursday night. Varitek will undergo further tests Friday. Any timetable is pending further tests.
Louis Merloni, 06/06/01, INF, placed on the 15-day DL with a left elbow contusion.
Craig Grebeck, 06/03/01, INF, placed on the 15-day DL with a contusion on his left foot.
Michael Lansing, 06/02/01, INF, day-to-day with a jammed left thumb.
More Indepth on Nomar's Recovery
Nomar Garciaparra said Friday afternoon that although he resumed light catching earlier this week, he still has no timetable for his return to the Red Sox.
Garciaparra played catch for approximately 15 minutes in the outfield Friday with Red Sox Assistant Trainer Chris Correnti while the Toronto Blue Jays took batting practice. The All-Star shortstop appeared to throw with decent velocity.
Garciaparra, who is recovering from surgery to his right wrist, said that he began throwing again a few days ago for five to 10 minutes per day. He started with a tennis ball and then moved on to a hardball. The two-time American League batting champion also is taking cuts with the bat again, although not against any pitches.
"[The wrist] has been feeling OK, but I still have some soreness. I still get some pain," Garciaparra said. "Throwing has been pretty difficult for me. Very tough. [There's] definitely a lot of pain doing that, but that's to be expected. It's nothing shocking. It's nothing new. It's a good thing it's progressively going down every time I do it. Everything I've been doing has been going forward."
"Right now everything is progressing the way it's supposed to. Everything is coming along great. I'm feeling good, in great shape, feeling good. I'm happy with my progression. I've always said I'm just taking baby steps. I'm not taking giant steps. It's baby steps right now, but as long as the baby steps are going forward and not backward, we're all right."
Throwing the ball, Garciaparra said, is far more painful than swinging fungo, but he's encouraged that the pain has decreased with each session. Garciaparra denied speculation that he would be stepping up his workouts prior to Friday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays. He said that for the time being he intends to stick to the same routine.
"I'm still not even close to really throwing the ball, letting it go, throwing it across the field or anything like that," Garciaparra said. "I'm barely just lobbing the ball right now and working it out from there."
Garciaparra urged patience, saying that there is still no target date for his return to the Red Sox.
"I never, ever said anything or ever thought of anything [regarding a return]," Garciaparra said. "My doctors or trainers have never said this date or that date, because you really can't. I've always said all along you can't set a date. Nobody has had this, [so you can't say], 'Well, it's supposed to take this long.'"
Garciaparra said the performance of the American League East-leading Red Sox has made his time off more enjoyable. As much as he wants to join the fray, he said he has to defer to his health.
"They're doing really well. It's been fun. It's good to watch. It makes it a little easier to watch," Garciaparra said. "[The team's performance] wasn't going to make me heal any faster or rush myself. It's not going to do anybody any good to come back if I can't be a hundred percent and ready to perform on a daily basis. It wouldn't matter where we're at or whatever. My job right now is to get myself healthy.
"I don't know if I'm going to determine it. I think my wrist is going to tell me more than anything. I can't tell it when it's going to be ready. It's going to have to tell me. I think everybody knows me. I'll be out there as soon as I can."