Injured Tigers pitcher Kenny Rogers threw three-plus innings and displayed some defensive prowess in his first rehabilitation start for Triple-A Toledo on Sunday night.
Rogers faced 13 batters and threw 51 pitches, 35 of them strikes, in the Mud Hens’ 2-1 win over the Norfolk Tides. His fastball topped out at 88 m.p.h. before he left with a 1-0 lead with two outs in the fourth inning.
The 42-year-old left-hander has been on the disabled list all season and had surgery March 30 to remove a blood clot from his left shoulder and repair arteries.
Rogers struck out two and allowed three hits with no walks.
Rogers went 17-8 with a 3.48 ERA last year and won all three of his postseason starts while not allowing a run in 23 innings for the AL champions.
Extra innings
Mets outfielder Moises Alou was scheduled to be examined Monday in New York and will likely make the next step of his comeback at the Mets’ minor-league facility in Florida. … The Indians optioned left-hander Jeremy Sowers to Triple-A Buffalo. Sowers (1-6) allowed five runs in four innings Saturday night before the Indians went on to beat Cincinnati 8-6 in 11 innings. The Indians had been counting on Sowers to be a key part of the team’s rotation.
