Weaver cleared to rejoin Angels' rotation Thursday

Right-hander Jered Weaver threw an aggressive bullpen session Monday afternoon and pronounced himself ready to return to the Los Angeles Angels' rotation.

Weaver has not pitched since Sept. 2 due to tendinitis in his right biceps, but the Angels have him penciled in to start Thursday's series finale against the Oakland A's.

"I'm looking forward to getting back out there," Weaver said. "It seems like it's behind me so far. It didn't 'bite' at all in the bullpen. It's heading in the right direction."

Weaver admits he was pitching at 80-85 percent for nearly a month, going 1-3 with a 6.14 ERA in five starts before being skipped in the rotation last week.

"I just wasn't myself," Weaver said. "I couldn't get on certain pitches when I wanted to. I couldn't throw my slider as hard as I wanted to. I couldn't bump up my fastball as much as I wanted to. It felt tight in there.

"I don't think any pitcher is pitching at 100 percent at this time of year. To get back to 90, 95 percent would be great. It felt pretty good out there today."

By slotting him back in the rotation Thursday, the Angels have Weaver lined up to start five more times this season, each on his normal rest, including the final day of the regular season.

The A's won the opening game of the series 3-1 Monday, as Jarrod Parker outdueled Dan Haren.

Right-hander Jerome Williams will make a spot start Tuesday night against Oakland. Williams was 6-7 with a 4.60 ERA in 14 starts earlier this season but has been pitching out of the bullpen since mid-July. He's had just 4 1/3 innings of work in the past three weeks.