After a two-year absence, Reds reliever Justin Wilson is ready to pitch again

GOODYEAR, Ariz. — Last July, new Cincinnati Reds reliever Justin Wilson sat in the Milwaukee Brewers clubhouse surrounded by teammates who felt terribly for him.

The 36-year-old left-hander had Tommy John surgery in 2022, missed a full calendar year and was set to make his long-awaited return to a big league mound while pitching for the Brewers on July 28. That night, Wilson was warming up in the bullpen. On his second-to-last warmup pitch, Wilson pulled his left lat and suffered a season-ending injury before he could even step onto the field.

Later that night, as he talked with his teammates, Wilson wasn’t looking for sympathy.

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“I wasn’t sitting there looking for people to say they were sorry,” Wilson said. “I put so much time in and had another setback. But I don’t live my life in the past.”

Wilson, a 13-year veteran who was an impact setup reliever for most of the 2010s, admitted that he could have called it a career after he had Tommy John surgery in 2022. He could have given up after his season-ending lat injury in 2023. But there he was on Friday at the Reds’ spring training complex with a gym bag full of his gear, a smile and a new one-year contract.

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“I’m just here to pitch,” Wilson said. “I want to compete. I’ll do whatever. It doesn’t matter to me. Let them make those calls. When that phone rings and it’s my time to go out there, it doesn’t get much better than that.”

The last time that Wilson stepped onto an MLB mound, he pitched for the Reds. In 2022, Wilson was one of the biggest bright spots of the Reds’ terrible 3-22 start to the season. The Reds didn’t have many high-leverage situations because that team almost never had a lead in games, but Wilson was one of the most trusted pitchers in the Reds’ bullpen.

Following a strong 2022 spring training, he posted a 2.45 ERA in his only five appearances of the year. The Reds helped him find a consistent and dynamic slider, and Wilson struck out seven of the 13 batters he faced. Then in late April, Wilson went on the injured list with elbow soreness.

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“It was a long process of wear and tear, and then my elbow just met its end,” Wilson said. “I didn’t feel it blow out on just one pitch. I was never fully healthy. It was already sore and going through a rehab process.”

Wilson had Tommy John surgery during the summer, which set up a year-long recovery process.

“Those (retirement) thoughts were real,” Wilson said. “But I’m not one to give in. I wasn’t going to go out like that.”

Last February, Wilson signed a one-year big league deal with the Brewers. Milwaukee’s front office and coaching staff knew that Wilson wouldn’t be available to pitch until the summer as he completed his elbow rehab. The expectation was that Wilson would join the Brewers’ bullpen in July and pitch in high-leverage situations for a playoff team.

Lat injury was a second setback for Wilson

Everything went according to schedule up until July 28. As soon as Wilson was ready, he joined the Brewers’ bullpen. In the seventh inning, Wilson started warming up. Former Brewers manager Craig Counsell walked onto the field to make a pitching change, raising his left arm to bring in the left-hander.

On Wilson’s second-to-last warmup pitch in the bullpen, he felt a twinge. He hoped it was a cramp. He threw one more pitch and knew it was more than that.

“It was a freak deal,” Wilson said. “I don’t know what happened. I was extremely excited to be back. I had some nerves that I hadn’t felt in a long time. I don’t know if it was timing, or if somehow I put a bit more stress on my lat.”

Following that season-ending injury, Wilson had to prove that he still had a place in the big leagues. Before the start of spring training this year, Wilson had to try out for teams and invited them to watch him throw a bullpen at a workout facility in Texas.

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“The biggest thing that teams wanted to see was health,” Wilson said. “I’ve shown that this spring.”

The Los Angeles Dodgers signed him to a minor league deal and he had a strong spring. Wilson faced the Reds in early March and threw a perfect inning with two strikeouts.

He’s throwing the same slider that he developed with the Reds in 2022, and his fastball is sitting 93 to 96 mph.

When Wilson didn’t make the Dodgers, he opted out of his contract and hit the free agent market again. The Reds were interested. As he weighed his options on the free agent market last week, Wilson cited his confidence in the Reds’ roster and his comfort with the coaching staff as reasons he returned to Cincinnati.

In a full-circle moment, Wilson will get another chance to show what he can do in the Reds’ bullpen.

“I’m happy to be healthy,” Wilson said. “The ball feels great coming out of my hand. My elbow feels good. I’m very happy to be here. It’s been a long road back here. I’m ready to go.”

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Reds reliever Justin Wilson is ready to pitch again