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Syracuse, N.Y.\u00a0 (Syracuse.com) — Of all the things that youth allowed Tommy Milone to take for granted back when he pitched for the Syracuse Chiefs in 2011, the most important was also the most basic.<\/p>\n
Photo: Jim Commentucci<\/p>\n
He could throw a baseball with a reasonable sense of where it would wind up.<\/p>\n
“When I was here, I’d just go out there and throw,” he recalled. “Back in the day, when I would throw, I had a very good idea of where the ball was going.”<\/p>\n
The lefty is 31 now, and whether that foundational ability ever returns is an uncertainty. Recent setbacks might suggest a harsh answer. But the Washington organization steered Milone toward a major league path once before, so for now he is at least optimistic about seeing familiar mileposts such as NBT Bank Stadium at the starting line of the 2018 season.<\/p>\n
“Obviously, this isn’t the ultimate level that I want to be at. But I’ve been here before. It seems like it’s been a long time since I’ve been back,” Milone said. “While I’m here, I’m going to do my best to pitch the best I can and hopefully that goal ends up being that I’m up in the big leagues.”<\/p>\n
Milone’s return to Syracuse was set up when he signed with Washington as a free agent in the offseason. The Nationals originally drafted him in the 10th round of the 2008 draft, and in 2011 Milone was a standout for the Chiefs with a 12-6 mark and a 3.22 ERA in 148 1\/3 innings.<\/p>\n
That offseason, the Nationals traded him to Oakland. In 2014, Oakland swapped him to the Twins, and two years later he signed as a free agent with Milwaukee. Last season, the Mets picked him up off waivers from the Brewers. Overall, Milone is 45-36 with 4.37 ERA in the majors.<\/strong><\/p>\n But at the end of last season, Milone started sensing pain near his left elbow. He had developed bone spurs, an ailment that would require surgery. That was the latest health issue in a string of problems that included a strained muscle in his calf and tendonitis in his bicep.<\/p>\n Throwing became uncomfortable, and Milone struggled with his command. For a pitcher who makes a living painting on the corners, that’s trouble. In 11 games with the Mets last season, he was roughed up for an 8.56 ERA.<\/p>\n “For the last couple years, I was going through things where I couldn’t do that (maintain his sharpness) consistently,” Milone said. “You’ve just got to keep moving forward. This is what I love to do. So I’m not just going to sit in my sorrows and sit back and be like ‘Woe is me.’ For me, it’s just looking back to the pitcher that I used to be a few years ago. I don’t feel like the magnitude of my injuries have been really bad. It’s things that I could probably take care of on my own.”<\/p>\n The Nationals felt he was worth a contract offer, dangling the possibility of some back-of-the-rotation innings.<\/p>\n “They were saying the fifth starter spot was open. When it all went down, it was more like they wanted me to come in and just get healthy,” Milone said. “It wasn’t going to be known if I’d be ready to go at spring training, or if it was going to be the middle of the year. It depends on how fast I’d be able to recover from that.”<\/p>\n And, as Milone appreciates, preparation and recovery in general takes a lot longer now than it did seven seasons ago.<\/p>\n “I would never get hurt back then. I could literally just run out there, do normal stretches and be ready to go,” he said. “Now, I have to stretch before I stretch. You have to do it. You have to take more time to get ready. That’s the biggest thing. I feel like I’m still fortunate enough that I don’t have to go through some of the stretching techniques that some people do to get ready.”<\/p>\n Milone should feel at home in Syracuse for as long as he stays here. His manager in 2011 was Randy Knorr; this year, Knorr is returning to the dugout to run the Chiefs again.<\/p>\n Knorr said Milone will get his first start of the season on Saturday, when the Chiefs visit Scranton\/Wilkes-Barre. If that rotation holds true, Milone would also take the mound for the team’s home opener April 12.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n