Feb 27, 2025; Clearwater, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Matt Strahm (25) throws a pitch against the New York Yankees during the third inning at BayCare Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Dave Nelson-Imagn Images
CLEARWATER, Fla. - Matt Strahm has never been one to mince words.
He's open, honest, and unafraid to share his opinions.
So, when speaking with reporters Sunday morning for the first time after resuming throwing following a 10-day layoff for shoulder inflammation, Strahm wasn't shy about his prospects for Opening Day in Washington on March 27.
"I'll be ready," he said. "I think I'm ready now."
But the Phillies are pumping the breaks on that.
On Saturday, manager Rob Thomson said there is a chance Strahm is ready, but made it sound like there's an even better chance that he's not.
"I think there's a chance, O.K.? But we still have to lengthen him out, [have him throw a] bullpen, [get him in a] game," Thomson said. "I don't know whether we'll throw a BP (live batting practice) in there in between. Those things take some time."
Strahm will throw at 90 feet today, and then probably again on Tuesday. Come Wednesday or Thursday he'll have his bullpen session. An appearance in a game would likely be a few days after that - so there is still time, but there's not much wiggle room.
That's All-Star Matt Strahm to you pic.twitter.com/nRQal2jAq9
If they were to add a live BP into the mix, that could change the calendar calculus. But if it were up to Strahm, none of this baby step stuff would even come into play.
"It's up to them, but personally I don't feel like I have to," Strahm said about taking the slow steps back. "It doesn't matter if you're going to send me to Triple-A for an outing or in the Big Leagues, you're still going to get Matt Strahm. It doesn't matter if I'm at the back field against Aidan Miller, he's going to get it just the same as I'm going to give it to (Atlanta's) Matt Olson."
Strahm said the thing he and the trainers and doctors are going to monitor is the positioning of his shoulder, so it doesn't increase a bone bruise, which is what caused the inflammation in the first place.
"It's the positioning of your humeral head in your shoulder socket," said Strahm. "This is way past my junior college education, so I don't even know how to describe it."
Except, then he did.
"It's the position my arm falls into when when I pull it back," he said. "When the inflammation is out of there, it allows the muscles to work how they're supposed to. With inflammation, the swelling shuts off the muscles and with swelling, when I was extending my arm back it wasn't stabilizing my shoulder and my shoulder was banging around. So, as long as we keep the inflammation out and the swelling out, we'll be good."
Strahm's velocity was a tick lower than usual before he took the pause in pitching, but he wasn't worried about it because it was Spring Training and sometimes in March, it takes the entire camp to get to your usual velocity level.
"This is my 10th Spring training and Big League camp," he said. "So, I kind of have an idea of what I'm supposed to feel and how I'm supposed to feel and I don't need to look at the numbers for that. But I think I was down one-and-a-half miles per hour. If what I was feeling was causing that, I'll take it."
If Strahm does have to start the season on the I.L., the Phillies will likely take either Devin Sweet, who is on the 40-man roster, or Nabil Crismatt, who is a non-roster invitee, north with them for Opening Day.
