MILWAUKEE BREWERS

Jimmy Nelson still has a lot on his mind as he moves closer to pitching to batters

Todd Rosiak

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Jimmy Nelson was among the Brewers pitchers who threw a bullpen session on Friday, and according to manager Craig Counsell, "It went great."

PHOENIX – Jimmy Nelson can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

With the Milwaukee Brewers' Cactus League opener scheduled for Saturday, the right-hander is now tantalizingly close to throwing to live hitters for the first time since undergoing reconstructive surgery on his shoulder in September 2017.

"I’ve been trying to throw (live batting practice) for a week now," Nelson said on Wednesday afternoon.

"They’re pulling on the reins, but I’m just trying to keep the foot on the gas pedal. I’m going to keep pushing. I know what I’ve done and how hard I’ve worked and how hard the resources and people around me have worked as well."

Nelson has thrown three bullpen sessions thus far in spring training – two of which he described as extended – with another throwing session scheduled Friday.

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Manager Craig Counsell said he'll need to throw live batting practice twice with breaks built in to replicate the up-and-down of normal innings before presumably being cleared for game action, assuming no setbacks.

"I feel like the ball is coming out well," Nelson said. "They stuck me with all the hard throwers yesterday – (Brandon) Woodruff, (Josh) Hader and (Corey) Knebel – so I was like, ‘I’ve got to hang with these guys.’ But it felt good. Responded well.

"Each bullpen it seems like it’s coming out a little bit better each time with less effort. More consistent, smaller misses, being able to correct misses more quickly. That’s always a big thing."

In the midst of ramping up his efforts on the field, Nelson also recently made a trip back home to the Houston area. His wife, Melissa, underwent an outpatient surgical procedure in hopes of preventing a premature birth for the couple's identical twin daughters.

Nelson divulged late last month his wife had undergone a different procedure related to a serious condition called twin to twin transfusion syndrome.

"They said if she didn’t have the procedure this past Thursday she would have gone into labor this past weekend, and she was only at 21 weeks," Nelson said. "We were kind of holding our breath there for the weekend.

"She had her first appointment this morning since the procedure and her ultrasound went well. They said the babies look good. So she’s healthy, the babies are healthy. She’s just kind of laying low for a while."

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Nelson is appreciative of the Brewers' family-first focus, saying it was manager Craig Counsell and senior director of team travel and clubhouse operations Dan Larrea who convinced him to head back to Houston.

"I wasn’t even considering going home. I was just trying to throw last week," he said. "It’s tough just because I’m here and she’s there. We both have our battles we’re fighting.

"It’s kind of crazy because I can see how she felt for so long when I was dealing with my rehab stuff, because a lot of times she felt bad and helpless even though nothing was her fault and she was always helping me more than she knew.

"Now I’m kind of in that situation with her going through this. But she’s taking it great. I’ve been really proud of her and how strong she’s been."