Justin Duchscherer missed all of 2009 and most of 2010 following hip and elbow surgeries, but the oft-injured right-hander told Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com that he’s “pretty much 100 percent” healthy.
According to Ghiroli he’s held private workouts for at least five teams, and at various points this offseason Duchscherer has been linked to the Red Sox, Yankees, and Orioles.
All but 32 of his 224 career appearances have come out of the bullpen, but Duchscherer made it very clear that he’s not interested in relieving, saying: “I just don’t feel like, with the injuries I’ve had, that would be beneficial for my career. For me it’s black and white. I want to start, that’s the whole mind-set I have.”
Which is odd, because in most cases injured pitchers are encouraged to become relievers in an effort to stay healthier. If healthy Ducscherer could prove to be a very nice low-cost pickup, as he’s posted a 3.13 ERA in 455 career innings, but he’s 33 years old and has logged more than 60 innings in a season just once in the past five years.
