http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_8191365


Dodgers' Schmidt slowly improves
By Tony Jackson, Staff Writer
Article Last Updated: 02/07/2008 12:54:48 AM PST

Dodgers right-hander Jason Schmidt continues to make strides in his recovery from major shoulder surgery last June. After watching him throw 45-50 pitches off a mound on Wednesday in Phoenix, Dodgers trainer Stan Conte said he is pleased with the progress Schmidt has made in his rehabilitation program.

That isn't to say, however, that Schmidt will begin spring training next week on the same program with the rest of the Dodgers pitchers.

"I don't think so," Conte said. "I think because of the surgery and everything else, he'll probably be on his own program based on how he progresses.

"That isn't to say we'll go slow or fast, but it's just to say it'll be pretty individualized with him. We're not going to go by the calendar. We're going to go by how he feels."

Schmidt, 35, joined the Dodgers as a free agent last winter, signing a three-year, $47 million contract. But it was evident as early as spring training that his velocity had fallen dramatically, and he wound up making just six starts before undergoing surgery to remove scar tissue from his bursa sac and repair a torn labrum and frayed biceps tendon.

Club officials remain hopeful that Schmidt can be in the Dodgers starting rotation by the time the season begins on March 31, but that is far from a certainty.

"He has been off the mound six or seven times," Conte said. "This was the first time I saw him, and it was kind of what we expected ... which is good at this point."