Colorado Rockies: Mike Nikorak nearing return from Tommy John surgery

Colorado Rockies prospect Mike Nikorak is nearing the end of a long journey back to the mound after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He is thankful he isn’t going through the process alone.

Nikorak, a first-round pick (27th overall) of the Rockies in the 2015 draft, recently took a few minutes out of his schedule for an exclusive interview with me. It has been almost 12 months since the right-hander underwent surgery for a torn UCL. Now, in the days between spring training and extended spring training, Nikorak and Javier Medina, Rayan Gonzalez and Evans Grills are continuing to work through their recoveries from Tommy John surgery at the Rockies facility in Scottsdale, Arizona.

“We are all eager to find out where we’re going,” said Nikorak, who will likely begin his comeback at short-season Grand Junction or Boise. “Rehab can be a grind but having the other guys around allows you to push through with other people.”

Even in rehab, there is a camaraderie in baseball that can’t be broken. Being a part of a team is the one thing that Nikorak says he has missed the most since last pitching on July 28, 2016, for Grand Junction.

“You miss your teammates,” Nikorak said. “When you’re rehabbing, you’re segregated from the other guys during spring training because you can’t throw and there are limitations on what you can do. I missed putting the gray pants on and being there with my teammates.”

However, the day is getting closer for Nikorak to rejoin a squad. He says he is ready.

“My velocity has been right there and the ball has been coming out of my hand good,” the Hackettstown, N.J., native said. “I’ve been letting it go but not going 100 percent. There’s nothing to prove in a bullpen session.”

Check out the video of Nikorak’s selection by the Rockies below…

Nikorak said it took “a week or two” after he first began throwing to regain his feel, saying the baseball felt “super light.” However, he is now throwing all of his pitches and told me he is feeling “pretty close” to being back to where he should be on the mound.

Colorado Rockies

“I know it’s different from person to person, but when I get back into games and start competing again, that’s when I know I’m back,” Nikorak said.

It has been a long journey for Nikorak, who said hearing he would have to have surgery “sucked the wind” out of him. However, in the back of his mind, he also knew it was something he might have to face someday.

“The first week was rough. Knowing you wouldn’t be in a game for at least 12 or 13 months, I was upset. No one wants to have to go through this,” Nikorak explained. “But, as a pitcher, in the back of my mind, I knew I would probably have some kind of setback during my career. This type of thing is almost becoming regular with pitchers.”

Nikorak won’t turn 22 until September so there is still plenty of time for him to work back into Colorado’s plans for the future. His focus for the moment, however, is the immediate future and where he will begin his path back to playing baseball regularly.

“If I come into spring training next year and I’m on the field and pitching without trainers or coaches having a leash on me, that will be a success,” Nikorak said. “I’m not worried about numbers. I pitch best when I have the mentality that I am going out there to get the win and not worry about any numbers.”

Nikorak credits Rockies trainers and physical performance coaches for getting him in shape and almost ready to take the mound again.

“I started doing squats the day after my surgery,” Nikorak said. “I knew I had 12 months to get ready and I feel like I’m there.”

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Note: You can follow Nikorak on both Twitter and Instagram by clicking on the respective links.