An ultrasound examination of Garrett Richards’ right elbow Wednesday demonstrated additional healing in his torn ulnar collateral ligament, and the Angels will begin stressing his elbow with internal-rotation exercises and plyometrics to test his readiness to resume throwing.
Richards received a stem-cell injection into his elbow ligament on May 16 in an attempt to avoid Tommy John surgery. His first ultrasound examination six weeks later showed enough improvement that he was pronounced asymptomatic. Wednesday’s news gave the 28-year-old right-hander more hope.
“Stem cells are a remarkable thing,” Richards said. “The body heals itself, so that’s awesome.