Lefty throws for first time since 2009
When Adam Westmoreland walked over the first base line and toward the South Carolina dugout, he was reaching the end of a long, hard journey.
He got to make those final steps with the 7,316 in attendance on their feet.
"It was a relief. It was like 'Welcome back,'" Westmoreland said of the standing ovation. "[The fans] gave me a warm welcome and after that, it just topped it all off. It made it well worth the time off and the hard work to be able to get up and go out and pitch."
Appearing in his first game in 638 days after having Tommy John surgery in June of 2009, Westmoreland went 5.2 innings, scattering three hits while allowing no runs and striking out five.
"I thought he was good," coach Ray Tanner said. "The thing that was so important to me was he was comfortable. He wasn't trying to do too much. He was around the strike zone. Even when he was a little behind, he was close. He seemed like he enjoyed being out there."
Prior to Sunday, the last time Westmoreland had taken the mound was May 22, 2009 against LSU in the SEC Tournament — "forever ago," as outfielder Adam Matthews put it. About three weeks after that outing, the big lefthander from Cayce had the surgery, in which the ulnar collateral ligament is replaced with a tendon from somewhere else in the body.
The procedure, which has a roughly 85 percent full recovery rate, was an abrupt ending to what had been a promising freshman campaign. It also took away Westmoreland's 2010 season. Instead of vying for the Sunday starter spot alongside Blake Cooper and Sam Dyson last spring, Westmoreland found himself dealing with a grueling rehabilitation progress, which he took on with great perseverance.
Westmoreland hasn't just worked to rehab his left elbow, either. He's also dropped 40 pounds since he was a freshman.
"I feel like I'm in the best physical shape I've ever been [in]," Westmoreland said. "[Strength] coach [Billy] Anderson worked with me a lot in the offseason and we continue to work. He's ust helped me out and it's helped me tremendously losing weight."
All the hard work came to fruition and paid off against the Broncos.
Westmoreland didn't get the win — USC's decisive four-run sixth inning came with reliever Jose Mata as the pitcher of record — but that meant little in the grand scheme of things.
"He hadn't been out there in a while," Tanner said. "It isn't easy. Adam was outstanding today. I was happy to see that and I think he has a chance to get better as we go."
If Westmoreland can continue to progress and gain strength, that would be huge for USC. Cooper, the old reliable ace, was at the ballpark Friday for the opener, but he happened to be in dress pants and a collared shirt and leaving for spring training in a matter of hours. As USC goes about trying to defend its national championship, it'll have to do so with a new starting rotation.
Prior to the start of the series, Tanner said he didn't know if the three starters this past weekend would be the three starters next weekend, much less the entire season. Unlike Cooper and Dyson, he said, no one had earned the right to go out there every weekend no matter what struggles they may encounter in a given outing or two.
After receiving solid starts from Westmoreland, Michael Roth on Friday and Tyler Webb on Saturday, the argument could be made there's no reason to change the script this coming week against Southern Illinois, and if the solid performances continue, once league play opens.
"I think it's still too early to tell," Tanner said. "All of our starters gave us solid outings this weekend. You can say they deserve to start again next weekend. Maybe they will, but I'd still like to see a little bit more from some other guys ... but those guys did a nice job. They could all be there in three to four weeks [when SEC play starts]. We'll have to see."
For now though, it would be hard to argue Westmoreland has earned if not another start this coming weekend, than at least a serious look at a permanent spot in the rotation. He has to stay healthy, as Tanner said, but Sunday's showing proved his left arm is almost back to where it once was and will be able to contribute as USC tries to put itself in a position to get back to Omaha.
As a plus, Tanner said he saw a more mature pitcher than Westmoreland was as a rookie.
"He was a power guy. He was going to beat you with his stuff, not necessarily his pitch ability," Tanner said. "Now, he throws some two-seamers up there, he throws a change-up, he can dump his breaking ball when he needs to and his velocity is starting to come back with his four-seamer. I think that he's in a good spot right now."
Now, the next step is to see how the southpaw's arm feels after his first major workload in almost two years.
"Tomorrow it might be a little sore, but it feels good [now]," Westmoreland said.
Even if Westmoreland's arm ends up being sore, it'll be a welcome sore. After a long road, he has finally crossed the finish line.