Taillon dominates in brief Altoona rehab start

Less than three weeks ago, Jameson Taillon was on an operating table undergoing a procedure to treat testicular cancer. On Sunday afternoon, he was back in his safe haven -- on a baseball mound.
Pittsburgh right-hander Taillon fanned six and allowed one hit over three scoreless innings in his first rehab start on the road back to the big leagues as Double-A Altoona edged Erie on the road, 3-2.

"It felt good," Taillon told reporters at UPMC Park in Erie after the game. "I felt like I was coming in in pretty good condition. I didn't feel too out of shape. My pitches were pretty sharp. I had a good feel for my curveball, a couple good two-seams. I thought my fastball command came and went a bit, but I think that's to be expected. I'm pretty harsh on myself, so I'm pretty pleased with it. I was really just happy to be out there."
On May 17, the Pirates announced a pathology report showed Taillon had testicular cancer. The 25-year-old had been placed on the disabled list on May 8 with groin discomfort. That day, the team said Taillon had been treated at Allegheny General Hospital for suspected testicular cancer.
"I really didn't miss that much time," Taillon said. "I missed a total of a couple weeks, so I didn't think I lost too much. I've been conditioning ever since I was able to after my surgery. Covering first, doing that type of stuff, maybe going forward I'll practice that between starts just to get my legs back, but I felt pretty good and threw 50 pitches.
"It's therapeutic. The pitching mound is kind of, I know it sounds corny, but that's where I feel comfortable. It's where I spend most of my time. That's my job."
Taillon threw his first bullpen session since the surgery on May 23. Sunday afternoon, in his first game action since a May 3 start at Cincinnati, Taillon spotted 29 of 47 pitches for strikes over three innings. He threw all four of his offerings, mixing four-seam and two-seam fastballs with a curveball and changeup.
"I was kind of hoping to throw them all and see where we're at," he said. "If I need to work on anything, it'll show up in the game and let me know."
Gameday box score
Taillon's start was about more than just getting back into game shape.
"I just met (today) with a guy who has stage 3 testicular cancer, underwent 16 weeks of chemo," he said. "He was with his kids, and his kids were with him through that whole process. We got to talk for probably an inning or so. It's cool to share those stories, and like I've said in previous interviews, it's part of who I am now. I'm more than happy to talk with people and share my experiences."
Taillon was asked whether he was surprised about the speed of his return to the mound and discussed his thorough evaluation process regarding his rehab assignment.
 
"You have to fight through a lot of different things," he said. "I've talked to a lot of different people. First, is it safe? The doctors said it's safe. Second, am I feeling healthy, am I feeling good about this mentally, physically? I did some soul searching. Pitching is what I do. It's what I want to do. I talked to people I really care about, people I respect and trust. For example, my dad just said, 'You're a baseball player. You've played since you were little. If it's safe to be out there, then I think that's what you should do. If it's going to provide stress and maybe not help you through this time, then maybe I wouldn't do it.' But here I am, so that's the answer.

"There's a protocol for Tommy John surgery. There's a book on it, and people do the same thing. For something like this, people are going to react differently. There's no playbook for it. This is our path."
Though his Sunday opponent was a Detroit affiliate, Taillon made his start just two hours north of Pittsburgh with a wealth of Pirates fans in attendance.
"It was exciting to be so close to our home park, a lot of Pirates colors, which was cool for me," he said. "Through this whole experience, the fans have been supportive. It's been cool. I appreciate everyone coming out. I'm excited to see what it'll be like at PNC Park."
That's where Taillon is headed next. He'll throw a bullpen session at the Pirates' home Tuesday.
 
"Based off of how I come out of that, we're going to decide," he said. "I'm definitely making way more (rehab) starts somewhere. We're just going to figure out where."