Chunichi Dragons pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka skipped practice Thursday to seek a second medical opinion about a freak right shoulder injury sustained when an overzealous fan yanked his arm, the Central League club said.
According to a club source, the former Boston Red Sox starter departed the preseason camp in Chatan, Okinawa Prefecture, and underwent an examination Thursday. He is scheduled to receive another along with treatment on Friday.
"We want to get him back throwing as soon as possible," club spokesman Kazuo Nishiyama said. "We will get an immediate report (after the examination on Friday)."
Matsuzaka suffered inflammation in his throwing shoulder after a fan pulled his arm during a meet-and-greet event at spring training last week.
The club prohibited the 38-year-old right-hander from throwing in practice after he reported feeling discomfort.
Nippon Professional Baseball's 2018 Comeback Player of the Year, Matsuzaka went 6-4 with a 3.74 ERA over 55 innings last season.
He returned to Japan from the major leagues in 2015, with SoftBank Hawks, but had surgery on the same shoulder that summer. He pitched just one inning for the Hawks in three seasons before he was released a year ago, and signed with Chunichi after a tryout.
