Steven Wright optimistic that being on 25-man roster for opener within reach

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Only a few days ago, Steven Wright wasn't even contemplating being ready for the start of the regular season.

As Wright threw to hitters to the first time in almost a year, he wasn't paying much attention to his mechanics or the path of his knuckleball. Instead, he was focused on how his surgically-repaired left knee was responding. Pitching in a game of consequence seemed a long way off.

But after Saturday's second session -- a three-inning live batting practice exercise -- Wright quickly shifted gears, and the notion of taking his regular turn in the Red Sox rotation in the first few days of the season suddenly looks quite realistic.

"I felt strong,'' said Wright after the outing. "I felt like the ball was coming out of my hand really good, so it's definitely a huge day for me. I was able to stay in my mechanics. Last time, I was more concerned with 'How's my knew going to feel? How's my knee going to feel?' Today, I was more like more into the mechanics of throwing, and actually could work on my craft.''

In order to "re-enact game-like situations as best as we could,'' the Sox had Wright pitch out of the stretch when it seemed like the previous ball in play had been a hit. That, too, helped sharpen his concentration and treat the session like an actual game.

Asked if he felt like he had time to get ready for his first turn, Wright didn't hesitate: "I think so,'' he said. "Obviously, today was a huge, huge step in the right direction. Every day, we've been going in a positive (direction). But if I get one more live BP, or even a sim game or whatever the scenario is, I feel like there's no reason I shouldn't be ready for whenever that first turn might be.''

Even though he was cautious in assessing his progress earlier in the week, Wright said starting the season in the rotation was "ultimate goal.''

A big milestone for Wright was being able to stop thinking about the knee and how it would respond in competition.

"Days like today, when I'm really challenging it, are huge,'' he said. "That ability to get that uncertainty out of the back of my mind (is big). The last couple of days, it's responded really well. There's still a lot of gray areas about what the rehab's going to be, but over the last couple of weeks, it's been nothing but positive."

Wright said he still wakes up with a sense of uncertainty every day. But once he gets his scheduled treatment and begins his physical activity, that uncertainty ebbs away.

Even during some difficult days of rehab, Wright never gave up hope that he could be ready for the start of the season, and now that that's less than two weeks away, it appears more and more realistic.

"If I can do one or two more of these (sessions), there's no reason I can't (begin the season),'' he said. "I'm not going to sit here and say for sure, because I just don't know. But if I keep progressing the way I have been, there's definitely a good chance that I'm going to be able to break with the team.''