Owen Puk Back On The Mound After 13 Months

MIAMI, FL – On Friday, FIU baseball continued their preparation towards February 16th when the Panthers opened up the season against the Long Island Sharks, but one of the bigger developments and feel-good moments of the offseason occurred.

Owen Puk, a junior right-handed pitcher for the Panthers had to get Tommy John Surgery. For the first time in over 13 months, the righty took the mound and faced a couple of hitters.

“It feels great,” said Puk. “Over 13 months now, so I was pretty eager to get back out there and honestly there’s just not a better feeling than just going out there and competing, especially against your teammates too. It felt good.”

He had been throwing bullpens to get his arm going and back to what it was before his injury. In his final bullpen leading up to his life, Puk was hitting 96 mph on the fastball.

From what I was able to record, Puk struck out two and walked two, but the biggest development was his consistent velocity of 95-96 mph topping out at 96.7 mph.

“That’s the hardest I’ve ever thrown,” said Puk. “Just keep working and keep on going up.”

Puk’s arsenal consists of a four-seam, sinker, cutter, change, and sweeper. The last time he pitched was in 2022 where he made 12 appearances and threw 13 innings.

The expectation will be that Puk will be on a pitch limit for the first half of the season and in the second half, he will be a full go. This is similar to what redshirt sophomore Joel Pineiro did last season as he recovered from Tommy John surgery.

Opening day is set for Friday, February 16th against the Long Island Sharks at 6 pm. The Panthers will open the season here at the FIU Baseball Stadium.