His jaw wired shut after incident, Twins pitcher Jordan Balazovic just happy arm is feeling good

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Jordan Balazovic says he can pitch now, and he can do fielding drills and weight-room workouts, too. He can do everything his spring-training teammates do.

Except eat.

"It's a liquid diet right now, so a lot of smoothies, milk shakes, protein shakes," Balazovic said Tuesday through clenched teeth, his jaw wired shut by surgeons two weeks ago. "Just anything I can get down. [I'm trying] to do the best I can to maintain my weight."

He reported to camp in early February hoping to do his best to maintain his career, too, after a disastrous 2022 season that kept him stuck at Class AAA St. Paul during a summer in which the Twins were growing desperate for quality starting pitchers. Once the Twins' top pitching prospect, Balazovic intended to re-establish himself this spring in the Twins' plans.

But those plans were disrupted around midnight on Feb. 11, a few days before camp opened, outside an establishment in downtown Fort Myers. The 24-year-old insists he is the victim of an unprovoked ambush, assaulted by a stranger whose attack was both brazen and destructive.

"I didn't see it coming. I was walking, and the next thing I know, I got hit," Balazovic said. "There wasn't an altercation. I didn't say anything to the guy. I don't know the guy. And I ended up getting hit twice."

The second punch broke his jaw and required surgery to repair, with wires holding Balazovic's jawbone in place. After a night in the hospital, he reported to camp unable to pitch while his mouth heals. While police hunt for his assailant, Balazovic said, he is focused on regaining the weight — and the time — that the incident cost him.

Six thousand calories per day of protein powder mixed with pureed fruits and vegetables should take care of the first part. The second part, that will take some extra work, though he needs to take care not to reinjure the left knee that he believes hurt his career far more than a broken jaw can.

Balazovic reported to camp with soreness in the knee, a condition the Twins were unaware of due to the lockout. He tried to pitch anyway, but with his velocity down, hitters feasted on his pitches. Balazovic gave up 21 home runs, almost as many as the 22 he had allowed in his previous five seasons combined, and he posted ERAs of 9.82, 10.00 and 13.50 in May, June and July. His final numbers: 0-7, a 7.68 ERA and 37 walks in just 72 2/3 innings.

"Honestly, it was mostly the knee. Once that was a little shaky, it kind of threw everything off. I was landing and I didn't know where my arm was," Balazovic said of that lost season. "It was basically a puzzle to get back to where I needed to be."

He believes he found answers in September, when he had four good starts and only one rough one. His velocity rose to 95 mph after being stuck around 93 much of the season. He struck out 30 batters in five games, and his ERA was only 3.43.

"We saw some signs at the end of last year, where things were going a little bit better for him," said Derek Falvey, the Twins' president of baseball operations. "He needs to get going from a pitching standpoint here soon, and hopefully continue to progress."

That process will begin later this week, with his first bullpen session. He's behind his teammates again, just like he was during camp last year, but this time, "my knee and everything else feels good. My arm feels good and I want to keep it that way."

With the American League champions, he hit .261 in 108 games as a reserve outfielder and went 3-for-11 in the World Series as the Twins lost in seven games to the Dodgers.