Brandon Beachy will throw to hitters this weekend

LOS ANGELES -- Brandon Beachy will throw to live hitters for the first time as a Dodger at some point this weekend, either Saturday or Sunday, manager Don Mattingly said on Friday.

Beachy is recovering from two Tommy John surgeries, and last pitched in a professional game on Aug. 20, 2013. He has been throwing bullpen sessions of late, with increasing intensity.

"He's moving in the right direction. His pens have not been typical bullpen [sessions]. Now they have become three innings, throwing X amount of pitching, sitting down so long and doing it again, going through the starter's routine," Mattingly said. "His throwing load has increased slowly, and as we get to live BP he's getting closer to competition."

The Dodgers signed Beachy to a one-year contract worth $2.75 million plus a $3 million club option for 2016, with a $250,000 buyout if Beachy pitches at least 10 innings in 2015. The base salary of the option can be as high as $6 million depending on how many starts Beachy makes this season.

But before Beachy starts for the Dodgers, he will need a (likely lengthy) minor league rehab assignment first. That will come after he faces live hitters, but exactly when is unknown.

"I don't think we want to put a timetable with Brandon. We want to let medical do their thing with him. It's his second Tommy John surgery," Mattingly said. "We're taking our time with him."

Notes

There is also no timetable on when Hyun-jin Ryu will return, nor is it known when he will resume throwing. Ryu hasn't thrown since a bullpen session May 1. "We're in the question mark phase of when he will throw again. We don't have a date," Mattingly said.

Neither Carl Crawford (right oblique strain) nor Yasiel Puig (left hamstring strain) have resumed baseball activities. Crawford is working out at the Dodgers' facility at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz., while Puig remains with the team in Los Angeles.