Diamondbacks’ Alek Thomas joins Triple-A Reno in final rehab step

Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Alek Thomas has taken the next step of his prolonged rehab from a hamstring injury to join Triple-A Reno, where he will lead off and start at center field Tuesday.

Thomas was initially planning to join Reno by the end of last week but was dealing with “general soreness,” the team said. He remained in the Arizona Complex League for five total games, the last of which came Saturday.

“We’d hate to rush him and have a longer problem, I think that’s more of what it is,” D-backs president and CEO Derrick Hall told Arizona Sports’ Bickley & Marotta on Thursday. “We gotta get all these guys back, but we gotta make sure once they’re here, they stay here. And that’s what’s really the concern with Alek.”

D-backs manager Torey Lovullo did not commit to a specific number of games Thomas will play for the Aces before his return. He said it was hard to say whether he would be back with the D-backs this week.

“At least a couple games for sure, just let him get over those little speed bumps,” Lovullo said. “Get out there, play full speed against a team in another uniform. I know the ACL and the live at-bats are fairly similar, but I always feel like, you’re in a hotel room, you get up that morning, you go to the field. It’s just getting into that rhythm of playing a game. It’s a total return to play situation. So I feel like a couple games at least.”

Thomas has been away from the D-backs since March 31.

The center fielder took time off and then played in three games with Triple-A from May 3-5 in an initial rehab stint before the Diamondbacks shut him down due to a setback. He received a platelet-rich plasma injection the following week to treat the hamstring flare-up.

For the MLB club, Thomas appeared in four games prior to the injury. He recorded three hits — including a double and a home run — four RBIs and three strikeouts in 14 at-bats.

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