Rich Olsen will take his biggest stride for the first time in about 11 months Tuesday at Les Murakami Stadium.

That's when the Rainbows' senior right-hander will throw off a pitcher's mound for the first time since having Tommy John surgery May 2.

That is just a start in his determining whether to make his comeback this season or wait until next year. He said he will consult with the coaches, his physical therapist, Pat Ariki, and his surgeon, Dr. Lewis Yocum.

"I have to see what they think, whether I should come back or not," Olsen said. "But it's pretty much up to me."

Olsen is considered ahead of schedule for the procedure performed by Dr. Yocum, who has operated on a number of big leaguers. Shane Komine of the Oakland Athletics and Tyler Yates of the Atlanta Braves were back in action in about a year. But Olsen's teammate, Mark Rodrigues, took a little longer and sat out two seasons.

Olsen has made plans for either decision. He will graduate this semester with a degree in communications. If he does return, he plans to enroll in graduate school, so he can be eligible to play. Since he already had a redshirt year, like Rodrigues, UH will need to seek a sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA.

After the surgery, Olsen said he did exercises to strengthen his arm. He did not throw until mid-September. He didn't start lifting weights until November. He also had to strengthen his rotator cuff because he was told that is the injury that usually follows because of the inactivity of the arm for such a long period.

His throwing program was a gradual build-up. It was usually observed by UH trainer Neal Santiago, UH coach Mike Trapasso or pitching coach Chad Konishi.

"You start off three months on flat ground, throwing from 45 feet for five minutes," he said. "It progresses all the way where you go up to 120 feet for 20 minutes."

Olsen was off to the best start of his UH career when he got injured. He was 1-0 with a 1.59 earned run average. He had 19 strikeouts to three walks in 17 innings.

But on March 31 in a game against San Jose State, he pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings of one-hit ball. In that game, he heard a pop, but didn't give it much thought.

"Sometimes you just hear weird stuff when you're throwing," Olsen said. "So I just threw my next pitch and it was super sore. (The batter) got a ground ball and got on base and I took myself out. I walked off because I couldn't throw the ball hard. I kind of knew already."

Olsen said the initial diagnosis was a forearm strain. But later a magnetic resonance imaging test revealed a torn ligament.

"I thought I was having my best season, so I was kind of bummed," Olsen said.

He wasn't just having a good season, as the Rainbows were also en route to their first regional appearance since 1993.

Still, Olsen kept his spirits up during rehabilitation, which he did at Sports Medicine Hawaii.

"I knew it was going to heal because I looked at Rodrigues," Olsen said. "And Pat (Ariki) does a real good job of rehabbing and keeping track, so I knew I would come back. Right now, I feel stronger. Everyone says my arm looks a lot looser, looks real strong."

Olsen looks forward to returning, whether it be this season or next. Despite the setback, he still harbors hopes of a pro career, like his father, former Rainbow Richard Olsen. While there might be apprehension about cutting loose when he returns, he said he is ready to meet the challenge.

"I'm not too tentative about letting it go," Olsen said. "I'm not too nervous. If it (getting injured again) happens, it happens. If not, great, huh?"

Reach Stacy Kaneshiro at skaneshiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.