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DETROIT — For the first time since rupturing his left Achilles tendon in December, Astros reliever Joe Smith threw a full bullpen session on Tuesday at Comerica Park.

The veteran sidearming righthander threw 20 pitches to catcher Max Stassi under the supervision of pitching coach Brent Strom and a collection of Houston athletic trainers.

“I feel like it’s February,” Smith joked afterward. “I feel good. I feel like my body is free. I feel like I’m moving great. I don’t feel like my left foot is jamming me up at all.”

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Running and fielding his position remains Smith’s biggest obstacle. He completed various shuttle drills and flat-ground running in right field after his bullpen session concluded, the same routine to which Smith has adhered throughout the last two or three weeks.

“I looked like I had a flat tire for a little bit and then it got warmed up and the next few went really good,” Smith said.

“I would say it’s right where I wanted to be. I know when we first talked about this, they were talking about after the (All-Star) break. We still have a long way to go, but as long as things keep responding well, we keep adding stuff and hopefully it continues to do that.”

Smith hopes he can return before the July 8-10 All-Star break. Typical recovery time for this injury ranges from 6-8 months. When Zack Britton had a similar surgery in December 2017, he returned on June 12, 2018.

Manager A.J. Hinch said Smith will throw another bullpen session in Boston later this week, after which the righty will “potentially be ready to face hitters,” be it in simulated games or live batting practice sessions. Hinch cautioned that Smith is “not anywhere close to game action yet.”

“It’s slow steps along the way, he hasn’t had any issues whatsoever with it,” Hinch said, “About every series he tells me he’s ready to be activated, but he’s got a little bit of a spring training type workload that we need to draw up.”

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