Willis is feeling better but the club may still delay his next start.
"It felt a lot looser today," he said. "I'm not sure if they're going to give me some (extra) time yet. Regardless, I want to start three times before the (All-Star) break."
For now, the Marlins have Willis penciled in to start Sunday at home against Johan Santana of the Minnesota Twins. But the more likely scenario has Byung-Hyun Kim starting Sunday and Willis starting Tuesday, taking advantage of Monday's off-day to give him six days of rest.
"We also could start him Wednesday,'' manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "The good sign is that he came out today and played a little catch.''
Willis also clarified that the discomfort was on the inside of his upper left forearm but not on his elbow. The tightness is related to a collision with Cleveland's Grady Sizemore on June 14 when Willis was reaching to make a tag at first base.
The discomfort not being in the elbow could eliminate a Tommy John type of injury. However, it doesn't eliminate a Josh Johnson type of problem. Hopefully, it is just some pesky nerve that is being slow to heal, the way they sometimes do.
I do expect that Dontrelle's next start will be pushed back due to the organization wanting to be careful with him. I could be wrong, but Saturday isn't that far away and he is still feeling tightness in his forearm.
We shall see.