Considering the number of players that have been injured this season already in baseball, I thought that I would tell you about some of the more stranger ways that baseball players are getting injured.
Matt Cain: Earlier this season Giants right hander had to be scratched from his scheduled start less than 2 hours before the game because he accidentally cut open his right index finger while making himself and sandwich in the Giants clubhouse.
A. J. Ellis: The Dodger catcher was placed on the 15-day DL today because of an ankle sprain he sustained while celebrating Josh Beckett's no-hitter yesterday. The team ran on the field and were jumping up and down and he landed awkwardly on his ankle. He was not even catching that game.
Michael Wacha: Cardinals right handed pitcher was removed from the game on Wednesday because he was hit by a line drive while he was sitting in the dugout. The Cardinals were batting and a foul ball came and hit him directly in his pitching elbow. Of all the pitchers sitting in the dugout, it hit him.
Santiago Casilla: The Giants reliever was told by manager Bruce Bochy not to swing in his meaningless at-bat in the 9th inning in Colorado, he swong at a 3-2 pitch and grounded out to shortstop, he then proceeded to go all out running to first base and is now on the DL with a hamstring strain. The Giants were winning 5-1.
Carlos Gonzalez: The Rockies star right fielder had to leave the game earlier this year because he felt dizzy after he swallowed his chewing tobacco. Wow.
Bryce Harper: The Nationals young phenom was criticized by manager Matt Williams for not running out a ground ball, and was taken out of the game for lack of hustle. A couple days later Harper tried to show his hustle by trying to go to third and dove head first and hurt his thumb (torn ligament in thumb). He was placed on the DL after. He is out for 10-12 weeks.
Micheal Pineda: Yankee right hander was suspended earlier this season for 10 games after he was caught having a strip of pine-tar on his nevk to aid him while pitching with is illegal. He made it so obvious to get caught by having it on his neck, you have to be very dumb to do that. While making a minor league start getting ready to come back from suspension, Pineda injured his back and had to come out of the game. He has been on the DL since May 6th. Karma will bite you.
WARNING: Tommy John Surgery Outbreak
This season there have been an unbelievable amount of pitcher that have needed to undergo one of baseballs top reconstructive elbow surgeries for pitchers, Tommy John. There have been 40 cases of TJ already this season, which is the cause for the sudden outcry and fearfulness running throughout baseball. Even the commisioner Bud Selig said that he is afraid of how far this outbreak might go, considering it has started to hit some of the top pitchers in the game today.
What is Tommy John Surgery?
When a pitcher has a tear in his ligament in the elbow (UCL tear) he will have to undergo surgery to replace the torn part and have a new ligament placed into the elbow. The surgery does not take long, but the recovery period for a pitcher is 10-12 month which is about a year before he can take a game mound. The reason for the lengthy recovery time is the elbow needs time to recover and restart the pitching motion and with the amount of stress that is placed on an arm for a pitcher, it takes a while to become adjusted.
Big name pitchers bitten by the TJ surgery this year:
Arizona: Patrick Corbin (ace)
Miami: Jose Fernandez (ace)
Atlanta: Kris Medlen (#2), Brandon Beachy
New York M: Matt Harvey (ace)
New York Y: Ivan Nova
Oakland: Jarrod Parker (ace), AJ Griffin
What is causing the sudden outbreak?
Nobody really knows for sure, they are trying to figure out the source of all the tears but no answer is in sight. What boggles my mind is MLB teams spend so much money each season on their pitching staff, why don't they spend some of their money instead on researching a cure or reason for all of these TJ surgeries to help protect their pitchers so that they will be worth the gigantic contracts that have been handed out. This injury is changing the world of baseball in a hurry.
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