Tonight Matt Harvey faces Stephen Strasburg. Normally that would be an exciting sentence for Mets fans, Nationals fans — heck, baseball fans in general. Instead, it’s a sentence that makes Mets fans cringe.
Why? Because Matt Harvey is a mess (at least, that’s how The New York Post describes it). And the headline is apt — Harvey admits
“I’m just not feeling comfortable throwing a baseball right now, so it’s frustrating.”
So what’s his problem? How can it be fixed?
More pitching injuries occur from spring training through the first month of the season — do you know why? There is at least one reason, and despite what you may remember of Tim Leary‘s Wrigley Field debut in 1981, it has nothing to do with cold weather. Listen to the first episode of season two … Read more
If you are a baseball coach or player, or the parent of a pitcher, watch below to learn about the safeties and dangers of pitching preparation, mechanics, and injuries. Yesterday I joined Sport Kinesiologist Angel Borrelli and Joe Castellano on the “It’s Your Pitch” Spreecast, and we discussed the following (among other topics): – How … Read more
Tonight on “Inside China Basin,” Joe Castellano will be interviewing Sport Kinesiologist Angel Borrelli, a scientist who focuses specifically on the pitching motion. FYI, China Basin is an area within San Francisco; the podcast is focused on the baseball Giants. Though this is not a Giants blog, obviously, some of you may be interested in … Read more
A few days ago, in the comments section, I said this: I wouldn’t be so quick to count on Johan’s return. If his recent bullpen session is any indication, his mechanics are still flawed and he’ll be re-injuring his shoulder sooner rather than later. Usually, it feels good to be “right” about something. In this … Read more
If you have been following this blog for a while, you may remember a few posts we did a few months ago with kinesiologist Angel Borrelli, who specializes in the biomechanics of the pitching motion. You might also have been wondering why we haven’t heard from Angel since then. Well, she’s been busy! For one, … Read more
It only took two starts for oft-injured Chris Young to land on the disabled list with the diagnosis of “biceps tendinitis”. Young was reluctant to be removed from the 25-man roster, but understood the decision from the standpoint of the team.
From The New York Times:
Young, who will miss at least two starts, said Friday night that he still felt some soreness in his shoulder but that no M.R.I. was scheduled. He planned to rest it for a few days, then begin throwing on Tuesday.
“The irritation in the biceps tendon is lingering, and the best thing for it is rest,” he said.
From Newsday:
The Mets’ desperate pitching situation actually got worse Saturday when Chris Young was placed on the 15-day disabled list with biceps tendinitis. Removing him from the rotation, however, was better than risking him against the Braves Sunday with a tired bullpen and the possibility of a setback.
“I understand completely,” Young said before Saturday’s doubleheader at Turner Field. “Doing what’s right for the team first, and secondly for my long-term health. Obviously, there’s a level of disappointment, too — this wasn’t what I’d hoped for coming into the season. But you can’t predict these things.”
Young, 31, made only four starts last season because of shoulder problems, and the Mets — taking into account those health issues — signed him to an incentive-laden one-year contract worth a guaranteed $1.1 million. Despite that history, manager Terry Collins said the team has no plans for an MRI, and Young said he doesn’t want one.
“I think at this point, the symptoms are more important than what you can see on the test,” Young said. “The MRI may or may not show something. It may or may not show something completely different than where I feel the discomfort. We’ve talked to the doctors, and treating the symptoms, I think, is the better solution at this point.”
From the above quotes, it doesn’t sound like Young’s issue is so serious; after all, if it was, he’d be getting an MRI, right? And to the common layperson, “biceps tendinitis” doesn’t sound all that dangerous. It sounds like something that might happen when one over-flexes his “muscle” to show off.
In truth, however, biceps tendinitis can be a very serious problem. Don’t take it from me, though — instead, consider what a scientist has to say.
