Injury News and Analysis
Football draft. Check. Pre-season practices starting for work. Check. Me losing whatever sense I had left. Check. On to the injuries:
Alex Gordon
Alex tore his upper quad most likely the Rectus Femoris muscle. I say this because initially it was described as a groin injury by various places and then quickly switched to the quad tear once it was released. The only muscle of the quad group that crosses the hip is the Rectus Femoris muscle. Because it crosses the hip it helps to flex the hip as well as extend the knee and is more prone to injury due to the two joints it crosses.
This could be a rather serious injury long term if speed was his game but thankfully speed is not in his repertoire. He’s most likely going to miss the rest of the season and how much it effect his development remains to be seen. He has the talent to be a superstar so he could be a very good sleeper heading into next year. Regardless, unless you have him in a dynasty league at a great price, I say it’s safe to drop him at this time.
John Maine
Manuel said that he probably will be shut down for the season if his side session doesn’t go well as he rehabs from a bone spur in his shoulder. Maine himself said that he was willing to pitch through the pain but I honestly don’t expect an athlete to say anything other than that. Management and the medical staff should step in though and not allow him to pitch if he does have any pain. Everything should be sorted out by Wednesday but until he has surgery to remove the spur there is always that chance that he will re-aggravate it. Maine did admit that he’ll need surgery after the season to remove the spur.
J.D. Drew
Drew has his yearly injury bug and it appears to hit him now after he was diagnosed with a herniated disk in his lower back on his right side. Herniated disks are very bothersome and they not only effect him directly with pain from the disk but also tightens up the lower back as a protective mechanism. Both are equally limiting to playing a sport that demands as much torsion across the trunk as baseball does.
It is not known exactly what caused the herniated disk but I do distinctly remember seeing him last season crash into the wall right at that level. He was out the next several days with a stiff back. Now I’m not sure if it was what caused the herniated disk but this could be a mechanism. Other mechanisms include poor posture, improper lifting techniques, and genetic pre-disposition.
The most important treatment now that the initial period has gone, is getting rid of the muscle spasms in the back. While these spasms are present, they cannot do any core strengthening which would ultimately help prevent any further complications arising from this. Depending on the severity of the herniation, surgery may also be a possibility. Expect news to come back either tomorrow or Tuesday regarding a trip to the DL.
Josh Beckett
Francona acknowledged that Beckett likely has elbow inflammation and not other maladies. I wrote about the possibility of this here and it seems to come out that way. Inflammation of that nerve usually lasts a couple of weeks minimum to get better. It’s already been about one so even if he does come back at the end of this week, I still don’t think he will be healthy enough to be effective. He really needs something the Sox can’t afford and that is an additional 2 weeks off.
Tidbits
Mike Lowell is scheduled to come off the DL on Thursday and has been rehabbing in Florida. I haven’t heard about setbacks. Chris Young threw a 40 pitch side session and will likely throw several more before a decision is made about activation. Julio Lugo is scheduled to undergo an MRI on his quad and may be out for the season. Tim Wakefield will be activated to take Beckett’s start on Tuesday. Joba Chamberlain threw a 35 pitch side session only mixing fastballs and change-ups and supposedly looked good. The next test is mixing in breaking pitches to see how his shoulder responds. At this point in the game the Yankees are not going to pressure him to come back ahead of schedule. Brad Wilkerson was placed on the DL with back spasms. Carlos Zambrano broke a molar chewing gum. Bartolo Colon is looking good in his rehab appearances and could be back soon. Justin Duchscherer went on the DL with his problematic hip. This is concerning because that is the same hip that gave him problem before. Sean Gallagher was placed on the DL with shoulder fatigue.
