Injury News and Analysis August 31st
Chipper Jones
After my article on my site Fantasy Baseball Strategy described how many athletes hide injuries, Chipper is being reported to have several nagging injuries, including Quad, Hamstring, and elbow problems. He is an example of an athlete who at times may be too tough for his own good. Most likely his current elbow problem is related to all of his other problems and likely will not go away until his other problems go away. He hit a HR last night so it’s not like he loses all of his productivity, but it can’t necessarily help things. Ultimately he’s not gong to be healthy the rest of the season, and having this many problems, means he’s going to have many of the same issues next year as well. You are going to have to expect only 100 games played next year out of him, so if you happen to have him as a keeper (if you got him at a great price) you’re going to have to adjust accordingly.
Todd Helton
He took batting practice for the first time since landing on the DL close to 2 months ago. He has also taken infield practice so he appears to be nearing a return. Taking BP for a couple days in a row is basically the last step before returning because the shearing force across the low back is much much more stressful than than bending over for infield practice. For someone with a herniated disk or protruding disk or other problems with the spine itself, the rotational components are always much harder than the flexion required for infield practice.
So I would expect him back in about a week as long as he doesn’t have any further issues.
Jeff Kent
The Dodgers are waiting on MRI results but they fear that his career might be over after possibly tearing his cartilage even worse. He has been dealing with torn cartilage in his knee for a while but apparently it’s much more severe now than before. To me it appears to either be damage to the meniscus where he would have to have it repaired (rather than removed) or damage to the articular cartilage. The articular cartilage cannot be repaired nearly as easily as the meniscus can and therefore has a much more lengthy rehabilitation. Until we hear the official rehab results, we can never know for sure. I won’t hold my breath on it though.
Rick Ankiel
LaRussa is now suggesting that Ankiel will be suffering from the abdominal issue the remainder of the year. This isn’t good news, especially when he also suggested that the moment he feels that playing him isn’t in Ankiel’s best interest, LaRussa will shut him down for the year. Abdominal strains tend to linger as they are required foe everything, including breathing. So having it last for this long, especially after not resting, doesn’t surprise me.
Carlos Zambrano
He’s been scratched from his start today due to a tired arm. Many people have noted, including Will Carroll of Baseball Prospectus, that it appears he is dropping his arm down and is “slinging” the ball up to the plate rather than throwing it. They also note that his velocity appears to be equal. This can be typical in that he recognizes his arm is tired so he exerts more effort trying to pitch. I’m not sure if I’m concerned for the remainder of this year, although this does start to set off minor alarm bells. I’m sure that the Cubs will give him as much time as he needs off during the regular season, as they are putting everything into the playoffs. His workload in the past has been a concern so this may finally be the time that it is catching up to him.
Josh Beckett
Now this concerns me. He was diagnosed with a strained right elbow and placed on the DL on Friday. The swelling around the elbow likely caused the neurological symptoms in his hand. After seeing Dr. Andrews, he was diagnosed with an elbow strain. For any pitcher, elbow strains can be a problem but being a power pitcher, it is that much more of a problem. The Sox and Beckett are going to have be more cautious and not risk damaging the ligament or nerve by pitching before the muscle is healed. Muscle strains usually take at least a couple of weeks to heal and given that he has already had a week off he is likely at least a week away.
Tidbits
Chris Young will be activated and start on Monday. J.D. Drew took batting practice on Saturday. He’s going to need several more days before he comes back so even though he’s able to come off the DL on Tuesday I don’t think that will happen until later on in the week. Justin Duchscherer most likely will be activated to start in the doubleheaders. Ian Kinsler is trying to come back on September 9th after hitting off the T recently. Yorvit Torrealba was placed on the DL with a torn meniscus. Vincente Padilla was placed on the DL with a strained hamstring. Kevin Gregg has a sore knee and is most likely going to miss the next week.
