Don't Expect Much, If Anything, From Mulder
Mark Mulder's physical setback, in addition to his performance in his rehab stint in Triple
A, doesn't bode well for what, if anything the Cardinals are going to get if and when he manages to return. Mulder's latest injury, described as a strain in his surgically repaired rotator cuff, is a bad sign for a pitcher who has had nothing but shoulder problems over the past two seasons and is indicative of a long road back to even competing on a big league mound, let alone contributing seriously to the Cardinals surprising leap into first place.
In attempting to return from the initial surgery last season, Mulder was terrible before undergoing more surgery; he has been rehabbing in the minors this season, was looking okay for the first four games in A and Double A, and was awful in two starts for Triple A Memphis before this latest setback. It is starting to appear as if the Cardinals had better prepare not to have Mulder at all for now and possibly ever. If a pitcher has to choose which part of his arm to injure, he'd probably be better served to require Tommy
John surgery over rotator cuff surgery. The number of pitchers who have had and been unable to return from rotator cuff surgery is long and ominous, while Tommy John surgery has become so routine that it's not even seen as a big deal anymore. Alex Fernandez is one pitcher of recent memory who had rotator cuff surgery, came back, got hurt again and had to retire at age 30. Given Mulder's repeated setbacks and poor performance, it's hard to imagine him returning to big league competition and providing anything close to what the Cardinals expected when they traded for him.
Please check out and purchase my book The Prince Of New York's 2008 Baseball
Guide also available on Amazon.com and BN.com.
A, doesn't bode well for what, if anything the Cardinals are going to get if and when he manages to return. Mulder's latest injury, described as a strain in his surgically repaired rotator cuff, is a bad sign for a pitcher who has had nothing but shoulder problems over the past two seasons and is indicative of a long road back to even competing on a big league mound, let alone contributing seriously to the Cardinals surprising leap into first place. In attempting to return from the initial surgery last season, Mulder was terrible before undergoing more surgery; he has been rehabbing in the minors this season, was looking okay for the first four games in A and Double A, and was awful in two starts for Triple A Memphis before this latest setback. It is starting to appear as if the Cardinals had better prepare not to have Mulder at all for now and possibly ever. If a pitcher has to choose which part of his arm to injure, he'd probably be better served to require Tommy
John surgery over rotator cuff surgery. The number of pitchers who have had and been unable to return from rotator cuff surgery is long and ominous, while Tommy John surgery has become so routine that it's not even seen as a big deal anymore. Alex Fernandez is one pitcher of recent memory who had rotator cuff surgery, came back, got hurt again and had to retire at age 30. Given Mulder's repeated setbacks and poor performance, it's hard to imagine him returning to big league competition and providing anything close to what the Cardinals expected when they traded for him. Please check out and purchase my book The Prince Of New York's 2008 Baseball
Guide also available on Amazon.com and BN.com.
Why havent you addressed Dusty Baker letting Volquez throw 118 pitches the other day when the Reds won the game 9-0? I just found out about this reading Keith Laws chat.
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Why would I address it when I have no problem with it? Since you mentioned Keith Law, I'll assume he used it as an opportunity to bludgeon Baker again; it's not the number of pitches that cause a pitcher to get hurt; it's when his legs and back get tired and he imperceptibly alters his motion to account for his weariness and stresses his arm to maintain effectiveness.
And who exactly is Law to say anything about pitching workloads? He was a part of the Blue Jays front office in 2003 when Carlos Tosca ravaged the Blue Jays starting pitching staff by insisting on going to a four-man rotation, abusing Roy Halladay; and Chris Carpenter was battered to the point in 2002 where his arm blew out and he was released, only to surface with the duo of Tony La Russa and Dave Duncan in St. Louis and win a Cy Young Award. The Reds pitching coach is Dick Pole, whom none other than Greg Maddux has credited with teaching him proper pitching mechanics. I think Pole knows a little more about pitchers and pitching than Keith Law does.
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But why take the chance when the game is basically over? You know more about pitching mechanics than I do, but to have him stay out there and risk anything in a pointless situation seems a little ridiculous to me.
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I didn't see the game; Baker probably could have yanked Volquez earlier than he did. I can see both sides of the argument. I just think these guys don't like Baker and use any and every opportunity to rip him because he doesn't think like they do and isn't about to change.
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