TJS

TJS

There have been a number of Tommy John Surgeries this season to MLB pitchers. Many outstanding medical people have weighed in with a tremendous amount of thought, reasoning, and data. I am not and will not ever be qualified to speak to the medical reasons for this recent rash of TJ surgeries. Even the eminently qualified medical people do not have an agreed upon reason or solution for the problem.

There is a group that believes, and rightly so, that all the pitching these kids are doing at an early age is a probable cause that shows up later in life. Whether it is throwing to many curve balls, elite travel teams, showcases, or pitch counts, kids today are throwing year round more than ever. There are some that believe the pitchers are throwing harder than ever and this is causing stress on the elbows. Others believe that it is “in” to have TJ surgery as quickly as possible when pain occurs because of the success rate.

What we have done at Frozen Shorts, when I was coaching little league, all the way up to U19 travel baseball, was concentrate on the mental aspect. I even asked my pitcher, when I went out to visit him on the mound with, all the infielders standing around, with the bases loaded in championship game, what he liked on his pizza. I told him I liked everything but anchovies. He looked at me, smiled and relaxed, struck out the last batter to win the game.

 All the way back to when my father was President of the Rochester Red Wings, then the Triple A  minor league franchise for the Baltimore Orioles, I noticed how much better athletes performed when they were relaxed and having fun. They were still very competitive, but the fun seemed to enhance their abilities, not deter them.

I garnered all this information, while continuing to learn and observe while I was a head coach in college hockey for 21 years. Athletes, when they had experienced peace of mind, still had the ability to get excited and perform at a high level. I evoked humor in high pressure situations, even telling a joke in the locker room in a tight playoff game, and asking my players if they were having any fun playing tight. I gave my players every Sunday and Monday off and we never practiced hockey the day after a game.

Now I am not saying that there is a comparison to MLB and all the pressure they have on them each and every game to win, to what I do. But there is a parallel. I believe that each team should have a masseuse on staff. They should also have a yoga instructor on staff and do yoga every day. Players should be given a break during the season. Do something different for a day. The day to day grind adds negative stress.

Now stress, whether it be the good stress, or the bad stress has a cost. Athletes today are bigger stronger and faster than they were even 30 years ago. But in the history of the world, 30 years is a micro second of a nano second in time, so the athletes achieved this superior talent through technology, and technology has a cost.

We are seeing both mental and physical stress and injuries to our young children that mirror what professional athletes are enduring. That should not be. We should embrace the fact that they are children and still growing and learning. We should allow them to have fun in a safe and nurturing environment, not one filled with pretend life lessons of winning and losing, toughness, and fake character building, that will never apply to them later in life.