As I walked out of my house Saturday morning the first thing that captured my attention was the smell wafting through the air.
My neighbor was cutting his lawn and the scent of freshly mown grass in the spring always transports me to the baseball diamond. Every year I savor that first moment I get transported because I love the game of baseball and have my entire life.
With baseball beginning, though, I want to inform young ball players, coaches and parents throughout Marion County of a cautionary tale — my own.
Growing up I was always one of the biggest, strongest and fastest kids my age. I also threw the hardest and was the first kid my age to start throwing curveballs when I was just 11. Naturally the combination of throwing harder and having a curveball at that age made me practically unhittable. Nearly every game I pitched I rarely allowed a hit, though I walked and hit my fair share of batters every start.
I remember it like it was yesterday, throwing a complete game no-hitter against the team we never could beat — Livingston — with the right to go to the state championship on the line. However, we ended up losing that game 2-1 because of a few walks on my part and a few errors, but knowing I no-hit the best team in Louisiana stuck with me as a 12-year-old.
The following year, however, it all went downhill in a hurry. Before there were regulated pitch counts and innings limits it was always up to the coaches to pull a pitcher. Well, one game I was pitching into the fifth inning and I felt my shoulder starting to get sore. I wanted to finish the game so, of course, I didn’t say a word. But it didn’t take long after feeling that ache for my arm to give out.
I’ll never forget it as long as I live. The moment I released a curveball in a 1-2 count I felt something pop in my shoulder. Immediately I felt a numbness running from my shoulder down to my bicep and into my hand. My coach and dad saw it right away and came to get me out, but it was too late.
I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with a partially torn rotator cuff and spent eight months in physical therapy to try to strengthen everything else around it so that it would heal. My doctor believed I was too young at the time to go under the knife. Even after the extensive physical therapy I knew my shoulder wasn’t right — I felt it every time I threw — but I wanted to play so I lied and said that I was good to go.
It hurt for years, but I didn’t want to stop playing so I continued to keep my lips sealed. One day during my junior year of high school I felt it pop again. The pain was excruciating and my arm was so numb the trainer had to cut my shirt off of me. He believed I had just sprained my AC joint and a couple of days of rest was all I needed. Knowing my history, though, my parents weren’t convinced and had me go back to the orthopedic surgeon.
There was a hole in my rotator cuff where it never fully healed and I completely tore my labrum. So here I am at 16 years old undergoing reconstructive shoulder surgery. I went through 12 months of physical therapy, got cleared for football my senior year but never got cleared to pitch again, so I ended up missing both my junior and senior seasons on the diamond and never got the chance to play competitively again. It was a miracle in itself for me to get cleared for football because I knew my shoulder wasn’t 100 percent. I would’ve been lucky to even call it 75 percent.
Then when I was a sophomore in college I felt it pop again playing flag football. I went to a different doctor this time — not trusting the one who operated on me the first time since I never came close to full health — and was told I tore my labrum again. This doctor was honest with me and told me I could have the surgery again, but there was a 50-50 shot the pain would never go away. So I opted against it and still deal with the pain every morning I wake up.
So with baseball getting underway I hope there are a few lessons you can take away from my story.
First, don’t let kids start throwing curveballs until their body is physically mature enough to handle the stress it puts on the arm. Second, talk to the kids and let them know if they ever feel any bit of discomfort to stop immediately and make sure there isn’t anything seriously wrong. Lastly, manage their workload. There’s no reason to put an inordinate amount of stress on a young arm. It’s not worth it.
Baseball is a beautiful game, but it comes with risk. Educate yourselves and the young players in this town on the severity of arm injuries. I would never discourage anyone to play the game but simply remain mindful.
