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April 13, 2009

Under The Knife

Help, I've Fallen and I...

by Will Carroll

Brandon Webb (15 DXL)
While others spent the weekend looking for hidden eggs, I was doing a search of my own, trying to figure out what exactly is wrong with the D'backs' ace. There's some discrepancy between the public diagnosis and the symptomology, as well as some confusion about the treatment. The MRI taken on Friday found a swollen bursa sac in his shoulder, one that's already responding to treatment, though one report of his saying that massage is helping just confuses matters, since the injury shouldn't respond to that. I can only guess that Webb's shoulder merely felt better after a massage, and he came to a less than scientific conclusion. Bursitis is easily controlled in most situations, but the Diamondbacks aren't taking any chances, pushing him to the DL. The key here is that the inflammation should be easily controlled, allowing his shoulder to move normally. With his velocity down last time out, we have to think that he wasn't able to get full force despite his normal mechanics, but once the inflammation is gone, the velocity should come back quickly. There's no way to know this before seeing it, so we're acting on faith. That said, it wasn't long ago that Dr. Andrews concluded that the shoulder was fine. Even with this move, I still think that Webb will be back at the minimum, showing a return to form.

Mark Teixeira (5 DXL)
Teixeira missed the weekend's games with tendonitis, saying that it happened after he had fallen and landed on his wrist. So, we have a usually chronic condition brought on by a traumatic event. The more likely result after that kind of fall would be a minor strain or sprain (if it weren't involving tendons, which we assume it is, since the Yanks are calling it tendonitis). Teixeira's normal slow start doesn't usually include an injury. While he's expected back by Monday, sources tell me that the team will move to a cortisone injection if the pain and swelling aren't gone by then, which would cost him a few more games. The concern once he returns is that it may sap him of some power; a sure thing in the short term, but much tougher to read for the longer term. We may look back at his April '09 line and think it was just another slow start.

Cole Hamels (0 DXL)
After Hamels looked more like Jamie Moyer than the Hamels we're used to in first start, Phillies phans began to panic. A lack of innings might explain the lack of command, but not the significant loss of velocity. His elbow pain doesn't explain the velocity loss either, though with his extra work on the side, it could be that his mechanics are out of whack enough that he's unable to get into the ball. Hamels didn't report any issues with the elbow, so there is some positive news. Scheduled to go on Thursday, the Phillies are watching Hamels, and may elect to push him back if they don't see an improvement in his velocity and command. It's too early to be worried, but another (literally) slow start will set off panic.

Hiroki Kuroda (20 DXL)
It caught almost everyone by surprise when Kuroda went on the DL. The Dodgers quickly made the move, pulling up Eric Stults from Albuquerque in the midst of a span of offdays that will deflate the fifth starter's role. His oblique strain happened in his first start, though he didn't report the problem until his bullpen session. The pain and tightness in the muscle were "significant," I'm told, and it could be as long as a month before he's ready. Joe Torre gave Kuroda the Opening Day start as something of a message that he was going to be the leader of the staff. Without him, it's going to be very difficult to limit the innings on Clayton Kershaw and James McDonald early in the season, which could make the thin Dodger rotation a real problem during the second half that might require an acquisition. This could be where Pedro Martinez finds an opening.

Chipper Jones (1 DXL)
Jones plays through major injuries, so it should be no surprise that he's playing through a bruise on his left thumb. According to sources the injury affects him more from the right side, though none of them could explain to me exactly why. He did hit a home run while playing through it, and he may have aggravated it by hitting for power, since he hasn't hit for an extra base since having to take the day off. Don't be surprised to see Bobby Cox find him another day off sometime this week, even with Monday's scheduled break, but Jones essentially writes his own name into the lineup. Assuming that this is as minor as it appears, he should only be diminished for about a week, though you never really know with him. Some players can play through pain, but few excel doing it the way that Jones has throughout his career.