The often controversial relationship between Dice-K & the Red Sox is over for this year & maybe for good. The Sox announced that their Japanese pitcher will undergo Tommy John surgery which has about a year's recovery time. By the time Dice-K is ready to pitch again it will be late 2012 & his contract will be expiring.
Unfortunately, Rich Hill may be headed in the same direction after his elbow popped in his last mound performance against the White Sox. Seeing Hill go down reminded me of a former teammate & subsequent Orioles great Mike Flanagan. The same thing happened to Mike in a national tournament in Oregon back in 1970. Luckily, he never needed surgery & he went onto win a Cy Young Award & a World Series ring.
When you see a crisp, sharp breaking ball there is a lot of stress put on a pitcher's arm to make that ball break. Hence, a lot of pitchers throw out their arms. Even today, my pitching arm is unable to fully straighten at the elbow from years of too many curveballs. Pitching is an unnatural act on your arm. But that's why the pro's get paid the big money.
Tommy John is a household word in the majors these days. That's why it's important for young kids in Little League not to start experimenting with breaking balls too soon.
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