I wanted to share a small, but very telling article on what seems to be a never ending saga of Brandon Webb’s ailing pitching shoulder. Take a look at the article, and get ready to drink in my take on the garbage Mr. Webb is being fed.
Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Brandon Webb, who remains on the disabled list as he continues his comeback from shoulder surgery, is changing his arm slot after a visit with a rehab specialist, the Arizona Republic reported.
Webb, the 2006 National League Cy Young Award winner, this week visited a rehab facility in Birmingham, Ala., connected to noted orthopedist Dr. James Andrews. Through the use of motion-sensing technology, it was determined his arm slot was too high, according to the report.
“I have to retrain,” Webb said, according to the report. “Even though I’m almost 10 months out of surgery and I’ve been throwing for five months, I’ve been almost wasting my time throwing bad.”
Webb said he was told his arm slot was at 110 degrees, which is higher than it was before he underwent surgery, according to the report. He said he was told the arm slot for elite pitchers is usually between 88 and 102 degrees.
Webb, who hasn’t pitched in a major-league game in more than a year, started the season on the 15-day disabled list and was placed on the 60-day DL on April 17. He went 22-8 in 2008, his last full season.
(ESPN.com)
Brandon Webb has been battling shoulder issues for two years now. You might remember the decision to “wait and see” how is arm felt after a few months of a silly “shoulder strengthening rehab,” before a doctor cut Webb open to find… wait for it… “no structural damage.” (I know MRIs aren’t the be-all-end-all of knowledge, but what do you think the doctor said after he scarred Webb for life? “Well look at that. The MRI was right! Well… I guess we should sew him back up!”)
The rehab facility in Birmingham, Alabama, has been around for twenty years. It has pioneered the use of motion-sensing technology, which if used correctly, could be an incredible tool for eliminating pitching (or just throwing) injuries. Yet in the time they have been around, and with all the information they have gathered – and made public, pitchers have been getting hurt at a higher rate than ever before (including our youth pitchers). It’s a good thing they have an orthopedic surgeon like Dr. Andrews “connected” to their facility!
According to the data, “elite pitchers” have an arm slot between 88 and 102 degrees. My first question: where is the arm slot angle measured from? Is it from the elbow? Is it from the shoulder? Is it from the spine? Is it from the ground?
My second question: What pitchers are considered elite? In my mind, when I think of elite pitchers, I think of Pedro and Clemens. Wait. Both of those guys had arm problems and surgeries. Maybe elite means having “perfect mechanics,” which could only mean Mark Prior. Wait. He can’t pick up his arm anymore. Maybe elite means being the ultimate competitor like Orel Hershiser, or even Kevin Brown. Wait… I’m not getting anywhere with this…
My third question: Do pitcher suffer more shoulder injuries if they are below 88 degrees, or higher than 102? Or does the data show that if you fall out of that elite window, you’re hosed either way? (I know the answer to this one, but you’ll have to wait a second before I fill you in. 
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As far as Webb’s 110 degree arm slot goes, isn’t it a good thing that he’s NOT throwing from the same arm slot that caused his shoulder problems to begin with? I mean I’m not the brightest bear in the woods, but if I got hurt doing something a certain way, I would try NOT to do it that way again. Right? I know he was an elite pitcher – before he got hurt (if we go off of his 22-8 mark in ’08, and his Cy Young in ’06), but doesn’t the decision to returning to his old form sound a lot like Einstein’s definition of insanity?
Why did “they” wait until ten months out of surgery, and five months after resuming throwing activities, to tell Webb, “You’re doing it wrong.” Did he report any discomfort? Didn’t they have a plan in place BEFORE he left the O.R.?
“I have to retrain.” Funny, I thought when Webb raised his arm slot, he was retraining.
For the record, one of the ways to significantly reduce and even eliminate shoulder pain, is to RAISE your arm, or more specifically, your upper arm. The lower your “arm slot” gets, the more the shoulder feels it.
Last point:
“I’ve been almost wasting my time throwing bad.” Sadly, he’s wasting his time in other ways now… and still not even close to throwing “good.” I liked watching Brandon Webb throw. It’s too bad I’ll never get to see him throw that way ever again.
Coach Bones
