Listen, we know it’s tough to catch up on everything happening in the baseball world each morning. There are all kinds of stories, rumors, game coverage, and Vines of dudes getting hit in the beans every day. Trying to find all of it while on your way to work or sitting at your desk just isn’t easy. It’s okay, though, we’re going to do the heavy lifting for you each morning, and find the things you need to see from within the SB Nation baseball network as well as from elsewhere. Please hold your applause until the end, or at least until after you subscribe to the newsletter.
Rich Schultz/Getty Images
★★★
Meet Mike Matuella: a junior right-hander at Duke, the projected overall first pick of the 2015 draft, and now the latest victim in a string of UCL tears among amateur pitchers. On Wednesday, news came that the talented righty would miss the 2015 season after tearing the ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow, just two weeks after Stanford sophomore right-hander Cal Quantrill and 2014 top draft pick Brady Aiken elected to have Tommy John surgeries of their own.
It certainly feels like every other pitcher is nursing a torn UCL, and for good reason. As FiveThirtyEight contributor Rob Arthur pointed out, the number of elbow surgeries required by professional pitchers from 2005-2015 has jumped by 115 percent when contrasted to the number of surgeries performed from 1995-2005. The upside is that damaged ulnar collateral ligaments can be repaired fairly quickly, giving major league pitchers an estimated 80 percent return rate.
It’s difficult to sustain that level of optimism when it comes to prospects, though, who have enough to prove when perfectly healthy. According to Baseball Prospectus’ Chris Crawford, any team interested in Matuella should also take note of the righthander’s spondylosis, a back disease that could curtail his success and longevity on a professional level. Regardless of the 20-year-old’s future in pro ball, the loss of Matuella and Brady Aiken will severely weaken an already mediocre selection in this year’s draft.
- It’s not just your imagination: baseball games are longer than ever.
- With Opening Day around the corner, beware the lure of small sample sizes and misleading analysis.
- Brian Johnson may be underrated by scouts, but the 24-year-old lefty could prove a valuable asset to the Red Sox in 2015.
- What does a sabermetric-inclined manager look like?
- Justin Verlander returned to the mound on Wednesday after cramping in his right triceps forced him out of his last spring training start. Tigers’ manager Brad Ausmus said the right-hander threw at 60 percent, and is prepared to push back his regular season debut if necessary.
- Pat Venditte could be the first major league switch-pitcher in 120 years.
- Phillies’ GM Ruben Amaro is not expected to receive an extension beyond 2015, an odd choice for a franchise looking to kick start a rebuild.
- Facebook confirms what we’ve known all along: The Mets and A’s don’t exist.
See More:
