FREE NEWSLETTER:

This Week in BIR

Sign up now!

Your E-mail Address:

We will not share your e-mail address with any other company. privacy policy

This Week…
-- Can Yankee Hurler Avoid DL
-- Dodgers’ Closer on the Mend
-- Chronic Injury Restricting N.L. Slugger
-- Twins Ofer Finally Turns Corner
-- NEXT WEEK @ the Baseball Injury Report

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
This Week in BIR                  February 3, 2006
Issue 2
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Welcome to the second edition of This Week in BIR. This free e-zine will cover a wide range of injury topics. Ranging from player analysis, DL Stats, a weekly look at key players due off the DL and much more. All to help you better manage your injury situations.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

>>Featured Note of the Week<<

Can Carl Pavano Avoid the DL in 2006? 
When we review Cark Pavano’s first season with the Yankees, it could be argued that his physical struggles began very early in the year. So I decided to look back at his pitch logs in 2004, looking for signs that far back. I didn’t find any. Therefore, we can surmise Pavano’s struggles started in spring training or early in the 2005 season. His trip to the disabled list started on July 7 but we saw indications of struggles as far back as spring training with the command and control of his pitches. For the record, he had tendinitis in his rotator cuff and pain in his humerus (the upper arm bone). The MRI done at the time he went on the DL didn’t reveal any structural damage. His off-season workout program is focused in building up balanced arm strength to prevent muscle weakness and tendinitis in his pitching shoulder. Early pre-spring training reports are positive but they usually are with most players. Not until they get into camp will we get a better gauge of their status, it’s no different with Pavano.

Will he remain healthy in 2006? In his major league career, he’s been on the DL four of his eight seasons. His shortest stint was 61 days in his second major league season. So if you play the odds, he has a 50-50 chance of getting hurt this season and being on the DL for two months or more. Do I think it’s going to happen? I think the Yankees caught a minor ailment, which could have steam rolled into a more serious injury. Luckily for Pavano, the Yanks are conservative with pitcher injuries and it might have saved him from developing a tear. His risk getting hurt again is higher than the average pitcher and must be factored into our draft preparations

The Dodgers Believe Gagne Will be Ready for the Opener
Earlier in the off-season, Gagne talked about pitching in the WBC in March. This is a far cry from June 2005 when it was thought he needed a second Tommy John surgery. He still needed surgery due to pain in his pitching elbow. Once the elbow was opened up, it revealed scar tissue damage and the need for some cleanup. The ulnar collateral ligament was still intact and the Tommy John surgery was cancelled. While this is good news, the fact he had two elbow injuries in 2005 can’t be ignored. The medical staff visited with Gagne recently to check out his throwing sessions. He’s already throwing from 60 feet and handling his long toss with any problems. He dodged a bullet by not needing a second Tommy John operation. Now the question is can he avoid more elbow problems in 2006? The Dodgers believe he will but I can help but wonder if the UCL (ulnar collateral ligament) healed properly and won’t tear again in 2006?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
BULLETIN
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>How Many Points Did Injuries Cost You Last Year? <<

Last year, over 350 players went on the DL. The average fantasy team struggled with 10 players spending time on the DL, plus more players with injuries that didn’t land on the DL. Lots of injury questions and the Baseball Injury Report has the answers for you! Get out of the gate fast and finish strong by greatly reducing injury risks during your draft and throughout the season.

-- Avoid drafting pitchers who are high injury risks in 2006
-- Steer clear of players who will spend a good chunk of the 2006 on the DL
-- Modify draft rankings of players with lingering injuries early in 2006
-- Bypass players with declining skills due to recent injuriesBe a charter subscriber and sign-up now for Fantasy Baseball’s FIRST and ONLY All-Injury Resource!

https://www.baseball-injury-report.com/subscribe.html

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kubel Making Progress in His Recovery From ACL Surgery
While playing in the Arizona Fall League in October 2004, Kubel tore his anterior, posterior and cruciate ligaments in his left knee. Pretty extensive damage and rare for a baseball player. His recovery has been long and not without a few minor setbacks. A good sign came recently when the medical staff gave him the green light to remove the bulky knee brace during workouts. Kubel hasn’t reported any pain or swelling since he stopped using the brace. He’ll have tests during the spring when he’s on the bases and when he gets on the field. He’s likely to begin the year in the minors but it shouldn’t be because of the knee. Physically, the knee should be ready for the majors early in the season.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------LAST WEEK @ the Baseball Injury Report
-- The DL Ledger and over 100 Injury Situations Updated!
-- The First Injury Speculator
-- An Up and Coming Young Hitter to Avoid in 2006
--  And much more!


THIS WEEK @ the Baseball Injury Report
-- 4 Pitchers Almost Guaranteed to Land on the DL
-- Two Injury Plagued Players at the Crossroads (no it’s not Ken Griffey Jr).
-- The Latest Updates in Injury News
-- Will Houston and Toronto Repeat as Healthiest Teams  00?
-- And much more!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

>>Injury Speculator Excerpt<<

The Baseball Injury Report introduced the INJURY SPECULATOR column this week. Once spring training games get going the column will focus on current player situations. In the meantime, the Speculator took a look back at one offensive player who struggled with a just released ailment last spring.

Is Helton’s Back Ailment Robbing Him of His Offensive Production
It was revealed during the 2002 season; Todd Helton was diagnosed with a tumor and bone spur in his back. In time, a cyst was discovered and surgery was scheduled. While receiving treatment, the cyst began to dissipate and it was decided to allow the cyst to dissolve. The spur would be watched closely and treated with anti-inflammatories when needed. Surgery wouldn’t be an option unless absolutely necessary. A look at his playing career reveals a two-year stretch from 2000-2001 where he produced a .698 and .685 .SLG percentages. During this two-year stint, he produced 113 doubles and 91 homers. His numbers in 2002 support the talk that his back woes started then. Toward the later part of the season, a bone spur and tumor (later to be declared a cyst) started taking its toll on him. His SLG in 2002 dropped to .577, his home run total declined to 30 with just 39 doubles. The cyst dissolved and the inflammation in his back subsided enough that surgery was cancelled during the offseason between 2002-2003 seasons.

Helton started taking better care of his back, strengthening muscles to take some of the strain off his troublesome back. The results were positive. His SLG rebounded to .630 and his batting average to .358. The 2004 season was almost a mirror image of 2003 and it looked like Helton curtailed the decline in his offensive production.

Helton’s 2005 season will be remembered as much for another decline in numbers as it was for steroid accusations by a former Rockie broadcaster. The broadcaster later retracted the insinuation Helton has used steroids but the damage was done to Helton’s reputation. Maybe the steroid incident influenced Helton’s (and the Rockies) decision not to reveal Helton hurt his back lifting weights last spring. He said the strained back bothered him most of the season but he wouldn’t blame his subpar (by his standards) season on his back. The 2005 season was a disappointment, and his numbers were 20 HR, 79 RBI .320 BA, all career lows.

The plan this off-season was to rest the back, then to build up his strength and flexibility. Helton enters the 2006 with the same bone spur discovered in his back in 2002 and his flexibility has declined the past few years. His swing has gone from one of the highest torque types to a much more reserved style. No doubt due in part to his back.

When we look at Helton’s medical history and compare it to his offensive production, his back ailments coincide with the drop in numbers. Last year his numbers dropped because of his back troubles. If his history is any proof and we believe it is, the best Helton could rebound to would be his 2004 level, but it’s unlikely this will happen. Declining back strength, flexibility and the bone spur point to a season something between 2004-2005 levels, nothing more.