As a matter of fact, it’s kind of spooky how Wood and Prior have had similar injury arcs. Wood’s problems started with his Achilles in 2003 and later that season he also experienced back spasms. In 2004 he started having problems with his arm in the form of a triceps muscle injury, and there were reports that he had been suffering from a bad back for years. Prior also had a back problem back in 2004 after his Achilles was an issue, and has had a series of injuries from an oblique strain to shoulder and elbow problems.
The Prior/Wood Saga is a story for another time. But suffice to say that this situation provides a case study for how not to handle the arms and bodies of two young, stud pitchers.
Now back to the Yankees.
During spring training outfielder Bobby Abreu pulled an oblique muscle that cost him three weeks, and on opening day centerfielder Johnny Damon wound up with two bad calves, one of which was injured to the point that it kept him out of the starting lineup for 3 games. Damon says that he still isn’t 100% and can’t run at full speed.
In addition to Matsui’s hamstring pull that occurred from running the bases, these are all injuries that can be blamed on training. Being that it’s this early in the season these kinds of injuries could be a season-long problem for the Yanks.
Starting pitcher Andy Pettitte experienced back spasms and missed a spring training start after doing squats during his training. According to the Yankees, Pettitte was doing squats on the advice of his personal trainer. There is nothing inherently wrong with a pitcher performing squats and this could be a minor issue. However, knowing exactly what Pettitte’s squat routine consisted of would be helpful to properly evaluate this injury. Hopefully for Pettitte and the Yanks these back spasms are an isolated incident and will not become a season long issue. This is another reason as to why teams need to exert greater control over the training engaged in by their players.
Article comments
1 - grg
Any thoughts on PEDs contributing to the injuries?
2 - sal m
Unfortunately in this day and age PEDs are always related to the injury rate, both directly and indirectly.
3 - Tan The Man
Apparently the new Yankees' training regimen de-emphasizes running. Sound smart?
4 - sal m
it depends what kinds of running they are deemphasizing...if they aren't sprinting, they are going to suffer injuries and not be in shape. if they are distance running, they are still not going to be in shape to play baseball.
i'd like to see the details of what their running program is.
5 - Tan The Man
Yeah, I would to. But either way, running is probably the easiest way to get in shape.
6 - Tan The Man
Check that.... "simplest"
7 - sal m
again, depends on what kind of running that they are doing. there's no reason for any athletes - except distance runners - to distance run.