Seeing the College World Series reminded me
While in a cranky mood today (a drunk driver hit my brand new car earlier--luckily there was no damage!), I decided to look up how some of the old Rice pitchers have been doing since they graduated. Remember Jeff Niemann, Wade Townsend, and Phillip Humber? I do.
I remember the spring of 2003, when I was just finding out how badly Kenny Baugh and Jon Skaggs fared at the beginnings of their pro careers. Baugh, after throwing 300 pitches in a four day stretch, almost had his arm fall off as soon as his final season at Rice ended. Skaggs and Baugh both missed 2002. When I found that out, and I noticed that those two had some of the highest pitch counts in all of baseball (not just college), I wrote a letter to the school paper. (I was still in school then.) In my letter, I complained that Rice coach Wayne Graham runs his pitch counts up too high and endangers his pitchers' futures. It certainly happened with those guys. My letter didn't get printed, probably in part because a call to fire the baseball coach doesn't tend to go over well when he's just about to win the NCAA championship.
Today, as the Rice team needs only one more win to advance to the championship series, I looked over how the last generation of dominant pitchers did after getting out of school. You know what I found? Tommy John surgery for Phillip Humber and Wade Townsend, and shoulder surgery for Jeff Niemann. Sad.
I know injuries happen to pitchers a lot, but should serious injuries like that happen to every pitcher? About the only thing they have in common is that Graham seriously overused them in college. It's like he's on loan from the Chicago Cubs or something. I'm tired of it.
He could also be on loan from the Twins or Devil Rays, what with a reliever starting yesterday's game.
I don't know how much longer I can support a baseball program that rips up players' arms. I suppose this is why I make sure that my yearly donation to my alma mater goes back to a specific department. As much as I like seeing a winning team wearing the Rice name, I don't appreciate the way Graham treats his players. You'd think it would be obvious by now that his approach doesn't help them.
The University doesn't make any money off the team, so it won't be a big loss when Graham finally retires. I hope the next guy can use Graham's reputation to recruit good players, but take better care of them.
I remember the spring of 2003, when I was just finding out how badly Kenny Baugh and Jon Skaggs fared at the beginnings of their pro careers. Baugh, after throwing 300 pitches in a four day stretch, almost had his arm fall off as soon as his final season at Rice ended. Skaggs and Baugh both missed 2002. When I found that out, and I noticed that those two had some of the highest pitch counts in all of baseball (not just college), I wrote a letter to the school paper. (I was still in school then.) In my letter, I complained that Rice coach Wayne Graham runs his pitch counts up too high and endangers his pitchers' futures. It certainly happened with those guys. My letter didn't get printed, probably in part because a call to fire the baseball coach doesn't tend to go over well when he's just about to win the NCAA championship.
Today, as the Rice team needs only one more win to advance to the championship series, I looked over how the last generation of dominant pitchers did after getting out of school. You know what I found? Tommy John surgery for Phillip Humber and Wade Townsend, and shoulder surgery for Jeff Niemann. Sad.
I know injuries happen to pitchers a lot, but should serious injuries like that happen to every pitcher? About the only thing they have in common is that Graham seriously overused them in college. It's like he's on loan from the Chicago Cubs or something. I'm tired of it.
He could also be on loan from the Twins or Devil Rays, what with a reliever starting yesterday's game.
I don't know how much longer I can support a baseball program that rips up players' arms. I suppose this is why I make sure that my yearly donation to my alma mater goes back to a specific department. As much as I like seeing a winning team wearing the Rice name, I don't appreciate the way Graham treats his players. You'd think it would be obvious by now that his approach doesn't help them.
The University doesn't make any money off the team, so it won't be a big loss when Graham finally retires. I hope the next guy can use Graham's reputation to recruit good players, but take better care of them.