Sheets: leads A's in innings pitched [Latest: Surgery 8/11/10, included Tommy John surgery]

[Roscoe Chill]

And the sky is blue.

I'm sure I'll get some flack, but this isn't surprising, and it's not because he was out all of last year. This injury, being out all of last year, and so on is/was a pattern. That doesn't mean he wasn't very good when healthy, he was just never going to stay healthy. You can't depend on Sheets as anything other than gravy.

[hawing]

That's unfortunate. I'm glad to have plenty of good Sheets memories on which to draw.

[twobrewers]

Other than Sabathia, there was no pitcher I enjoyed going to watch more than Ben Sheets.

 

I always felt something special was about to happen when he pitched.

 

*I miss those days*

[Oldcity]

Very sad news. Ben is my favorite Brewer of all time. An absolutely awesome pitcher who was criminally underrated during his prime.

[SenatorShriv]

What does this mean for Sheets career? Do you think that he throws in the towel or makes one more run at it?

 

I hope that he will come back to Milwaukee as an announcer once he decides to hang up the cleats.

[giffted1]

What would Ben's career have been like if he could have stayed healthy? A Cy Young or two? I think so.

[Invader3K]

What does this mean for Sheets career? Do you think that he throws in the towel or makes one more run at it?

 

I hope that he will come back to Milwaukee as an announcer once he decides to hang up the cleats.

Assuming his surgery goes well and he is able to rehab, I'm sure he'll try to come back at least once more. Some desperate team will be willing to risk $4-5 million on him, despite all the warning signs.

[Thurston Fluff]

And the sky is blue.

I'm sure I'll get some flack, but this isn't surprising, and it's not because he was out all of last year. This injury, being out all of last year, and so on is/was a pattern. That doesn't mean he wasn't very good when healthy, he was just never going to stay healthy. You can't depend on Sheets as anything other than gravy.

I don't know why you should get flack for saying it. It's not saying he sucked or you are happy you just spoke the truth. He reminds me of Ben McDonald only easier to cheer for. Great pitcher who just didn't have the durability necessary to make the career his ability dictated. I hope he does try again but understand if he doesn't. That's a lot of tedious work with little guarantee of results. Fortunately for him he made enough money to live comfortably but I'm sure he would rather be playing. In the end he may be serviceable but he'll never be the guy he was.

[SeriesFinale]

Kinda sounds like Big Ben is pretty disheartened and ready to hang it up if there's still pain:

 

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/twitter/topics/contributor?q=susanslusser

 

Sheets said he was shocked with the diagnosis. Last time, he couldn't even open doors his elbow was so painful. #Athletics

07.29.2010 at 02:07 PM

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Sheets: "If I came back, it would have to feel a lot better." he'll also have surgery just to help with normal everyday activity. #Athletics

07.29.2010 at 02:07 PM

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Sheets said he'd only return to pitching if he believes he feels better than he did this time around. #Athletics

07.29.2010 at 02:07 PM

[burnzy24]

Well if Ben can't pitch someone will pick him up for his bat. Being serious though, I loved watching him pitch and hope he can give it another shot.

[thablingster]

What would Ben's career have been like if he could have stayed healthy? A Cy Young or two? I think so.

He and CC would both be wearing pinstripes by now.

 

It's a shame he hasn't been able to stay healthy since the talent is obviously there.

[Funketown]

Big Ben's career will always be a story of what could have been. Just to reminisce on how absurdly awesome he was back in the day, check out his 2004 statistics:

 

34 GS

237 IP

264 SO

32 BB

8.25 K/BB

2.70 ERA

2.65 FIP

2.70 xFIP

 

That's Cy Young worthy most years.

[mletto157]

The craziest thing is 32BB!

[trwi7]

I feel bad for Sheets.

Not only did they need to repair his flexor and pronator tendons, he also needed Tommy John surgery.

I can't imagine he would even bother trying to rehab from something like that. It seems almost pointless.

[Ando Calrissian]

Well, considering the news, I just want to toss this out there: could Big Ben be the guy who eventually replaces Uecker? Ben has a great sense of humor, was good with stories, loves the game of baseball, etc. I'm fairly certain that this would be the longest of long shots, but is fun to think about.

[DHonks]

I'd always take a shot on a guy like Sheets with the Brewers. I hope he has the surgery and rehabs. He has far too much money to make in baseball to not give it a try

[crossface21]

I remember Opening Day 2007 when he threw a 2-hitter vs the Dodgers. Funnest game I've ever been to, and probably the best pitched, too.

[pitchleague]

unfortunately, it smells of Mark Mulder, where he'd try to come back for several years, never quite getting completely healthy or given another good chance and will have to retire about 5 years past the date he should have retired.

 

Get well, regardless, Ben.

[Invader3K]

Well, the last comments he made hinted that he would retire. Probably for the best at this point.

[Roscoe Chill]

Far too much money to make? $400K is a 96% pay cut for Sheets, why even try?

[GAME05]

Far too much money to make? $400K is a 96% pay cut for Sheets, why even try?

i'm thinking at this point, retirement isn't about having to take a 96% pay cut, but more that he doesn't want to end up as the 40-year-old ex-ballplayer who can't lift a fork to his mouth without pain. obviously we all hope his arm returns to at least normal-human levels.

 

 

[Roscoe Chill]

I was commenting on the post that said Sheets has a lot more money to make in the game of baseball.

[HiAndTight]

Except that Sheets didn't want to come back to Milwaukee. I would have preferred it too, but there was zero chance of it happening.

I've seen this speculated, but I never saw any Ben Sheets quote in which he was ruling out Milwaukee or anything of the like.

 

What I recall was that he said before the '08 season that he was waiting for the Brewers to call and then during the '08 season that he was going to test the FA market.

 

Do you have any links on this by chance?

[DHonks]

Ben's such a talented pitcher that at 90% of what he once was, he could make another $30-40 million in the game. And who knows, it could come back stronger.

[TooLiveBrew]

The best I can do is the "Sheets watch" thread after the '08 season. Several posts include links that are no longer active, but you can get a picture of the situation as it played out.

 

The one that I think best sums up things is here, quoting a McCalvy story for the Brewers' website.

The Brewers' official position remains that they have not closed the door on Sheets and his agent, Casey Close. But the team is unwilling to give the 30-year-old right-hander the multi-year deal he is seeking, and might not even offer enough guaranteed money in a one-year deal to pique Sheets' interest.

 

Proof of Melvin's open-door policy came just after the new year, when he reached out to Close. The call was prompted by two Boston Red Sox signings. First they signed Brad Penny to a one-year deal that pays a $5 million base salary with incentives that could add another $3 million. Then they finalized a one-year contract with John Smoltz that guarantees $5.5 million and could pay as much as $10 million with incentives.

 

Melvin wanted to know whether Sheets and Close were open to a similar offer, and it appears they were not. According to Melvin, the men have not spoken since. Close has not responded to multiple inquiries from MLB.com this winter.

 

Sheets' representatives reportedly tried to allay clubs' concerns about his injury history by releasing new medical information last week. If that's the case, they did not send that information to the Brewers.

 

That led Melvin to this conclusion:

 

"It doesn't appear that Ben will be back," Melvin said.